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Little Rock vs. Larger Cities

bchris02

By bchris02
in Little Rock Metropolitan Area

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turboturtle Hamlet

turboturtle

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"7TH BEST IN NORTH AMERICA"

Some will laugh at this recognition, but I say, "Hooray for our unsung heros in City government!"

"There are 38,000 public fleet departments in America. 1250 applications were sent out to fleets identified as being superior by their peers, other national recognitions, site visits by the judges, and best business practices."

This means a part of our City government is beating the pants off some larger cities. Also, I can safely conclude that some of my tax dollars are being used well.

Full Release:

CITY OF LITTLE ROCK FLEET DEPARTMENT NAMED 7TH BEST IN NORTH AMERICA

(Friday, November 16, 2007) – At a Fleet Professionals conference held recently in Norfolk, Virginia, the City of Little Rock’s Fleet Services Department was named the 7th most efficient operation in North America. The designation was made by Government Fleet Magazine.

There are 38,000 public fleet departments in America. 1250 applications were sent out to fleets identified as being superior by their peers, other national recognitions, site visits by the judges, and best business practices.

“I am proud of the Fleet Services Department,” said City Manager Bruce T. Moore. “These men and women work hard to keep the City literally on the move. Without them our Police, Fire, and Public Works Departments could not do their jobs. I have known that Wendell Jones and his team are outstanding; I am pleased to see others recognize that, too.”

“We take care of approximately 1300 vehicles,” said Jones who is Director of Fleet Services. “It is an honor to work with these dedicated individuals as we serve the citizens of Little Rock. I am pleased for the recognition, because they are often unsung heroes.”

Little Rock was distinguished by their application scored on points by the judges. They are regarded as exceptional based on the 12 criteria of the contest performance measures. Little Rock is recognized nationally for their working environment and productivity.

The judges were a panel of former winners and fleet professional experts. Selection was based on the 12 criteria of the contest performance measures and best business practices, which include: Accountability, Technology Implementation, High Trust Culture, Acknowledgement, Collaboration, Creativity, Celebration, Doing it Right the First Time, Quick/Efficient Turnaround, Staff Development, Resource Stewardship, Competitive Pricing.

The sponsors are Chrysler Corporation, CCG Systems, Zero Air Pollution Vehicles and the 100 Best Fleets in North America

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Aporkalypse City

Aporkalypse

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Um, no, I'm not kidding you...maybe it is "WIDELY agreed upon" in the Little Rock forums, but taller doesn't equate better...the tall buildings are fairly boxy...it's a nice skyline; however, Morgan Keegan and the Pyramid definitely add some uniqueness in the Memphis skyline that you don't have in Little Rock...and if we're going to talk about new buildings going up, I suggest you check out One Beale.

If recommend you visit Shelby farms in Memphis and look over to East Memphis sometime...Clark Tower, White Station Tower, International Paper Towers, and the Hilton do give Memphis a second skyline.

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abdintp Unincorporated Area

abdintp

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abdintp,

No need to apologize. It's healthy and welcomed debate and that's exactly what should be done in these forums. Some don't take it as well as others, so I understand your cautiousness.

--- materialistic and socially conforming ---

Graduate Fayetteville, join good ol' boy firm, obtain trophy spouse, get SUV & big house in west LR. I think this has been thrust (unintentionally) upon the local youth as the only model of success. Diversity, imagination, risk, and creativity just don't seem to be rewarded or cultivated as much as other places I've lived. I'm sure there's plenty examples to the contrary, but I'm painting broad strokes here. And don't read too much into this, but upon my return to LR I was shocked to see such a large number of vanity license plates. I was used to them being kind of rare because it's usually considered... well, vain.

--- city leaders... repeating mistakes ---

That is, not learning from others' mistakes. At the risk of getting flamed, here's a few examples that appear to mirror problems I've seen before in other places. MIDTOWNE MALL: This location HAD one of the best views of the western horizon. Why the developer didn't take advantage of this escapes me. A sunset vista could've made this a popular shopping AND social destination. Translation: shoppers with staying power. Also, this is one of the most pedestrian unfriendly places I've ever seen, and its prison-like walls seem to be saying "keep out". It's almost as if they wanted to disassociate from the nearby shops and neighborhoods. WAR MEMORIAL PARK: This has the potential to be the crown jewel of central AR, and in turn increase nearby property values and commerce beyond imagination. But it's already headed down a familiar path. Blow the budget to have out-of-state consultants tell you what is already obvious. Then get bogged down while designing by committee to appease everyone, especially the vocal minority. Whoops... money's gone... status quo prevails.

