DATE: Sunday, August 3, 1997                TAG: 9708030094

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B3   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY KAREN WEINTRAUB, STAFF WRITER 

DATELINE: HAMPTON                           LENGTH:  119 lines

HAMPTON'S MANAGER DEPARTS FOR TOP JOB IN FAIRFAX COUNTY

Somehow, after the video tribute and the speech, he snuck off the stage and ducked the applause of the 500 people who had gathered to say goodbye.

It was a typical move for City Manager Bob O'Neill, who has spent the past 13 years giving credit elsewhere for triumphs he could rightly claim.

Others say he has played a crucial role in virtually everything positive that has happened in Hampton during his tenure: the revitalization of downtown through the construction of the Virginia Air and Space Museum, the Radisson hotel and new office space; the arrival of Gateway 2000 and other successful businesses; the reorganization of city government and the nationally recognized innovations that have resulted; and a new level of citizen involvement.

He also is credited with being a regional leader. He has worked mostly behind the scenes to help foster trust among area officials, and was the driving force behind a new state program to provide financial incentives to regional cooperation.

``I hate to say anyone is not replaceable,'' Hampton City Council member Joseph H. Spencer II, said Friday, ``but if there is one, it's probably Bob O'Neill.

``After Bob's gone, people will appreciate him even more - not only in Hampton, but in Hampton Roads.''

Monday, O'Neill starts his new job as county executive of Fairfax County, the largest jurisdiction in Virginia. He got a $20,000 raise for the move, and, he says, the challenge of a lifetime.

``If you're going to be in local government in Virginia, Fairfax . . . is the place,'' he said. The county has eight times more employees and residents than Hampton. He will go from managing a budget of $250 million to one topping $1.77 billion.

O'Neill spent the weekend moving his things into an apartment across the street from the county administration building. He will commute to Hampton on weekends to be with his wife and four teenage daughters until the second-oldest graduates from high school next year.

Assistant City Manager George Wallace takes over the Hampton job Monday. But O'Neill's legacy will far outlast his departure, officials and residents on both sides of Hampton Roads said last week. Last Monday night, his farewell party drew a crowd of 500 to the Virginia Air and Space Museum.

Norfolk Mayor Paul D. Fraim, who attended the party, describes O'Neill as ``a real hero.''

``I think Bob was one of those few people who truly understood the need for regionalism,'' Fraim said. ``He had closely examined his own city and I believe he drew the conclusion that Hampton's success was going to be tied to regional success.''

O'Neill was one of the ``brains'' behind the Regional Competitiveness Act, a state plan to improve regional cooperation across the commonwealth, Fraim said. This year, Hampton Roads will get $1.5 million of the state pot created by the act.

``Now, with Hampton Roads being the leader, 17 regions across the commonwealth have applied for funds,'' Fraim said. ``And most of those folks were people who had never thought about doing things cooperatively.''

During last winter's effort to lure a National Hockey League team to Hampton Roads, O'Neill was one of a handful of people who worked dozens of hours to help hammer out the deal. Although the NHL rejected Hampton Roads' bid, many area leaders say the cooperation helped build a foundation upon which future regional efforts can grow.

``When the region was searching for a formula to regionally fund an arena, Bob was one of those people - one of the few people - everyone in the region felt could comfortably broker such a deal, could be trusted to broker such a deal,'' Fraim said.

Art Collins, executive director of the Hampton Roads Planning District Commission, helped work those and other regional ideas with O'Neill. Collins said O'Neill's departure will leave a vacuum, but he's glad O'Neill will stay in Virginia.

``We should more fully develop the relationship between Northern Virginia and us,'' Collins said. ``Having someone in Northern Virginia who has a pretty good understanding of Hampton Roads - it'll provide the possibility for a bridge between the two communities.''

O'Neill also is credited with getting citizens more involved in the governance of their city. O'Neill provided classes, set up advisory panels and really listened to resident's concerns.

Neighborhood activist Chad Gilbert, one of the first students in Hampton's ``Neighborhood College,'' said O'Neill made him realize he needed to play a role in his community's and his city's future. Since attending the college, Gilbert has helped develop a customer-complaint system for the city and is now working to revitalize his Wythe neighborhood.

``(O'Neill) has been the guiding hand to me,'' said Gilbert, a civilian worker at Langley Air Force Base. ``If I hadn't have met him, I never would have continued along the way I did.''

Assistant City Manager Mary B. Bunting also credits O'Neill with helping her achieve her potential. He expects a lot of his employees, but he rewards those accomplishments, too, and never tries to take the credit for himself, Bunting said, describing O'Neill as a ``dream boss.''

``He has been able to instill an environment where people care about each other,'' she said. ``I really believe that he has created a culture that people believe is the right way to do government and that (his successor) George Wallace will want to continue.''

O'Neill reorganized the Hampton city government, pushing decisions down the hierarchy, encouraging cooperation across traditional city departments, and providing raises for accomplishments, instead of just seniority.

For this, O'Neill earned a national reputation for innovation. He won several national awards and was the subject of a chapter in a new book entitled ``Banishing Bureaucracy: The Five Strategies for Reinventing Government.'' The youth-at-risk initiatives developed under his watch were featured in an ABC-TV special in the spring.

Hampton City Councilman Spencer said O'Neill's ability to get more from his employees - while balancing the city's books - made him the kind of city manager councils like to have around.

``He was in touch with so many needs and saw a way for us to accomplish so much with limited resources and limited personnel,'' Spencer said. ``He got the very best out of the folks that worked with him and the revenue that was available. You can't get any better than that.''

While packing his desk and making his last farewells Friday morning, O'Neill said most of the change he brought just made sense for the city and region he calls home.

``Hampton Roads has just enormous potential,'' he said.

``It's such a wonderful place to live, that if the region can continue to work together on strategic issues, I think the prospects for the area are great.'' ILLUSTRATION: Photo

Bob O'Neill is a respected advocate of regionalism and has helped to

build trust among area leaders.

Send Suggestions or Comments to webmaster@scholar.lib.vt.edu