Alachua County management is now considered excellent nationwide.
Alachua County was one of 33 jurisdictions awarded the certificate of excellence, the highest award given by the International City/County Management Association for Performance Analytics.
Alachua County Manager Lee A. Niblock will be accepting the award on behalf of the county at the ICMA’s annual conference in September.
"Being one of only 33 agencies nationally that have received this level of award is very positive feedback for all the efforts we put into this," said Donna Bradbrook, the strategic performance manager for Alachua County.
Gerald Young, the technology, analysis, and user support coordinator with the center, said the certificate of excellence rewards local governments with noteworthy achievements but also sets examples for others.
"I think what it demonstrates is that the county is dedicated to trying to track and improve upon its performance from year to year, and I think that’s a laudable goal," Young said.
When awarding certificates, Young said the ICMA evaluates the local government’s ability to collect reliable performance data and its ability to use performance data to improve the community and look at outcomes.
In the last three years, Alachua County has tracked a 6-percent decrease in water usage and a 7.5-percent decrease in electricity consumption by collecting data for performance management and following the success of their conservation plans, according to this year’s planned budget strategic plan.
"I’m not going to say that we will ever be perfect at it, but we are always striving for improvement," Bradbrook said.
