Hercules’ problems have been well publicized in various media outlets, including PublicCEO. Solutions to the problems have been the subject of speculation. However, the person tasked with implementing reforms and instituting changes in the city has a track record that may equal the challenge.
High on the list of obstacles Steve Duran has to over come is a bevy of public works projects that are behind schedule, over budget, or forgotten all together.
His cool, task-oriented demeanor was demonstrated when an interviewer from the Contra Costa Times asked him how he would overcome all of the challenges before him. His response was a joke about eating an elephant – where it’s done one bite at a time.
From the Contra Costa Times:
Hercules’ new city manager is a self-described “anti-bureaucrat” with a track record of finished projects and no taste for fantasy-based urban planning.
Steve Duran promises a sharp contrast with the former city manager, Nelson Oliva, who left Hercules reeling from a financial crisis and conflict-of-interest allegations that led to shake-ups of City Hall and the replacement of all five members of the 2010 City Council, two of them by recall.
Meanwhile, several wildly optimistic Hercules projects are stalled, abandoned or broke.
Read the full article here.