THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, October 16, 1994 TAG: 9410130485
SECTION: COMMENTARY PAGE: J3 EDITION: FINAL
COLUMN: IN THE CITIES
SOURCE: BY TONI WHITT, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 78 lines
Hampton Roads cities are taking their first, tentative steps toward a concept that has been creeping across the nation.
Cities that are overwhelmed with trying to provide services are turning to their citizens for help.
``I believe we expect too much of government from all levels,'' said Amitai Etzioni, a sociology professor with The George Washington University. ``Government spins its wheels and huffs and puffs, and in the end there is more crime, more noise and more hatred. At some point, government must say, `We will deliver this much, and the rest has to come from someplace else.' ''
Portsmouth officials have gathered citizens from across the city to seriously and frankly discuss racial issues and to build a bridge between black and white citizens.
Virginia Beach uses volunteers to staff everything from city-sponsored events to public libraries. Folks have begun helping the police patrol their neighborhoods in Norfolk and Portsmouth.
These are rudimentary things that can help spur a more active and aware citizenry, which in turn can provide greater hope for the cities in which they live.
Officials who have been involved in this say it's exciting and it's scary. After all, it seems the last time citizens got really involved in government they overthrew the British Empire and put George Washington in charge.
Cities aren't afraid of a revolution; in fact, some quietly say it's exactly what they need. At local meetings this past summer, government leaders lauded this new revolution and called for more organized efforts to spread the idea of government based in the communities rather than at City Hall.
In Virginia Beach this past summer, the communications department brought in several experts and invited officials from each of the Hampton Roads cities to talk about getting more citizens involved in duties that have traditionally been relegated to government.
City employees listed their fears at that meeting and at a national conference held in Hampton last month. They fear:
Citizens' standing over them as they try to do their work.
That only gadflies will accept the invitation to participate and use it as an opening to further criticize their work.
The chaos that naturally comes with change.
But city managers, politicians and community leaders are excited about the opportunities. They want to boast of successes like Roanoke's, where the tax rate has dropped 40 cents from $1.63 to $1.23 in the past decade.
So why aren't cities everywhere using those tactics to save money, time and energy? It's a question some cities across the nation are just beginning to struggle with while other cities have long relied on their citizens to raise money for public projects or to entice new businesses.
Members of the National League of Cities met in Washington last month to brainstorm ideas to get more cities involved.
``Because of the public's distrust and lost faith in their elected officials, it's necessary to reconnect citizens to local government . . . and increase their involvement in the decision-making process,'' said Gardest Gillespie, a councilman from Gary, Ind., who attended the brainstorming session. ``This is essential if we are to change the public's perception of local government and local elected officials.''
Without citizen involvement, experts say, things will only get worse.
But those who already have gone through the process warn: Decide quickly whether this is what you want to do.
``Once you let the genie out of the bottle, it's impossible to get it back in,'' said Roanoke City Manager W. Robert Herbert.
Once citizens get excited about having a role in their community - and they will, Herbert said - it's impossible to take that away from them without further alienating them from government.
So far the things that Virginia Beach, Portsmouth and Norfolk have done involve little risk and have provided small results. But if those cities officially embrace the concepts of citizen participation in government, then the risks as well as the potential payoffs are likely to rise. by CNB