[img]1931|exact|||no_popup[/img]
Fleet Manager Paul Condran accepts award yesterday in San Antonio. Photo, Government Fleet magazine.
The announcement from San Antonio was succinct:
Government Fleet magazine and the 100 Best Fleets program named the Top 20 fleets in the 100 Best Fleets program, as well as the No. 1 fleet, at the annual awards ceremony held at the Government Fleet Expo & Conference. The No. 1 fleet is the City of Culver City.
Before an audience upwards of 300, Paul Condran, the equipment maintenance/fleet manager in his 28th year with the city, was at the conference yesterday in San Antonio to accept the premium prize.
Culver City was chosen from among 38,000 fleets spanning North America.
“An awesome honor,” Mr. Condran told the newspaper this morning, explaining how the city became eligible.
“Since 2004, we have been involved in the LEED certification and recognition program called the 100 Best Fleets in North America.
“This program looks at how a municipal fleet operation does things right in terms of saving taxpayer money, high efficiencies, high productivity, producing quality work and taking care of our customers. No. 1 is customer satisfaction.
“There are 12 very difficult qualifiers. You need to answer specific, pointed questions, and in some cases, provide documentation that proves what you are doing and how you are doing it.”
Since 2006, Mr. Condran’s department has provided detailed answers, and their perspicacity has been rewarded. Culver City has finished in the Top 10 every year peaking at No. 3. Last year.
In the dimension of the city where the spotlight is shined least often, there are 42 persons in the equipment maintenance division, and 135 total in the Transportation Dept.
Mr. Condran was asked how Culver City came to repose regularly in America’s upper tier of transportation.
“We did it, quite frankly, because we emphasize high quality services,” he said. “We are very cost-conscientious, not only to the city but to the surrounding public, our citizens of Culver City.
“For example, with our natural gas vehicle program, we are called early adopters. We have been doing this since late ’97. We have continually saved the city well over $1.4million a year just in fuel cost savings.
“We have reduced upwards of over 7500 mega-tons – that is not tons but mega-tons – of hostile pollutants out of the atmosphere because of our growing fleet of natural gas-powered vehicles.
“We are very proud,” said Mr. Condran, “that we use natural gas. It is inexpensive, safe, extremely clean, and 100 percent domestic. So we are removing ourselves off foreign oils.”
Another explanation for the unprecedented success of the Transportation Dept. is the pride that the leader takes in his work.
“I don’t take my job lightly,” Mr. Condran said. “It may sound clichéd but I am a guy who ultimately believes I work for the taxpayers. If I don’t come to work and give 100 percent, 100 percent of the time, I am violating public trust.
“I just can’t do that. My dad (Sam Condran), may he rest in peace, would probably come down and kill me.”
Mr. Condran outlined his pledge to the city:
“You have to have a strong work ethic. You have to believe in what you do. You have to walk the walk. You have to have integrity, especially now in public service with all of the negativity that we read about from cities maliciously violating the public trust. You see officials being condemned not only for financial trust violations but also their work ethic. I am not built that way.
“I would rather resign,” said Mr. Condran, in his second quarter century with the city, “than compromise my integrity because, at the end of the day, that is all we have.”
The top 20 fleets:
1. City of Culver City
2. City of Columbus, Ohio, Fleet Management
3. Dakota County, Minnesota, Fleet Management
4. Denver Public Works – Fleet Management Division
5. City of Santa Ana
6. City of Moline, Illinois
7. City of Fort Wayne
8. City of Fort Worth
9. City of Sacramento – General Services – Fleet
10. City of Rochester Equipment Services, CPFO
11. City of Conroe, Texas
11. City of Edmonton, AB, Canada – Fleet Services
13. University of California, Davis
14. Sonoma County- Fleet Operations
15. San Bernardino County Fleet Management
16. Eugene Water & Electric Board
17. City of Oceanside
17. County of San Diego
19. Manatee County Board of County Commissioners, Florida
20. City Of Anaheim
