Continuing my string of appearances at each City Council meeting [1, 2], presenting two ideas to improve the city for $10,000 or less, I spoke this evening to describe two admittedly-small ideas.
Preserve Commercial Art
In our efforts to preserve the character of the downtown historic district, it is important that we not overlook some of the architectural nuances brought about by the commerce that took place here from the late 1800s to the mid-1900s. One of the strongest reminders of those days past is the faded commercial artwork that adorns the walls of many buildings. There are signs painted throughout the downtown area that proclaim the quality of a particular hamburger, extoll the refreshment of a Coca-Cola, or list the wide variety of products available within. As these signs disappear due to simple weathering and exposure to sunlight, we are losing an easily-preserved element that makes downtown both a tourist destination and the colorful place that it is. I propose the creation of a small program that would reimburse property owners for the cost of repainting and maintaining those signs. In many cases, the cost of repainting those signs would run only a few hundred dollars, but the owners of those buildings may not appreciate the value of maintaining them. If this program were successful, it might cost as much as a few thousand dollars a year, but, due to the dwindling number of these murals that remain, probably not a whole lot more than that.
Redesign the Water Bills
Redesign the water bills. Currently, these are extremely straightforward: “here’s how much water that you used, here’s how much that it costs.” Although the often-enclosed encouragements to conserve are good, some more direct information would be easy to generate and surely helpful. For example, each bill could indicate the quantity of water in use compared to the city average, stating something like “you use as much water as the average three person household in Charlottesville.” Of course, if this bill is going to a household of one, they might see the need to change their behavior. Historical data would be wonderful — perhaps a graph showing a household’s last 12 months of water usage, so that they can see the results of their water conservation. Corresponding words of praise and encouragement would be all the better, along with appropriate tips for further conservation. It would surely be of great help to provide ongoing reminders of the need to conserve water, such that each citizen can be aware of the quantity that they are personally using. I must admit that I’m unable to provide a cost estimate of this, as it is entirely contingent on the nature of the existing billing system, with which I am unfamiliar. That said, such a system would be both conceptually and programmatically simple to create and, should it help prevent another water crisis, the savings to the city could be impressive.