Hayes: Administration to be Thoughtful, Not Reactive

With his first four-year term only days old, Bridgewater Township Mayor Dan Hayes is looking ahead to accomplish many administrative goals.

Hayes was sworn in as mayor during .

Read Hayes's full reorganization speech here.

“Essentially Bridgewater, like communities across the nation, are in the grips of an economic storm, and the state relief is not in sight,” he said. “And some of the larger concerns are based on an economic nature and meeting budget objectives.”

As such, his biggest concerns are for quality of life, Hayes said.

“It is really to pursue a vision to have a quality of life in Bridgewater that is the envy of other communities,” he said. “We are committed to being the lowest in municipal taxes in the county, we are committed to being vigilant around land use issues, and we are committed to improving our infrastructure and delivering essential services.”

From there, he is running his administration to be resourceful, inclusive, forward-thinking, accessible and transparent, Hayes said.

And part of that, Hayes said, was bringing on board the best team possible, which included the rehiring of , who left the township in January 2011 to take a job in Clinton.

“We have to date, with the appointments made, assembled a team that can navigate through the waters ahead in the short term and seize opportunities in the long term,” Hayes said. “I cannot imagine a better administrative team than the one we have put together.”

In building that team to run the administration, Hayes said, he looks for talent and experience, all of which combine to ensure that the people can take responsibility for helping the town be the best possible place.

“You spend time with them to see how they fit philosophically with your goals and objectives, and look at their skill sets to determine if they are those you need for your team,” he said. “My responsibility is to help them meet the goals that I’ve outlined, and the team of Mr. Naples, Mr. [Robert] Bogart and everyone, I can look through the administration and it’s an outstanding team.”

And for the , Hayes said he believes it takes a certain skill set and understanding of responsibilities to take on the job, but that there are many in town willing and able to do it.

“I certainly hope, and I have no doubt, that the new council member will bring dedication, individual thought and experience,” he said. “The person should not be afraid to share those for the betterment of the community.”

Hayes said at this point it is still too early to determine any specific goals for where the budget will be when it is introduced later this year, as well as exactly how he will fulfill his goals in his term, but he is working on gathering information and preparing his plans.

“We will be looking over essential services, and projected costs of those essential services, as well as how each department sees value delivered to the residents,” he said. “Then we will put all that together into a first-pass budget.”

In spending his time on the campaign trail he found that people were always dealing with economic concerns, as well as the services provided, and required, by the government, Hayes said.

“Meeting with the residents always provides insights into the thoughts they have,” he said.

Hayes said he will be looking toward a more transparent government to aid in helping the residents see the changes they want made, and part of that will be continuing his weekly Evenings with Dan, when he sits down with residents on one night every few weeks to discuss the township.

The date and time of those is yet to be determined, Hayes said.

But as a resident himself Hayes said he understands that those in town are looking for an administration that keeps taxes low, while also looking after zoning rules and other issues.

“That vision is one I believe we all share,” he said.

And one of his biggest goals for his term is to improve the township’s website as a way to better communicate with the public.

“We will be looking at updating it with better electronic means and better updating for residents in terms of storms and other best practices,” he said.

According to Hayes, emergency preparedness will always be important in the township as residents are coming off Irene and the October snowstorm, and heading directly into the colder months of winter that normally promise snow.

“We will be accessible, and part of that is communication,” he said. “We’re going to look at the use of electronic technology to figure out how we can provide more timely notices. We’re going to be best-practice driven.”

Communication will be key in his administration, with the goal of looking at problems now and figuring out how to fix them long term, rather than just through quick solutions, Hayes said.

“My goal is to give more timely responses, and look at options,” he said. “I can present a problem to a group of people and ask them to solve.”

That group of people could include both the administration and residents who give of their time to help the community.

“We are very fortunate as a township that we have so many people willing to be volunteers and step up,” Hayes said. “That is an awesome strength, and it is my hope that being accessible will bring more people.”

“We have great diversity in this community, and it’s a stated goal that our committees have to reflect our community,” he added.

While the administration is still new, and therefore fragile, Hayes said, he believes he has put a good team together to lead the township. He said he plans to serve as mayor with a very thoughtful approach to situations.

“People will find the Hayes administration is thoughtful and process-oriented,” he said. “We will look to address issues in terms of a process.”

“What that really means is we will be looking at issues as to what is causing them, how do we resolve them and how do we resolve them so the issues don’t happen again,” he added. “It is a thoughtful process as opposed to being immediately reactive.”

And Hayes said he hopes all of this will encourage residents to be part of their community.

“Call on your government and call on your township,” he said. “We will deliver."