March 7, 2005

Richmond (VA) Mayor L. Douglas Wilder became the capital city's first popularly elected mayor in January. No stranger to Virginia politics, Wilder, 74, became the first black Governor in 1990, earning the title, "King of Richmond."

The Washington Times, in a February 14 article, said that Wilder, after taking office, instituted a variety of public forums in which residents give him ideas about improving city services.

City employees are encouraged to send, via e-mail, suggestions about cost'saving measures and ways to reduce overtime costs in the city of 197,000.

One citizen told the new mayor it would be a good idea to put up photographs of fugitives in city buses. Wilder did, commenting that it was a helpful idea.

In 2003, Richmond voters approved by a four to one margin, a referendum calling for a popular election, a change that Wilder suggested, which also received Republican support.

The article notes that Wilder, with many friends in the Commonwealth legislature, had helped him secure funding for new initiatives. These included funds for a pilot program to reduce high truancy rates. Wilder, with a four-year term just starting, says his goals include safe streets, schools that draw praise, and a revitalized waterfront filled with shops and restaurants.

In last fall's citywide election, Wilder won 78.6 percent of the vote.

The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) announced January 6 that Arlington Heights (IL) Mayor Arlene J. Mulder, Chairperson of the O'Hare Noise Compatibility Commission, is the recipient of the 2005 Jay Hollingsworth Speas Airport Award.

Co'sponsored by the American Associate of Airport Executives, the Airports Consultants Council, and the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, the award is presented to the person or persons judged to have contributed most outstandingly during the recent past towards achieving compatible relationships between airports and/or heliports and adjacent environments.

Mulder is being honored for extraordinary leadership and personal initiative in educating the public, manufacturers, regulators and researchers about the impacts of noise; helping disparate groups to reach consensus on mitigation goals; and guiding and promoting funding of noise abatement research and development through participation in national and international advisory groups. The award was presented to her February 24 during the AAAE/ACC 2005 Airport Planning, Design, and Construction Symposium, at the Reno Hilton, in Reno (NV).

In 1997, Mulder was elected by other local government leaders in the Chicago area to serve as chair of the O'Hare Noise Compatibility Commission, a regional commission created to help solve the aircraft noise problems at the "World's Busiest Airport." She has been re-elected to that position every year since and is now an internationally recognized leader on aircraft noise mitigation issues. Mulder was born in California and received her B.A. in Biology and Physical Education from San Francisco State University.

Headquartered in suburban Washington (DC), the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) serves over 35,000 members in 65 regional sections and 79 countries. For more information, please visit, www.aiaa.org or contact AIAA Honors & Awards at 703-264-7623.

The city of Dallas and the Dallas Independent School District celebrated the opening of both the Arcadia Park Branch Library and Arcadia Park Elementary School. Students will not have to travel far because the two buildings are connected.

These were built as a partnership under the concept of schools as centers of community. It is a model for cities and school systems on how to do joint venture projects. According to Dallas Mayor Laura Miller, "We are looking forward to doing more of these projects because they are such a benefit to the community."

With limited land available in many cities, many mayors and school systems are partnering in building joint use facilities, adding parks to school buildings for recreational purposes, constructing a community theatre to double as a school auditorium, and similar efforts as Dallas has engaged.