Also see Municipal Court Mediation as another program where volunteers can help build a greater Oakland community and potentially reduce local court costs.

A lot of running a small town is done by volunteers who work on commissions and boards. These individuals put efforts in to help administer the town and are often overlooked for their efforts. Recognizing these efforts, and seeking to create a diversity of local talent is imperative to maintaining services and quality in Oakland.

Additionally, the numerous charities and non-profits that operate in Oakland are the core of Oakland’s character. The organizations are too numerous to list. They range from the religious and civic to seniors and youth, and it is these organizations that provide the public face of Oakland as a community.

Municipal government needs these organizations more than ever. The ability to maintain quality of life in an era of shrinking budgets is reliant on encouraging volunteers, and partnering with local non-profits and charities needs to become the norm. Local government needs to act as a partner with these organizations who’s primary beneficiaries are the people of Oakland. While our public financial resources must shrink, our creative resources must expand.

The processes required for fundraisers and events need to be streamlined for organizations whose event planning requires approval or involvement from the municipal government. Volunteers devote their time, and any effort the town cam make to streamline process helps to reserve that time for the primary mission of the organization rather than devoting it to bureaucratic red-tape.

The town could accomplish this in several ways using a tier system for new entities and established ones. Organizations that have operated in town for “x” number of years would be provided access to a streamlined approval process for events that might include a temporary gaming license or the use of public facilities. Those entities that are newer to the town would, and should, require greater oversight and review before earning access to the streamlined process.

Many organizations, new and old, often lack an institutionalized knowledge base which becomes problematic when leadership changes. The town could assist non-profit organizations by preparing an information package that details what items for an event may need town council approval, the processes involved, and a schedule of how to go about securing these approvals.

Making life simpler for volunteers and the organizations they represent helps to encourage volunteers, and helps to conserve their time so as to focus on their primary mission, be it raising funds or sponsoring an event.

Also see Municipal Court Mediation as another program where volunteers can help build a greater Oakland community and potentially reduce local court costs.