Department of Public Services

Goal 1:

Provide general oversight and administration of the Parks and Recreation Department, the Major and Local Street Departments, the Water and Sewer Departments, Riverside Cemetery, and Equipment Fund activities and functions

Objectives:

• Interact on a daily basis with the Superintendent of Streets and Construction and coordinate activities and to insure successful completion of ongoing operations.
• Interact on a daily basis with the Contracted Operator acting as Superintendent of Utilities to coordinate operations and activities to insure successful operation of the Water Treatment Plant and the Waste Water Treatment Plant.
• Communicate as needed with the City Manager to insure operations comply with the overall guidelines and objectives established by the City Council and administered by the City Manager.
• Provide effective feedback and communication as necessary to modify methods and practices within the various Departments, aligning them with the strategic objectives established by the City Council and City Manager.

Goal 2:

Provide an effective and convenient point of contact for the residents of the City and others to communicate problems, needs, and desires regarding the services provided by the departments administered

Objectives:

• Provide sufficient staff to allow timely response to inquiries from the public.
• Provide and promote communication to allow proper and effective response to public inquiry to the extent that such action fulfills the objectives established by the City Council and the City Manager.
• Foster continued internal development of practices to continually improve the methods used in interacting with individuals outside the departments.
• Work to maintain and improve the departments’ reputation developed through many years of exemplary service.

Goal 3:

Provide a center of authority for personnel administration and development for employees working within the departments

Objectives:

• Promote effective vertical and horizontal communication at all levels of the departments.
• Provide and promote methods of individual and group development within the departments.
• Adequately staff the department to address personnel and personal issues. Foster a community sense of pride in occupation and a desire to improve and excel.

Goal 4:

Provide a central point for storage and efficient access of records containing information regarding utilities, infrastructure, planimetrics, topography, and other physical conditions and improvements within the City

Objectives:

• Bring existing records and data files up-to-date.
• Develop electronic, tangible, and other methods of data storage which provide the most convenient manner available of updating and accessing information.
• Provide staff and coordination of contractual work to accomplish the above tasks.
• Provide staff to effectively support public and internal access and retrieval of information contained within the data storage system.

Goal 5:

Continue to develop a more focused Code Compliance function by engaging, training, and directing the part-time Code Compliance Officer

Objectives:

• Train in-house or with external resources in City of Hastings and Michigan statutory requirements of the function and the position.
• Apply consistent effort in identifying, documenting, and taking corrective action on code violations in the City.
• Coordinate record keeping and reporting with the administrative staff of the Clerk’s department.

Goal 1:
Provide a high quality potable water supply in adequate quantity to the citizens and businesses in the City of Hastings and surrounding areas authorized to purchase such services from the City of Hastings

Objectives:

• Insure monitoring and treatment is performed in compliance with the requirements of the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality.
• Provide qualified staff trained in current water treatment techniques. Provide the staff with the tools and supplies necessary to adequately perform their work.
• Monitor water sources and treatment methods to insure the treatment process is operating in a manner resulting in optimal water quality.
• Monitor and adjust treatment methods to provide capacity for maximum operating demand anticipated from the customers of the water system.
• Maintain the water treatment plant, equipment, and processes in proper operating condition with the redundancy necessary to insure water quality is not compromised by anticipated system failures or maintenance.

Goal 2:
To provide an effective and convenient point of contact for the residents of the City and others to communicate problems, needs, and desires regarding the services provided by the departments administered.

Objectives:

• Staff positions sufficiently to allow timely response to inquiries from the public.
• Provide and promote communication channels to allow proper and effective response to public inquiry to the extent that such action fulfills the objectives established by the City Council and the City Manager.
• Foster continued internal development of practices aimed at continually improving the methods used in interacting with individuals outside the departments.
• Work to maintain and improve the departments’ reputation developed through many years of exemplary service.

Goal 3:
Promote the City’s water treatment and distribution system to encourage new customers and to ensure continued demand for water from existing customers

Objectives:

• Maintain the highest quality potable water supply possible.
• Provide consistently courteous and fair interaction between personnel representing the City and customers purchasing water and wastewater services.
• Continuously search for methods for improving the water treatment system, the water distribution system, the water and sewer billing systems and all other areas associated with the water treatment and distribution systems, and staff – customer interaction.

Goal 4:
Provide the most competent, knowledgeable and courteous staff possible

Objectives:

• Provide a safe environment conducive to positive work habits.
• Promote staff training and continued personnel development.
• Hire and promote qualified and motivated individuals and provide a working environment which motivates personal and professional development and improvement.
• Make additional effort to inform customers during emergency utility operations (water main breaks, etc.), and to let them know what conditions to expect following repairs.

Goal 5:
Provide sufficient water and wastewater collection, distribution and treatment capacity to accommodate existing and future demand

Objectives:

• Monitor growth related to existing and potential development within the Hastings area in an effort to pro-actively anticipate future growth and plan to accommodate that growth.
• Plan for growth in the demand for water treatment and distribution to service the Hastings area.
• Plan for growth in the demand for wastewater collection and treatment to service the Hastings Area.
• Accommodate growth in the treatment, collection and distribution facilities through sound financial planning and management.

Goal 6:
Maintain the wastewater collection system in a manner which assures continuous wastewater removal from sensitive buildings and facilities to the fullest extent practical

Objectives:

• Monitor, repair and clean the sanitary sewer collection lines as necessary to reasonably minimize the possibility of blockage or restriction.
• Maintain the equipment and staff required for timely response to notifications of impaired wastewater flow and provide the necessary remedial activity.
• Upgrade the collection system and structures as required to provide sufficient capacity for anticipated peak flows.
• Solicit and review information regarding innovative methods and equipment aimed at improvement of collection system installation and maintenance.
• Survey and inventory collection system components for prioritization of system upgrade and maintenance.