Barbara Lickness wrote:
> Every neighborhood that receives NRP funds from the
> city is audited every year by the Minnesota State
> Auditors. The financial condition of each corporation
> (neighborhood association) is highlighted in the
> management letters of each audit. Recommendations are
> made to address any and all conditions that exist that
> may be of concern.
This post is misleading in that it fails to respond to other
issues of accountability detailed in previous posts. Financial
accountability is only one aspect of the problem with the
NRP. You can squander funds on stupid projects and still
be able to account for them. You can funnel funds to
particular contractors and still balance your books. You
can adhere closely to the rules of accounting while
trampling on the rights and personal interests of your
neighbors.
> The NRP offers in depth trainings on every aspect of
> financial management and many people have attended
> them and are employing the recommended operating
> models. Neighborhoods know what is expected of them
> and most are in excellent financial shape.
Yes, the NRP offers training programs, but this does not guaranty that:
1. People actually attend these classes.
2. People actually understand and learn the content of the classes.
3. People adhere to what is taught in these classes.
For example, the NRP offered classes on how to prepare an
evaluation of Phase I. Attendees were strongly encouraged to
include surveys of residents as part of the evaluation process.
My wife and I attended these training sessions even though
we are not part of the administration of our neighborhood
association (PPERRIA). We did not observe any of
PPERRIA's board members attending and to our knowledge
there have been no representative surveys of residents. In fact,
it appears that opponents of a street lighting initiative (our most
derisive neighborhood issue in the last ten years) were purposely
excluded from the evaluation committee.
> Central is going through a troubling time. Not unlike
> the Whittier neighborhood did in 1996. In a
> turmultous transition like the one Central is going
> through, it will take time for the new board and new
> staff to fully grasp all that took place before they
> arrived. Hopefully, they will hire staff or
> consultants that can objectively look at their
> financial situation and put a system in place that
> will stabilize them.
"Hopefully, they will hire..." Is this what the NRP
considers to be administrative accountability?
> There are a lot of neighborhood associations who are
> doing it right. If you want to talk to some of them,
> e-mail me off list and I will give you contacts.
This statement would imply that there are neighborhood
associations who are not doing it right. I would agree.
The problem, as I have previously stated, is that there
are not sufficient processes or structures to insure accountability.
I believe that Ms. Lickness' post clearly shows that this problem exists.
Michael Atherton
Prospect Park
Ward 2
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