Bipartisanship

Bi-Partisanship:

Anyone who has lived on this earth for any length of time knows that sometimes compromise is necessary. As much as we would like to win an argument, persuade someone to your way of thinking, or even settle the age-old argument of, “what’s for dinner,” compromise needs to be a way of life. Don’t get me wrong, too much compromise isn’t good either. You can lose sight of your goals and principles if you aren’t strategic.

As an engineer, I make complex decisions every day, some are life and death decisions, and some are potentially expensive decisions. For example, if I make a water main too small or a road not strong enough, people may get hurt. Fortunately, I have not designed or created a bad situation, but I have had to rely upon my experiences to repair and design solutions for a myriad of potentially dangerous public safety situations in my tenure.

What I have learned in those situations is that in the mundane and day-to-day design work, it is essential to make sure that all people involved are heard. Listening is a vital step. For example, while I was in a design review meeting with my managers, a couple of operators, and the director of the department, I was questioned by the water treatment manager about my design choice. He was polite and helpful about it. Let me back track a bit and explain the project. We had a lift station that had a back-up lift station that pumped sewage into an open-air pond during an emergency. I basically just redesigned the station with new equipment, knowing we were trying to eliminate the station altogether. I couldn’t get the heights to work to push water against gravity. Not an unusual problem for me. He asked me if we could “surcharge the manhole” and get the water to “spill” into the pond. Surcharging is when you back up wastewater into upstream pipes and manholes. We try not to do this at all costs because sometimes the results are BAD, smelly, and costly. In this case I told him I would look into it. Days later, one of the other managers approached me and told me he was impressed with how I handled the situation. You see, typically engineers get angry when you question their designs. I did not. I found his input and feedback necessary for the success of the project. It also saved a ton of rate payer money. I designed it with his suggestion in mind, and to this day it works beautifully. I love it when a design comes together and I love the way this collaboration came together.

The same is true in politics. During my term with the Pueblo West Metropolitan District, I was privileged to work with many local leaders and accomplish a lot of great things for Pueblo West. Namely, Chaffee County and the Hill Ranch Project; Pueblo Board of Water Works and the guarantee of wet water to be used by residents; as well as Pueblo County and the restructuring of the Intergovernmental Agreement to maintain the roads. Working with the various agencies and their elected officials requires compromise regardless of party affiliation. It is a necessity. If you don’t, everyone suffers. The goal is to improve the life of those you serve. I have learned that if everyone walks away from the negotiations unhappy, you did it right.