Just the facts, as lifted from KDKA:In a press release, the mayor asks for letters of resignation from the departmental directors in the city along with the board chairs of the Pennsylvania Water and Sewer Authority, the Urban Redevelopment Authority and the Pittsburgh Parking Authority.
Ravenstahl said in a statement that he was "not satisfied with the condition of city government" and that he was not satisfied with the quality of service in some areas (P-G, Team Effort). The mayor also invited these employees to reapply for their jobs, as part of a nationwide search.
Bill Green wondered aloud on OffQ why Mayor Ravenstahl decided to make this move so publicly.
Blurghosphere speculation ranges from a desire to divert attention from the Oakmont story, to a need to cleanse his administration of disloyalty prior to the general election, to a compulsion borne from insecurity to underscore the fact that he really is the Mayor, and ought to be treated as such.
Pittsburgh Comet senior political analyst Morton Reichbaum says that the motivations behind this shakeup are probably more nuanced, and indeed much closer to the Mayor's stated purposes.
"Ravenstahl, basically, he wanted to do it for a better Pittsburgh ... for a more, you know, aggressive Pittsburgh."
Broad issues of professional culture and management style likely played a strong role.
"I don't think he really liked a lot of the holdovers. I think it's a generational thing."
Yeah, maybe that's why Luke was in Oakmont all week instead of his office - scouting for a new EMS chief.
ReplyDeleteIf he was displeased with some, he should've asked some to resign. This Russian Roulette stunt is childsplay, not "broad issues of management style and professional culture" at work - unless, of course, you are referring to the UNprofessional culture of the mayor's office and "Issues" as in "those boys have serious issues".