State of the City

By: Ernie Wren

This past Saturday morning Mayor Dorise Slinker provided the Ashland Optimist Club updates on the current state of the City of Ashland and current activities within the community (credit given to Letitia Denhartog for reporting on the Optimist meeting). Mayor Slinker addressed the increased staff morale and the positive work environment created by the city being currently fully staffed. During and immediately following the initial portion of the pandemic, city staffing shortages along with normal attrition had left the city short-staffed in some areas, such as the police department.

The mayor also gave an update on the transition from the former city hall location, which has gone very smoothly. The city now uses a cloud-based accounting software along with cloud-based utility metering that allows for real-time meter data transmission and calculation. The citywide Wi-Fi access has been improved including a complete GIS mapping system which helps with new developments and city boards. The city has also worked on offering opportunities for staff members by emphasizing staff appreciation events and options for professional development. The years of experience for staff members of the city is somewhat balanced between employees having 30+ years of service and staff with five or fewer years of employment. With this personnel makeup, we need to continue to examine best practices to improve our systems and offer professional development, as opposed to doing things the way they have always been done.

See more in this weeks Boone County Journal