In 1992, the Neighborhood Resource Teams were established by then-Mayor Paul Soglin as a way to better coordinate City services within 10 smaller areas of the City. These Neighborhood Resource Teams (NRTs) were intended to be a resource to residents, not a substitute for neighborhood initiatives and leadership. Each team consisted of a city staff person from major City agencies operating in the area, such as Police, Fire, Building Inspection, Public Health, Office of Community Services, and Community Development Block Grant Office. After the teams had been in operation, the Mayor established a Guidance Team of managers and supervisors to help better coordinate team activities and serve as a basis for their support and guidance.
RECENT HISTORY
In the fall of 2000, Mayor Susan J. M. Bauman created an initiative to make the benefits of these cross-functional teams available to all areas of the City. City staff working in the same area would be able to share their information and improve service coordination; the Mayor could assign site-specific issues with complex, multi-faceted dimensions to a cross-agency team for a more comprehensive solution. The Mayor and the Guidance Team worked with NRT members and leaders to help the teams begin to operate in larger geographical areas containing approximately 20,000 to 25,000 people. The Mayor also expanded the membership of the teams to include staff from Public Works, the Library, and Parks-three other City Departments that affect the quality of life in city neighborhoods.
When Mayor Dave Cieslewicz became mayor, he recognized the vital role that neighborhoods play in contributing to the health of a city. Early in his first term, the Mayor attended a retreat of the City staff who comprise the Neighborhood Resource Teams, and encouraged their efforts to focus on improving the delivery of services to neighborhoods. He supported the Neighborhood Resource Teams as part of his Healthy City Initiatives, recognizing the value of City staff working together to improve City services. In 2007, the boundaries of the teams were restructured, in order to become better aligned with the City's police districts.
Mayor Paul Soglin was re-elected in 2010. One of his first initiatives was to re-examine the NRTs scope, function, and geography. Under his leadership, the teams were assigned to nine specific neighborhoods; 2) team membership was expanded to include City Attorney's, City Clerk, Civil Rights, Economic Development, Engineering, Finance, Information Technology, Madison Metro, and Transportation Departments; and 3) the oversight of the teams would be moved from the Mayor's Office to Public Health Madison & Dane County. In addition, the Mayor's Office is working with Madison and Dane County's nonprofits to establish a collaborative effort between city government and service providers.
