The other day I received a letter from Tamarac City Manager Michael Cernech and got very excited.
Was he was reinstating me to that committee that Commissioner Harry Dressler kicked me off of? Better yet, was he thanking me for all the great articles I’ve written over the past two years demanding suggesting improvements for the city?
Much to my disappointment, it was neither of those things.
It was just a form letter and survey sent to former Tamarac University graduates asking us to rate the city for part of the “Strategic Planning” process.
Since there are only about a hundred former graduates such as myself, I wanted to take this survey seriously. I spent two days thinking about the four questions on it and I could only come up with the answers below.
Please think about our organization as a whole and the community when you answer the following four questions. Your answers will be used for Strategic Planning by the City of Tamarac.”
“What makes the City of Tamarac unique?”
It’s unique in that there’s absolutely nothing unique about it.
“What are some things that the City of Tamarac does well?”
I believe Tamarac does a great job of keeping their workshops and commission meeting out of public scrutiny by not doing what almost every city in Broward County does, which is airing their meetings on cable or their website.
You see, not everyone can make it to a 9 am meeting. Many of our residents are working during the day, but since 85% of us have computers, we can watch these meetings on our own time. The city needs to start airing these for those that want to see what’s going on in city hall.
Tamarac is also good at attracting diversity…..in fast food restaurants. When our city’s most sophisticated place to dine is Applebee’s, it tells me that this is the place people will want to move to.
“What are some areas the City of Tamarac could improve on?”
All of the areas east of University Drive.
“Do you have any thoughts or suggestions for the City of Tamarac?”
Let’s discuss the possibility of merging with Coral Springs. Since so many of our residents are exempt from paying property taxes due to their exemptions exceeding the low values of their homes, I say the higher tax base in Coral Springs will really do us some good. Just imagine how good our city would look with all those beautiful trees, matching bus shelters, custom street signs along University Drive and a plethora of fantastic restaurants.
Another suggestion: Eminent Domain. Get rid of some blighted areas and build new homes there. Don’t make them cheapy homes either. Let’s raise the bar – and our tax base, and get some decent priced ones built.
While I doubt my input will be a factor for any change in our city, I hope all opinions are heard at their strategic planning meeting because this city needs to find a strategy in attracting new people. We need Tamarac to be a destination place to live for a long time, not a stop-over on the way to something better.