Following a custom begun by this newspaper several years ago, we posed a number of questions to the new mayor, seeking her input on what she sees as her short- and long-term goals over the first months of her administration.
We first asked her to give a short description of the three main goals she hopes to accomplish in the first months of the administration:
“My first priority was to evaluate the status of personnel so that I could surround myself with a talented team,” she answered. “There were 26 positions that had been vacant for a long time-some almost two years. I revised job descriptions, performed a salary study, and have professionally advertised. All of this has now been accomplished and we are in the process of interviews and offers. The goal is to be fully functioning. Additionally, I created the new Economic Development Director, Grants Director and Payroll Manager, which was a position identified by MARB (Municipal Accountability Review Board) as a significant gap. Evaluating positions also extends to Boards and Commissions which play a vital role in our government. This process is also underway.”
Her second goal is a little less close to home, but something she believes is just as important.
“Building Trust amongst our State leaders, investors and residents is also a critical short-term goal as it sets the tone for the future. Through transparent communication we build confidence. I’ve augmented our communication and outreach through new channels. I’m also requiring all personnel to attend a State Ethics Training in February. These are the types of steps that show we mean business,” she said.
The third goal is an ongoing issue, and one that has flummoxed several previous administrations. She’s hoping her approach will be a catalyst toward future prosperty.
“Setting the stage for Economic Development,” she stated emphatically. “While we are in the process of recruiting the new Economic Director, I was able to secure a grant to engage an economic consultant to help us build our department. We also secured a grant from UCONN to do a mapping of our brownfields, which has been an obstacle to cleaning up properties. Additionally, I have revamped the Building Department (see page 8) to provide for a streamlined service and to eliminate our image amongst investors that our system is too challenging to work with. In the next few months, we will continue to promote these changes to investors.”
The questioning then turned to more longterm goals, but ones that might be accomplished in the current calendar year.
“We’ve been working on the finances since day-one, which includes finalizing the 2022 audit, beginning the 2023 audit, and meeting with the MARB-assigned consultants to help fix our financial operational risks,” she said. “My long-term goal is by the end of the year to get a credit rating upgrade, which will significantly help with our finances and will be a trigger to hopefully get a MARB Tier upgrade (the city is currently in Tier IV). We have a long way to go towards that goal but with all hands on deck we will get there.”
Her second long-term goal is associated with a short-term goal, put simply, Economic Development.
“The short term goals I mentioned are going to help us bring in the development we need. I’ve already met with several investors who are re-engaged in West Haven. Additionally, we currently do not have the funds to knock buildings down and clean up city-owned buildings; therefore, I’ve been working on applying for some of the economic grants that I’m familiar with to secure the needed funds. Hopefully they get awarded throughout the year,” she said.
Her final year-end goal is a recurring problem in a city that has many absentee landlords.
“A cleaner City. I’ve created an additional Blight role as we only have one officer right now but the longer-term goal is to create a Hearing Officer which will allow us to enforce the Blight complaints as currently the Blight officer has limited authority to force resolutions,” she said. “I’ll also work with P&Z to update regulations to address businesses facades. We also need to invest in equipment for Public Works to clean as our equipment is archaic and can’t do the job. A big part of the longer term goal on clean us will be how we address our Trash program which is very costly but needs to be revamped as well.”
When she came into office Borer expected the day-to-day issues to occur, and they have. When asked how the transition has affected getting into her program, she was direct.
“The most challenging issue I face is having to stop several times throughout the day to fix issues that are discovered which derails the plan for the day,” she said. “That is inherent in any complex large organization, but in our situation it’s a bit elevated. I’m hopeful in the next few months that will settle out.”
In ending the exposition of her plan, Borer took the last request for a general comment to address the residents of the city.
“I want the residents to know that I’m truly grateful not only for their feedback but to so many who have reached out to offer to lend a hand in some capacity or another to move West Haven forward,” she said. “I feel a different vibe in the air and that is due to our great residents. Thank you.”
There is truly a different vibe in the city since Mayor Borer took office. She is addressing issues that have been ignored in the previous administration, and has brought an overdue sense of optimism to the people of West Haven. Keep up the great work!
As a veteran, I do hope you raise the amount off the assessed value of our homes & autos from $6,000 to $9,000. this would be a big help for all of us vets.