NLR mayor-elect has his own style

— Joe Smith, North Little Rock’s mayor-elect, has spent more than 20 years as Mayor Patrick Hays’ top administrator, but those who have worked closely for years with both say their governing styles will be strikingly different.

Smith will move from being the city’s Commerce and Governmental Affairs director to mayor when he’s sworn in Jan. 1.

Smith won Tuesday’s runoff election against state Rep. Tracy Steele with almost 55 percent of the vote to replace the longest-serving mayor ever for North Little Rock. Hays, 65, is retiring after 24years at the city’s helm.

By being elected six times, Hays undeniably became a mayor with a thumbs up/ thumbs down, final-word approach on city issues, a tack that evolved through his years in power.

Smith’s managing style won’t be as heavy-handed, with an approach that will more involve other view-points, Smith and some who have worked with him said in post election interviews.

“By midyear, I think most people will realize the way I manage the city will be different,” Smith, 61, said Thursday. “We’ve got some very smart employees on our team. I want to use their knowledge and experience to help me and the City Council make the important decisions.”

City Attorney Jason Carter said that although Smith has even acted on Hays’ behalf at times in handling city issues, Smith’s problem-solving manner is distinguishable from the mayor’s.

“Part of the difference is based on perspective,” Carter said. “Mayor Hays has occupied a position for a long, long time that empowers him to direct action, as opposed to request action.

“Joe’s position required consensus-building,” Carter added. “He built relationships with other city officials, including me, based on cooperative problem-solving. Even with his new found authority, I anticipate Joe will continue using a team-based approach to solve the problems of the city.”

Terry Hartwick, North Little Rock Chamber of Commerce president and a former mayor, said Hays’ lengthy tenure provided him with distinct authority that any new mayor won’t have right away.

“Pat’s stronger, and I think we’ll see that in the budget process and how things are run,” Hartwick said. “If Mayor Hays wanted it, Mayor Hays got it. That’s just the way he did things.

“Joe will be someone who throws it out there and sees what everybody says,” Hartwick added. “He’s always been the guy that takes it and makes it happen. And he listens. That’s one of his best assets.”

While Smith served as a city appointee for several years on the Central Arkansas Transit Board of Directors, he was valued for his reasoning and problem-solving abilities, CATA Executive Director Betty Wineland said.

“There could be a discussion going on for 15 minutes or more and then in 60 seconds or less, Joe could come up with a solution after having listened and taken in everything,” Wineland said. “He’s a very practical person, and he considers what’s in the best interest of his community.”

The first three months of his administration will be the time to organize his staff and assign responsibilities “in line with what I feel comfortable with,” Smith said.

“There will not be wholesale changes” in city staff, he said. “There will be changes, but there will not be a massive change.”

Adding his input to, or possibly amending, the city’s budget Hays is outlining for 2013 will be one issue he’ll face quickly. Hays is to file the budget proposal Monday, but passage by the city council isn’t required until Jan. 31, a month into Smith’s administration.

His administration, Smith said, will place priorities on keeping residents informed about what’s happening in the city and on how to best provide services to residents.

Those priorities include, he said, trying to add a fire station on the city’s east side. The additional fire station was an issue that voters and candidates emphasized during the election period, but no plan emerged for how to pay for it. The cost for staffing and operating a fire station would run at least $900,000 each year, according to city financial estimates.

“I need to see the whole schematic of the city’s Fire Department and see if there’s a way we can get that additional coverage out east,” Smith said. “That’s priority No. 1.”

Making sure residents are being informed about what’s happening in North Little Rock and having the opportunity to talk directly with staff, department heads and the mayor, are other ideas Smith said he favors.

Possibilities include, he said, setting a time before City Council meetings for both residents and city aldermen to meet with department heads and staff about issues or to answer questions. Another idea is to set aside a half-day a week to let citizens have appointments to meet with him and staff members, a chance to “look me in the eye,” he said, without the person having to sit through a council meeting.

To transition into the mayor’s job, Smith said he wants to put together a team of about six advisers to take maybe two days away from the city to establish a platform and agenda “on where we want to be Jan. 1.”

Plans would also include how to allow Hays to close out his administration in a way that pays tribute to his lengthy time in office, Smith said.

“I want us to try to figure out what we can do to help Mayor Hays pass the gavel to me in a way that is very respectful of him,” Smith said. “He’s earned my respect. He’s a very dear friend. I want his last month in office to be special.”

Front Section, Pages 1 on 12/03/2012

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