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Show iniiimiii m j i mmM mum u ui i wn: j m i.r M MMiiww)5syp iimM nr. m 'YiiiT'tfrti -- - y. i. THOMAS R. HARDY Bountiful Names Manager BOUNTIFUL For the first time in ,.. nearly 20 years. Bountiful has a new city manager. THOMAS R. Hardy comes to Bountiful from the quiet little town of Ontario, Oregon, Ore-gon, an agricultural community of about 14,000 only a little more than one-third the size of Bountiful. Mr. Hardy is a "youngster" at age 32, but he has a "lifetime" of experience in city management. He says he sees a bright, and prosperous future for Bountiful but is quick to emphasize that there is a lot of hard work ahead. HE WAS chosen for the city manager job about a month ago and began work Jan. 2, altiiough he was "officially" accepted by the chy council only last Wednesday. His name emerged to the top of the stack of about 100 applicants from throughout the United States as well as qualified appli-cats appli-cats from the Bountiful area. (See Gary's Column). "We (council) feel real good about this man," said Mayor Elmer Barlow, who nominated Mr. Hardy for ratification by the council. "There were some top-notch candidates for this job, but Mr. Hardy seemed to fill all the requirements and seemed like the most logical nominee," I MR. HARDY brings to Bountiful a solid background of work in city administration. He was previously city manager of Ontario, Ontar-io, Oreg., which sits across the Snake River from Idaho's western border. He was in charge of about 100 employees and had an annual budget of $8 million. He was also assistant city manager at Scottsdale, Ariz., from 1973 to 1976, and for nearly two years he served as assistant city manager of Buena Park, Calif. He was also management analyst for the city, of Tallahassee, Fla., for nearly a year. "I AM VERY impressed with Bountiful," Bounti-ful," said the Utah native who was born in Salt Lake City and spent his childhood in the Provo-Orem area. "But I look for a very challenging future as city manager of Bountiful." Although he's been on the job only a few days. Mr. Hardy said he has set a few priorities with some short and long-term planning. "ONE OF the most important of my CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Bountiful Names New City Manager CONTINUED FROM FRONT duties and to do whatever is possible to stabilize jobs, improve morale and increase productivity. I want city employees to feel more secure and content with their jobs than they have in the past," he said. He said there will be a need for long-range long-range financial planning in the city bccti'5e of the future prospects of inflation an j tight budgets. He said the city is going to r ave to look to other ways new means if necessary neces-sary of financing its services. "THIS COULD mean a combination of increased revenues, reduced expenditures and community involvement," he said, placing emphasis on the latter. "I know that there are projects, especially beautifi-cation beautifi-cation and cleanup projects, that can be completed by volunteer groups rather than using tax monies. We're just going to have to take more pride in our community." He noted that some departments are not paying their way, and this may necessitate in increased rates and fees to meet spiraling costs. "I KNOW that increased taxes and fees are not popular with the public, but could be a necessity," he said. Mr. Hardy said he proposes a regular increase of rates and taxes to meet annual increased costs rather than impose a large tax or rate increase on the public every few years. "This doesn't mean that we shouldn't cut back expenses where ever possible and maintain a tight budget," said Mr. Hardy. "But there comes a time when increased taxes or rates is the only solution." THE NEW city manager said he still has a lot to learn about the city's proposed redevelopment rede-velopment program but emphasized that he is in favor of redevelopment and has considerable con-siderable experience in this type of programming. prog-ramming. "I don't think we should look for any 'pie in the sky' developments," he said. "The city's redevelopment should be greared to what is best for Bountiful and its people something that is realistic and feasible." MR. HARDY said he is "totally impressed impress-ed with Bountiful, its city officials, employees em-ployees and fine residents. "I'm certain with only a few days on the job that I will be able to work with all of the department heads and city council mem-ben." mem-ben." he said. "I left a good job in Ontario for this position, but I'm not sorry. I'm sincerely looking forward to the challenges that lie ahead." HE SAID he made the decision to accept the Bountiful city manager's job "jointly with my wife." She is the former Connie Hall of Payson and they have four children. All are active in the LDS Church and Mr. Hardy served an LDS mission in Guatemala Guatema-la and El Salvador, Central America. They are still searching for a home "somewhere within Bountiful's city limits." |
