Business in Tucson

We are in a war, but we are not at war. It is like we are in a fight, but we have both hands tied willingly behind our backs. A friend of mine that has been very frustrated trying to get approval for his remodel project with the City of Tucson was talking to the department head on the phone. The bureaucrat was complaining about the budget cuts and how many people had been cut from his department. My friend chided him by telling him it was their own fault, if they had worked to help business people get through the red tape when trying to do legitimate projects that would pump money into the city coffers, they could have prevented the cuts. The guy was listless in commenting that “it wasn’t his job”.

A friend of mine who used to own businesses in Tucson moved to Texas a few years ago. He has regaled me with stories over the years about the difference in attitude in working with the city employees in his community. When he first moved to this small coastal town in Texas he bought some land and planned an RV park. He brought his plans to the city and was told that there was a mistake in the plans. Having done business in Tucson he anticipated going back to the drawing board, getting back in the queue, and waiting weeks or months for approval. Instead the lady said “let me help you with this”, she fixed the mistake and approved the plans that day. Tucson needs to realize that we are competing for companies and jobs. Others are in the game, but we are on the sidelines. My Texas friend sent me a link to a video that they produced in Texas. I hope you will watch it to see the difference in the attitude between Texaplex and Tucson:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FC16-4fh-Qc



Wouldn’t it be great if we could emerge from our sleep and start fighting for our survival?