Governments Working Together - What a Concept!
By Dave Rosenberg, Yolo County Supervisor, 4th District
{From a Speech Presented on January 31, 2002,
by Supervisor Rosenberg to Elected Officials from Throughout Yolo County}
In Yolo County we have a tradition of strong collaboration and cooperation between local governments. Frankly, that's what our constituents expect and want us to do. This tradition is quite different from other counties and cities in our region. We are the exception and not the rule. We have enjoyed remarkable success here by working together to solve those problems we hold in common and to explore new and innovative ways of doing so.
Our challenge is to think outside of the box and our boundaries. We need to explore some new possibilities and see if we can't generate some new ideas. Yolo County is known for its agriculture but we're also becoming fertile soil for good ideas, fresh approaches, and innovative decision-making.
For example:
- Gaining Ground, a collaborative exploration of better stewardship of
our land and habitat that has lead to the formation of countywide Joint
Powers Authority and investment of over $1 million on habitat preservation.
- The dynamic partnership that exists between the Water Resources Association,
the cities, the county, the Yolo County Flood Control & Water Conservation
District and UC Davis as they jointly have sought state assistance with
water planning ventures.
- The Children's Alliance of Yolo County which combines the disparate
threads of social services and non-profit agencies into a single, coordinated
focus on improving conditions for children.
- The redevelopment agreement and tax sharing agreement between the City
of Davis and the County of Yolo that assures County government a healthy
revenue stream in the years ahead and simultaneously grants the City
approval of development on its borders.
- The Rivercats baseball stadium, a truly creative collaborative effort
that required the assistance of two county governments, the City of West
Sacramento and its redevelopment agency.
- The joint efforts of the County of Yolo and the cities of Winters,
West Sacramento and Davis to build new library facilities for our citizens.
- YoloBus service that now links all of the cities and much of the unincorporated area with Sacramento International Airport.
Obviously, we've done a great many things right. Lately, Yolo County has been the toast of the region, celebrated for our wise land-use planning and agricultural land preservation, our quality of life, and our ability to peacefully co-exist with one another.
Our work is far from over. We certainly have and will have our differences of opinion. But we can disagree without being disagreeable. More importantly, we can, we have and we will find ways to agree and work together. We have to work smarter as money gets tighter. We are already exploring other exciting possibilities including:
- The great potential for locating an ethanol plant in this county that
would put us on the cutting edge of alternative fuel production in California.
- The impetus for cultivating high-tech and bio-tech, the wine industry,
tourism including ag-tourism and eco-tourism throughout Yolo County.
- Close collaboration between private industry and government-sponsored
job training and placement services such as currently exists between
the Pacific Coast Producers cannery in Woodland and the County's Employment
and Social Services Department.
- The potential of the Port of Sacramento to diversify and develop new
lines of international business.
- The challenges presented by long-term care for our aging and disabled community.
We're off to a good start. But there is still a lot of work to be done. Governments working together to solve problems has to become the wave of the future. With less money, we have to work smarter and better so we can continue to improve the quality of life we have here in Yolo County.