It's A Beautiful Day In The Neighborhood (Department)

Listening, learning and reaching out to community partners helped a public servant empower residents to make their neighborhoods -- and thus the city -- healthier and safer

We’ve been extolling the virtues of prevention the last couple of issues of Good Government Files. And for good reason — it’s typically less expensive to deal with a problem before it happens. Spending less to get desired outcome = good government.

We shared the philosophy and successes of the trend in the fire service to identify high risk homes and individuals, and getting them the help they need before their low-acuity problems escalate into running lights and sirens for a medical emergency or structure fire. We dubbed it Firefighting 3.0, borrowing from Dr. Peter Attia’s Medicine 3.0 as described in his best-selling book Outlive, The Science and Art of Longevity. The book details smart, preventive steps to good health and long life, in contrast to the wishing and hoping approach which too often results in having to treat the Four Horsemen: heart disease, cancer, neurodegenerative disease, and type 2 diabetes (and related metabolic dysfunction), conditions so dubbed because they will be the cause of death for a vast majority of people.

We’ve looked at the new ways public safety personnel identify and treat people with low-acuity needs before they go from bad to worse. We’ve also reviewed how they identify at-risk homes and give owners the knowledge and tools to make them safer. In both instances, the goal is to reduce the prevalence of 9-1-1 calls. No question, it works.

From people to homes to … neighborhoods. That’s the next logical step, right? As anyone who’s worked in local government knows, neighborhoods can get sick, too.¹ And like people and homes, there’s a process for nurturing them and bringing them back up to a standard as well.

Time to re-introduce GGF readers to Joe Brehm. Regular readers met Joe last week. He’s the dedicated, smart, proactive Community and Neighborhood Services Director for Round Rock, Texas, who works hand in glove with the Fire Department’s Community Risk Reduction program.

When Joe came to Round Rock nearly 12 years ago from Prescott, Arizona, he was a one-man neighborhood services division. Today, he oversees a department with seven full-time employees (including Code Enforcement) and a $1.5 million budget.

Joe was originally slotted into the Planning and Community Development Department. There was a lot of planning going on back then — still is — to deal with rapid population growth and the bustling residential and commercial development that accompanies it. There wasn’t a ton of community development. Managing federal Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds was about the extent of the effort.

That changed as the City Council began to prioritize neighborhood revitalization. Round Rock had reached the point where those subdivisions built in the late 1970s and early 1980s were starting to show their age. Then-Mayor Alan McGraw helped organize an effort for smaller but rapidly growing cities to meet with larger cities — who had been through similar rapid growth — in attempt to learn from their experiences. The one thing I remember from those meetings was a city that reported its city council once argued over how many degrees a fence had to be leaning before it constituted a code violation.

That’s Neighborhood 2.0, i.e., dealing with problems after they occur. That’s a bummer.

Joe started with neighborhood cleanups. Prior to his arrival, one had been recently conducted. It revolved around a centrally located, 40-yard roll off dumpster. Between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. on a Saturday folks in the subdivision could haul the junk that had piled up on porches and in back yards to the dumpster to get rid of it and help beautify the neighborhood.

The problem was anyone who didn’t have a truck couldn’t haul their bulky junk to the dumpster. Anyone who worked a job that Saturday couldn’t participate. Elderly? Disabled? Not happening.

What a lot of folks wound up doing was hauling their stuff to the curb, something the city allows each spring during bulk trash pickup week. So, what the city crews did — go-getting, problem-solving public servants that they are — was go to the public works yard and get their hands on some trucks and trailers so they could drive through the neighborhood, load the stuff up from curbside and haul it to the dumpster.

Some folks took advantage of those hard-working city employees. There was one citizen, let’s call him “Lazy Bob,” who drug his battered and busted up pool table out to the curb. Remember, the goal of the cleanup was to help folks get rid of the unsightly crap from outside of their homes. I’ll let Joe pick up the story from here.

“When ‘Lazy Bob’ saw our crews coming to pick up his pool table, he comes out in his T-shirt and his shorts, drinking a Bud Light, watching our guys pick up his trash that he put out in violation of the cleanup guidelines,” Joe said. “And just watching, drinking his beer as the city went above and beyond for his service. Now, our guys didn’t really appreciate that because, one, it’s difficult to get city employees to come in on a Saturday anyway, even if you pay them overtime. And two, they just didn’t think that was appropriate for them.”

Clearly, neighborhood cleanups need to be improved. Joe talked to residents and a neighborhood leader about what went well and what didn’t, and reviewed the after-action report and talked to the director whose team ran that first cleanup.

Those conversations led Joe to do a couple of things: First, figure out a better process for cleanups and, second, provide residents and volunteers the tools to take care of the eyesores that hauling off junk didn’t fix. Joe found out from residents many were first-time homeowners or home renters. They didn’t have a lawn mower or edger or weed whacker or pole saw. But if they could borrow one from the city, like we allow folks to borrow books from the library, they absolutely would use them to tidy up their property.

Thus was born the Tool Lending Center (TLC).

