Now into her second full year as Decatur city manager, Andrea Arnold admitted there were “really no surprises” during her first 12 months. Part of this is understandable. When she was named successor to Peggy Merriss in Jan. 2019, Arnold had already been a Decatur staffer for 21 years and assistant city manager since 2004.
The most significant and ambitious project facing the city this year is the 2020 Strategic Plan that will set specific goals over the next 10 years regarding, among others, affordable housing, environment and transportation. Arnold, too, is a veteran of that process.
The strategic planning kicked off with a Jan. 23 overview, and a series of community group meetings are scheduled for the next few months. It’s anticipated a final plan will get submitted to city commissioners next fall.
Not counting its 1982 Town Center Plan, Decatur has had two previous 10-year strategic plans, one in 2000 and another in 2010. Arnold, who was involved in both of those, said that the city has completed nearly all of the 89 projects detailed in the 2010 plan.
Arnold believes one critical reason Decatur can conceive and execute long-range goals like its strategic plans, along with two 10-year transportation plans, is the longevity of senior staffers including the city manager.
Decatur has a number of staffers with over 10 years experience, plus a police chief, deputy city manager, assistant city manager and assistant director of community and economic development with over 25 years with the city. This doesn’t count former assistant city manager Lyn Menne who retired after 34 years last October.
Most remarkable, with the average national lifespan of a city manager at 5 to 7 years per city, Arnold is only Decatur’s third manager since 1972.
“That longevity is good for city and good for our entire staff,” she said. “You know what the vision is and where we are headed. You don’t need to be changing that vision every three to five years.”
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