One of the aspects of the Ben Franklin Project at the Times that I like is their effort to identify the interests of its readers. The Times’ folks asked readers about their most important issues in Delaware County, and then started asking readers’ questions. On July 4th Rose Quinn asked “What do you think about the idea of consolidating all police departments in Delaware County into one countywide law enforcement agency?” of passersby in Media and then asking the same question of a few County leaders.
The answers were thoughtful and perhaps somewhat predictable, but I thought the responses demonstrated the basic difficulty in achieving substantive change in our communities. Unless a clear benefit is seen, the average man or women will resist change. The real challenge to community change is finding a leader(s) who can initiate and develop community-wide discussions among all stakeholders? How can the community be best engaged to determine the net benefits of a change?
There are a number of important societal issues on Delco’s horizon, which offer at least a discussion better way of operating some of our institutions. One important issue is the funding for public schools. Is there a better way to pay for our kids’ education than what we’re using now? Gotta be! Should Delaware County have 15 school districts or perhaps just one? 15 sounds like too many, but 1 might be tough. Should all police departments in Delaware County consolidate into one countywide law enforcement agency?
Would a single county-wide United Way serving Delco, be better than the three separate United Ways we have today? Certainly.
Not the most pressing issues to many folks, but certainly areas, which could better address their mission, to better serve the folks in Delaware County. Where do we find the leadership? Who will step forward to show us that there gotta be a better way.
