Suggestions & Ideas
The City of Troy is taking control of its future by engaging in a massive restructuring initiative in order to assure that we can deliver municipal services in the most cost efficient and effective manner.
We want to introduce a new website feature (similar to what Oakland County is doing) and ask our Troy residents to send us suggestions & ideas to help us with this restructuring initiative.
Please send us an email with your suggestions and ideas to Suggestions .
Any new ideas or suggestions to help us become more cost efficient will make Troy an even better place to live, work, learn, play, and do business. City Staff will review your suggestions regularly and provide updates on this webpage. We will publicly recognize any individual who gives us a functional suggestion that results in an implemented best practice.
DID YOU KNOW?
- Over the period from October 2008-October 2010, the City reduced its payroll by more than $4,000,000 or 11%.
- The City will utilize Federal Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant funds to make a variety of efficiency upgrades to City facilities including heating and cooling improvements and purchasing hybrid and electric vehicles.
- By switching to the compatible ink and toner cartridges, the City will save an average of 27% or $10,000 per year.
- By changing the specifications for the quarterly Troy Today, the City will save more than $40,000 in printing and postage costs.
- The City achieved 5%-10% concessions on vendor and consultant contracts.
- By utilizing the Customer Choice Program for natural gas, the City saved $70,000 in energy costs for FY 09/10.
- Copier and printer replacement/consolidation will save the City $40,000 over the next five (5) years.
- Best practices in procurement save the City at least $1 million annually.
- The Engineering Department is a hybrid of in-house and consulting staff. Since 2005 the engineering department has been restructured, reduced its staff by 50 percent to 13 full time positions and 3 part time positions. The hours given by the part-time employees were reduced by 40 percent. The department's blend with outside consulting firms is the optimum mix of staff and consultants allowing the city to break even on the department's expenditures.
- In June 2010, the City privatized the entire Building Department with a contract with SafeBuilt Michigan Inc. The contract will result in a savings to the City of approximately $295,000 in the first year, and will remove the general fund subsidy to the department that has been required in past years. The savings to the City came without a reduction in service to the community.
- The City privatized its golf course operations and contracted with Billy Casper Golf, LLC. The company guarantees the City a net income of $325,000 in the first year as opposed to the fund balance that has been incurred by the Sanctuary Lake course. Billy Casper Golf has also increased revenue at the courses along with providing marketing that the city could not otherwise provide.
- The Planning Department has eliminated three positions, bringing the number of full-time staff to two. The department relies on consultants for development review activity. The consolidation of this department will result in an approximate savings of $250,000 per year.