I don't know Chicago, but downtown LR WAYYYY more alive?!!! Really? I live and play downtown, and other than the RiverMarket I struggle to find businesses that are open on weekends and afterhours. I often joke that I feel like Charlton Heston in The Omega Man because sometimes it's hard to even find people. I will concede that it's come a long way, even in just the past year.

You make a good point about all cities not being on the same timeline. Thanks for pointing that out. I realize that I may come across as being negative. But please remember I'm not trying to slam LR, but rather give my perspective of two different cultures for the original poster. In fact, I think LR is on the right trajectory and better off than a lot of other places. Given more time and space, I would love to talk more about the positives.

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Mith242 Gigalopolis

Mith242

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"7TH BEST IN NORTH AMERICA"

Some will laugh at this recognition, but I say, "Hooray for our unsung heros in City government!"

"There are 38,000 public fleet departments in America. 1250 applications were sent out to fleets identified as being superior by their peers, other national recognitions, site visits by the judges, and best business practices."

This means a part of our City government is beating the pants off some larger cities. Also, I can safely conclude that some of my tax dollars are being used well.

Full Release:

CITY OF LITTLE ROCK FLEET DEPARTMENT NAMED 7TH BEST IN NORTH AMERICA

(Friday, November 16, 2007)

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Hillcrest_LR Unincorporated Area

Hillcrest_LR

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I moved to Dallas in December of last year and live between Highland Park and Central Expressway. I have ventured north of LBJ only a few times. I do enjoy the opportunities for more art and films here but do miss Little Rock. And living only six blocks from my office means I don't have to deal with rush hour traffic.

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gthog61 Crossroads

gthog61

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This whole "have to drive 2 hours to work" thing about DFW is a myth. I have lived several places in two stints in DFW and never had a commute of more than 15 minutes. Just because some people are dumb enough to commit themselves to hour commutes so that they can buy 500 sq ft more house for the same money doesn't mean you have to. There are all sorts of affordable places to live near nice areas to work. Of course, I have never had a fascination for working in a tall building so I don't really care much about either downtown one way or the other. My family that I visit on holidays lives in LR. I enjoy visiting but I don't think I could live there. Growing up in rural Arkansas I guess I have a built-in resentment for LR because it always seemed like people there looked down on people in the rest of the state, which I now sort of find to be humorous. If you don't like Dallas' downtown then you could go to Ft Worth's, which undoubtedly beats LR's. Even in Dallas LR doesn't have anything to compare to uptown for the trendy youthful urban living schtick.

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turboturtle Hamlet

turboturtle

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This whole "have to drive 2 hours to work" thing about DFW is a myth. I have lived several places in two stints in DFW and never had a commute of more than 15 minutes. Just because some people are dumb enough to commit themselves to hour commutes so that they can buy 500 sq ft more house for the same money doesn't mean you have to. There are all sorts of affordable places to live near nice areas to work. Of course, I have never had a fascination for working in a tall building so I don't really care much about either downtown one way or the other. My family that I visit on holidays lives in LR. I enjoy visiting but I don't think I could live there. Growing up in rural Arkansas I guess I have a built-in resentment for LR because it always seemed like people there looked down on people in the rest of the state, which I now sort of find to be humorous. If you don't like Dallas' downtown then you could go to Ft Worth's, which undoubtedly beats LR's. Even in Dallas LR doesn't have anything to compare to uptown for the trendy youthful urban living schtick.
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turboturtle Hamlet

turboturtle

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From personal experience, I've found that people in Texas cities look down on people from Arkansas in general, especially people from rural parts of the state like where I live. The general perception down there is that Arkansas is a state filled with toothless hillbillies. Of course that is the stereotype nationwide, but I've never seen anywhere where it is as widely accepted as in urban areas in Texas. Little Rock seems to be held at a higher esteem than the rest of the state after the publicity it received when Bill Clinton was President.
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Architect Town

Architect

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The Little Rock MSA is 9th according the CQ Report.

I've heard that criticism / argument before. My response is, perception is reality.

The CQ Report is widely distributed in the mainstream media. I'm not aware of any national crime report contradicting the CQ Report. The CQ Report publishes its methodology on the web where anyone can read it and challenge it. I wonder if the LRPD does the same.

IMO. Little Rock should work to be the safest city in the U.S. Now that we have a strong mayoral form of government, the candidate who I believe will do the most to address the issue of crime (this goes well beyond crime itself) will have my vote.

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