Doug Perry, who will represent the Smith River District on the board, said one of his top priorities is to develop a positive working relationship with his fellow board members.
“It’s us as a board. So, developing those working relationships, developing positive communication, and developing that team with the rest of the board are extremely important,” he said.
While he wants the board to work as a team, Perry noted that differences in opinion are a key part to being a successful team.
“I believe that differences are good. It’s good to not think on the same sheet of music because that’s where true innovation and true problem solving comes into play,” he said.
Improving communications between the community and other departments is another priority. Perry said this will increase the ways the board can work with other local authorities while allowing for more joint-projects and cross-departmental collaborations.
He has committed to holding monthly town hall-type meetings at the various volunteer fire departments and rescue squads in his district. These meetings, which are set to begin early this year, will summarize supervisor meetings, and provide a forum to discuss the reasons behind the board’s decisions.
Perry said he would also like to use part of the town hall to recognize and celebrate volunteer departments and businesses within the district. He is also considering creating a Facebook page for the district to regularly update the community about supervisor meetings and the like.
Improving the county’s processes, how the board develops ideas, and how it thinks about planning and development are other key items he wishes to address quickly. Perry said being multifaceted is key to the county having successful processes, plans, and initiatives.
“Kind of like the two birds with one stone thing. If one initiative can improve multiple departments and agencies, then we’ll truly be getting the bang for our buck,” he said.
Perry believes improving the process goes back to increased communication between the various boards and departments.
“That way, we can appropriately balance the work and disseminate the work and resources across the agencies, so everyone has their fair share and does their fair amount of work,” he said.
When developing processes Perry said the board should create short-term, intermediate, and long-term goals using the planning acronym SMART, which stands for Specific, Measurable, Actionable/Achievable, Relevant, and Timely.
Perry said making plans using that process will help the board develop its evaluation and sustainability plans.
“It helps us to be more fluid, especially when it comes to the long-term goals because things and the environment change,” he said, adding it will also help the board supervise and adjust its course and develop its plans.
Perry said this type of forethought will set the county up for success five or more years down the road. “As I listen to different things and as I’m asked to vote on something, in my mind I’ll be thinking ‘is it multifaceted, do we have those goals and objectives, how do we evaluate it and will it be sustained,’” he said.
