The Virginian-Pilot
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VIRGINIA BEACH
Mayor Will Sessoms gave his State of the City speech last week. It lasted about 35 minutes and cost the city $9,000.
The city hired a consultant to help write the speech and produce the slide show, which touted successes over the past year and announced some new ventures, including the purchase of the Norfolk Southern right of way.
Virginia Beach paid Otto Design & Marketing to work on the presentation despite having a 10-person media and communications group, including a staff member who has written mayoral speeches and is paid $60,475.
No other locality in South Hampton Roads hired a consultant for the State of the City presentation. Suffolk, which had used Ethicom Associates Inc. for the past two years to produce the video, plans to do all the work in-house this year.
"They're pretty big speeches," said Mary Hancock, who heads the Beach's Media and Communications Group, of the presentations that the consultant has worked on with the staff. "We welcome the fresh eyes."
The city used Otto because the company knows how to appeal to a business audience. And the Beach's in-house writer, Drew Lankford, had to work on other projects, Hancock said.
"It definitely was a good speech, because it helped to advance Virginia Beach," Councilman Ron Villanueva said. "But I'm not sure the cost associated would be justified in these economic times."
Spending money on a speech, when you have staff that can do the work, sends the wrong message, said John Moss, chairman of the Virginia Beach Taxpayer Alliance.
"It's hard to say how pressed your budget is when you can afford this," Moss said. "Money is not nearly as tight in the city as it is in people's homes."
The Beach has used consultants before to help with the State of the City presentation, Hancock said. Last year, Otto was paid $8,210 to work on it.
Otto helped pen four other speeches - total cost: $2,846 - for Sessoms in the last month, including remarks at the Regent University mayor's forum and the swearing in of Circuit Court Judge Les Lilley, the former city attorney.
Sessoms said he was pleased with the speeches and knew that a consultant was helping.
"As for the costs, I don't have an explanation for you," the mayor said. "I was trusting media and communications."
Sessoms said he told the staff what he wanted to accomplish in the State of the City address and "they had to figure out how we get there."
The city anticipates using Otto for all of Sessoms' speeches for the next several weeks, Hancock said.
Pilot writers Dave Forster, Harry Minium, Jen McCaffery and Mike Saewitz contributed to this report.
Deirdre Fernandes, (757) 222-5121, deirdre.fernandes@pilotonline.com
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At this point this is a surprise to who?
"the state of the city "
"some humor" thanks I needed a good laugh for the day , at a cost of $9,000 sounds like pretty good money to me thats like 3 months salary for most of us ,is it tax exempt too ?, Isnt this sort of like doing someone elses work , I wonder if the mayor even knows what the speech was about , maybe we could have paid extra and got someone else to reed it too , 5 words or less can describe the "state of virginia beach"
Mayor Sessoms
I am quite dissappointed in our new mayor over this spending decision.
IMPEACH
IMPEACH
Re: joscott's rumor
Paying for the Mayors Speech
Submitted by joscott on Wed, 03/18/2009 at 8:54 pm.
"The city is talking layoffs for the first time in years. Yes I said layoffs, for those of you who have been told otherwise the term IS being used in the halls and departments of the city". What actual proof do you have other than rumors, claims, gossip? I don't know what rumors you may have heard, joscott, but the city is not talking layoffs. If anything, employees will be relocated to other jobs within the city that they fit into related to their job skills, etc. I know for an actual fact that you have no proof, no substantial evidence, no facts to back up your false claims. And yes, I have heard otherwise from very reliable and trustworthy people.
" Its only 9 grand
" Its only 9 grand "
Submitted by russb757 on Wed, 03/18/2009 at 3:45 pm.
To the folks on here that blow this off because it is " only " $ 9,000 can I just miss my real estate tax for the next three years. That is " only " $ 9,000 to. This is why government at all levels is failing. In this current economy you have to watch every dollar and government simply is not capable of that.
---------------------
Well I can't argue with anything you say. Government doesn't make money. It takes your money and spends it as it wants, and the only recourse you have is the ballot box. This isn't new. The article indicates that last year (Oberndorf as Mayor) they spent $8,210 to do the same thing. Why the outrage now?
Propaganda!
The city spends at least $10,000 per month taking out a full page ad in the pilot for political propaganda. Apparently the city has money they are not telling us about.
Propaganda!
The city spends at least $10,000 per month taking out a full page ad in the pilot for political propaganda. Apparently the city has money they are not telling us about.
Hiring consultants is nothing new.
Did everyone else miss the part in the article stating that the same firm was used for the speech last year, when Meyera Oberndorf was in office? This is not a tactic specific to the new mayor. So what if the mayor or any public official has a speechwriter or an ad firm? Don't all leaders delegate work to others? Don't they HAVE to, in order to get anything accomplished? Because someone else wrote his speech does not mean Sessoms didn't have input or drive the content.
That said, I agree choosing to outsource at this particular time was not the best public relations move, with the city facing shortfalls and departments making cuts. I think this is probably a learning experience.
Contrary to what you rabid posters think, the majority of city employees multi-task and work very hard with your best interests in mind, in terms of providing service and being efficient with taxpayer dollars. I appreciate the services I have as a citizen of Virginia Beach and I am fine with my taxes, our leaders and city workers.
You grumpy, bitter people might want to move some place else. Try Portsmouth.
Frivolous expenditure
When everyone has to cut back. Maybe it's time to test your skills as a mayor instead of hiring someone to do your work. What's the college education for?