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Council and staff use '1alignment exercise to surface staffing, CIP and service gaps
Summary
At a Feb. 28 workshop session on co-alignment theory, councilmembers and department directors identified misalignments between the city's agenda, structure, networks and service domain, highlighting staffing, deferred maintenance and library service access as recurring themes.
The Folsom City Council and executive staff used a co-alignment exercise Feb. 28 to identify where the city's priorities, organizational structure and external networks are out of sync.
City leaders worked through a four-part co-alignment model (agenda, domain, network, structure) and placed a set of candidate problems on the map. Common themes that surfaced during the discussion were: insufficient staffing relative to the workload across multiple departments; a backlog of deferred maintenance and capital-renewal needs in parks, facilities and roads; limited library access for residents in the Folsom Plan area; tensions in the historic district between preservation goals and proposed downtown growth; and technology/automation shortfalls that hinder operational efficiency.
Councilmembers and directors described how those misalignments manifest in daily operations. Public-works and engineering staff said state reporting requirements and regulatory responsibilities have increased workload and reduced the time available to deliver capital projects. Parks staff said the CIP historically emphasizes new facilities tied to growth while renovation and lifecycle funding for existing assets has been deferred. Library staff said closures and limited branch presence mean some residents in newer growth areas travel outside the city for services.
Multiple participants also said public-safety staffing and recruitment present a structural-domain challenge: expectations for 24/7 policing and fire/EMS coverage continue to rise while the city competes with neighboring jurisdictions and special districts for limited personnel. Participants raised technology and information-technology investment as part of the structural response that could improve service delivery without proportional increases in headcount.
The exercise did not produce formal policy actions; rather, participants used the model to surface top priorities for future council discussion and for staff work during the spring budget season. Participants asked staff to bring more quantified analyses to upcoming budget briefings: staffing studies, prioritized capital-renewal cost estimates, and options for library service expansion and technology investments.
Ending: The co-alignment exercise produced a council- and staff-generated list of priorities that staff will quantify and return with options during the formal budget and CIP cycles.