The TLC (God, how I love that acronym) allows residents the opportunity to check out tools and other implements to keep their neighborhoods beautiful and healthy. It was made possible by the City Council allocating funds as well as the Round Rock Home Depot donating $6,250 worth of tools. It’s designed to be deployed for organized projects such as neighborhood cleanups or other beautification projects where volunteers (scouts, church groups, school groups, etc.) are organized and available.

For the next cleanup, Joe changed it so folks would have an entire week to haul their junk to the curb. And residents could use the TLC to access equipment to spruce up their yards and landscaping. But in meeting with leaders in the neighborhood where the next cleanup would be conducted, another issue arose.

“One of the neighborhood leaders says, ‘Hey, what about Mrs. Johnson, the retired schoolteacher who lives by herself over here,’” Joe says. “‘Her lawn could use a good cleanup, but she doesn't have the physical ability to do it herself.’”

Joe told them city employees can’t do that kind of work on private property. He’d need volunteers for that. Someone suggested he visit with Pastor Benito Fresquez of Freedom Church.

“And I was talking to him (about) folks that are elderly, disabled, they had a recent surgery, recent illness, single parent, there are these folks that have these special circumstances in a neighborhood,” Joe said. “I asked Pastor Benito, ‘If I were to give you all the tools you need from the Tool Lending Center, and if you would bring, like, 30 people, do you think your congregation would want to just show up on a Saturday morning? I’ll feed them breakfast, give them coffee, give them all the tools, and they go help a neighbor in need.’”

Done deal. Not only did the volunteers show up, but they also donated money to the neighborhood association. Home Depot pitched in again, providing a free lawn mower to give away in a drawing to one of the volunteers. Beautiful. Total team effort from the community.

Here’s my favorite picture from that first event.

Loving thy neighbor. CREDIT: City of Round Rock, Texas

“The development of the Tool Lending Center and the change in the format of the neighborhood cleanup really just came from listening, right?” Joe says. “Bringing that fresh pair of eyes to come in, then listening to all the people involved, the stakeholders, the service providers, and just sit there and imagine a world where your mission is to remove excuses and remove the barriers for people to participate in this program. Because it’s going to cost the city a few thousand dollars to have (the solid waste hauler) come in and provide service for this neighborhood cleanup. So, we’re invested financially. So, the more people I get to participate in those neighborhood cleanups, the more we honor that investment and I make the neighborhood look better, which goes to council’s goal of clean and safe, livable neighborhoods.” 

So many Good Government Truisms encapsulated in this one program:

• Elected leaders set strategic priorities

• Staff focused on continuous improvement

• Actively reaching out and listening to residents on the receiving of your program

Win, win, win.

Another GGF Truism is success builds on success. Which is what happened with the Neighborhood Cleanup Program. Other churches saw what Freedom Church and Pastor Benito were doing and wanted in on the action. Thus was born Love the Rock, which took the cleanup program to a whole other level, with dozens of churches working together through the Austin Bridge Builders Alliance (ABBA). Here’s how the program works, in their words.

My apologies if the religious stuff in the video hits you wrong. But if you’re looking for volunteers to help where your local government cannot, i.e., doing work on private property, I can assure you the faith community in your town is willing and able to help.

“They’re chomping at the bit,” Joe says. “I’ve got more volunteers than I’ve got project houses for them to work on at times.” 

GGF is a believer in the separation of church and state, so here’s the City version of why it’s involved in Love the Rock, with the introduction by Mayor Craig Morgan.

Joe’s efforts resulted in the program winning a Municipal Excellence Award in the City Spirit category from the Texas Municipal League.

That’s Joe holding the trophy after winning a Texas Municipal League award for the neighborhood cleanup program, along with folks who played key roles along the way. From left are Michael Thane, the utilities director who oversees solid waste disposal; City Councilmember Tammy Young, who helped make neighborhood revitalization a strategic priority; Jeff Johnson from the Austin Bridge Builders Alliance; General Services Director Chad McDowell, who oversees the city fleet and buildings, and City Manager Laurie Hadley, who hired Joe and empowered him to do great things.

What about the other 364 days of the year? What if you’re a homeowner or renter and there’s not an organized cleanup but you could still benefit from having tools like the ones offered through the Tool Lending Center? No problem.

Joe’s about to unveil the Tool Depot, a completely automated way for folks to get the tools they need. Today, when Code Enforcement officers leave a courtesy notice on someone’s front door regarding a violation, like tall weeds or low-hanging branches, they also include a flyer letting them know they can borrow tools from the City. That’s great, but only if they make an appointment between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday through Friday at City Hall. The Tool Depot will be available 24-7-365 and won’t require a member of Joe’s team to physically be there to check out the tools.

“So, if you need to borrow a lawnmower or you need to borrow a pole saw on a weekend at night, you can submit an application online,” Joe says. “My staff can review it, make sure you’re over 18 and a resident of the City of Round Rock. We’ll approve it, then send you an electronic code. You can download an app on your phone. You’ll take your phone to the front door of the Tool Depot, unlock the front door, go inside, (then) unlock the tool or however many tools you need. We can set all that remotely. You unlock it, load up your tools, lock everything back up, close the door and go use it and then bring it back.”

That, my friends, is customer service taken to the next level.

Some neighborhood needs go beyond the physical. Joe’s neighborhood program has those covered, too.

Hooray for Hollywood

“Yeah, so, the Tool Lending Center is great. We love it, and it’s great for the physical revitalization of a neighborhood,” Joe says. “But that’s not what the City Council exclusively asked for, right? One of the other criteria was help foster a sense of community. Well, how do you foster a sense of community?

“Well, you get people to know each other, interact with one another. Right. So how do you do that? Well, you have to have fun things for people to do. So this one, a lot of cities were doing, and this was an easy one for us to adopt, is a movie kit. It’s got everything you need for an outdoor movie anywhere. It could be in a park, it could be at somebody’s yard, wherever. And you got the giant inflatable screen. You’ve got the projector, the speakers, a microphone. And basically, it’s great, especially for families because parents can bring their kids out.”

But why stop there? Why not give neighbors the tools for a bigger event?

Put on Your Party Pants

Back to success begetting success. Joe and Co. decided take the Neighborhood Movie Chest to the next level by creating the Block Party Trailer. The City provides a trailer containing everything a neighborhood would need to host a neighborhood party including tables, chairs, ice chests, games and a sound system. Just add people, and you’ve got an improved sense of community.

The neighbors will come up with activities like cornhole tournaments, beer and wine tastings, barbecue and chili cook-offs, you name it, “anything that creates an environment for people to interact,” Joe says.

“Because when you get to know your neighbors, your neighborhood feels a little safer and it feels a little bit more like home,” Joe says. “And yeah, it’s very popular. It gets checked out multiple times in a month, especially when we’ve got great weather. And yeah, they absolutely love it.”

Sustaining Success

Joe and his team have developed incredible goodwill between neighborhood leaders and the City. That goodwill paid huge dividends for the City as it worked with Kalahari Resorts and Conventions when it was going through the public process to plan and develop its $600 million project in Round Rock. (That’s another story for another day. Suffice it to say the trust and credibility Joe had established with nearby neighborhood leaders was critical in developing informed consent, i.e., successful implementation, on that project.)

The Round Rock neighborhood program includes simple tools like a curb painting and fence staining kits. There’s also a matching grant program for registered neighborhood organizations of up to $5,000 for any qualified, neighborhood sponsored project.

Note the qualification for the matching grant program — “registered” neighborhood organizations. Some of Joe’s most fruitful work has been helping those older neighborhoods that weren’t developed with a homeowner association (HOA). He’s helped them create neighborhood associations (NA). Here are the basic differences between an HOA and an NA.

• An HOA is a legally binding entity considered a political subdivision of the State.

• Membership is mandatory.

• HOA members agree to be held to the deed restrictions and the HOA often owns and maintains property (pools, parks, roads, etc.).

• HOA’s will generally have a management company that handles the day-to-day needs of the community. 

• A neighborhood association is a voluntary group with no legal ability to enforce dues or restrictions on residents. NAs are made of volunteers working together to address an issue in their community and to organize social functions.

Round Rock offers resources to help those neighborhoods without an HOA get organized. It’s proven invaluable to residents in those neighborhoods who want to proactively keep them healthy. Here’s what they have to say about the benefits of getting organized.

Joe and his team celebrate all those neighborhood volunteers each year at the Annual Neighborhood Conference. The conference consists of networking opportunities and training sessions with tools that leaders can utilize in their neighborhoods. The City gives out awards for project of the year, manager of the year and an unsung hero award. It’s a great opportunity to show some love to those who give so much to their neighborhoods.

It’s a terrific example of what happens when elected leaders set clear priorities when developing a vision for their communities.

“To answer your question about why we do what it is we do, is that it came from the City Council and the City manager,” Joe says. “They’re talking about quality neighborhoods, increasing the curb appeal, maintaining property values, and helping foster a sense of community within these neighborhoods. Those are the guidelines that we’re told to follow.”

Joe notes the City Council provided the “overarching goals,” and left it up to the staff to “go figure it out.”

“We had total freedom to come in, do a full evaluation and go learn from the best in the neighborhood services industry in the United States,” he said.

Madelyn Gibbs of the City of Fort Worth was one of those experts Joe sought out. She had been a neighborhood association president and organizer of neighborhood groups before the City hired her to be a liaison.

“A lot of our direction came from how Madelyn approached it,” Joe said. “You need to understand there are two perspectives in life with neighborhoods in the city. You have the people that live there and their experiences and their issues, and you have the city with its resources and its guidelines and at times, restrictions on what they can do. You’re just trying to find creative ways to resolve an issue.”

I’d say mission accomplished, but I know Joe and his team will always be looking for better ways to get the job done, to empower residents and neighborhood leaders to make their community even better.

Cue the late, great Fred Rogers.

Onward and Upward.

1. For a story of how a Fort Worth neighborhood got back on its feet, visit this post from August.