Post by cambygsp on Aug 7, 2005 7:42:10 GMT -5
www.indystar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050807/SPORTS/508070498/1004/SPORTS
August 7, 2005
Outdoors: Skip Hess
DNR chief gets high marks
In three days, Indiana Department of Natural Resources director Kyle Hupfer will have completed six months on the job.
I'm giving him A's across the board for how he has handled the headaches and criticisms. Let's review:
• One of his first Excedrin experiences after he was appointed Feb. 10 was the seemingly never-ending issue of hunting deer in fenced compounds.
Deer farm and hunting preserve owners clamored to tell Hupfer that their livelihood was at stake and that they had the backing of politicians.
Sportsman groups representing hundreds of people rushed to tell the new director that he, as a deer hunter with a head of a buck hanging on his wall, was the guy they needed on their side to stop fenced hunting.
Some state legislators tried to push through a bill on captive deer before Hupfer knew about it.
There were other issues that needed attention at the same time. There needed to be staff changes.
Hupfer took some criticism when he abruptly dismissed 10 high-ranking department officials at a meeting a month after he took office.
Steve Sellers, the DNR's former communications director, was one of the 10 and he was vocal. He said of Hupfer's handling of the dismissals: "It was flabbergasting, cold and impersonal."
Hupfer responded with this staff memo: "I wanted to avoid the pattern of two or three changes taking place each week." He told them to stop worrying about their jobs and focus on their work.
About that same time, he made a surprise visit to legislators and let them know he didn't appreciate being left out of the loop when it came to DNR business.
The legislators backed off of the bill they were trying to push through.
He returned the controversial hunting issue to square one and told people for and against fenced hunting they could have their say at public meetings across the state.
He has held those meetings. If more meetings are needed, he said he will hold them before making a decision on what the DNR's proposed rule will be at the next General Assembly.
• Hupfer also inherited internal problems in the department's law enforcement division.
But less than three weeks after he took command, Hupfer announced the bickering would end and Rob Carter, former Clay County sheriff, was the division's new leader.
He has told the department's 2,100 full-time employees that he wants them to find creative ways to increase the department's revenues, and he told them that if something is broken, fix it.
He made staff moves that have saved the state more than $1 million.
Last week, Hupfer called on Indiana businesses to submit proposals for the state's campground reservation system, which is being contracted to a Maryland vendor. Hupfer said he'd like to keep the business in state and he scheduled an Aug. 30 meeting for prospective state vendors.
• Finally, for several years, I have fielded complaints from the public who wondered why little, if anything, was being done about widespread illicit sexual activities in view of visitors at state parks, forests and field and wildlife areas.
The previous administrations and DNR directors ignored it, hoping it would go away. It didn't and it got worse.
Hupfer called it "an issue that has been festering in Indiana for much too long."
Last week, Hupfer ordered conservation officers to go undercover and patrol six properties. Eleven arrests were made in a five-hour period.
Hupfer said statewide patrols will continue to rid DNR properties of what he called "filth."
On second thought, let's give the new director an A-plus across the board.
August 7, 2005
Outdoors: Skip Hess
DNR chief gets high marks
In three days, Indiana Department of Natural Resources director Kyle Hupfer will have completed six months on the job.
I'm giving him A's across the board for how he has handled the headaches and criticisms. Let's review:
• One of his first Excedrin experiences after he was appointed Feb. 10 was the seemingly never-ending issue of hunting deer in fenced compounds.
Deer farm and hunting preserve owners clamored to tell Hupfer that their livelihood was at stake and that they had the backing of politicians.
Sportsman groups representing hundreds of people rushed to tell the new director that he, as a deer hunter with a head of a buck hanging on his wall, was the guy they needed on their side to stop fenced hunting.
Some state legislators tried to push through a bill on captive deer before Hupfer knew about it.
There were other issues that needed attention at the same time. There needed to be staff changes.
Hupfer took some criticism when he abruptly dismissed 10 high-ranking department officials at a meeting a month after he took office.
Steve Sellers, the DNR's former communications director, was one of the 10 and he was vocal. He said of Hupfer's handling of the dismissals: "It was flabbergasting, cold and impersonal."
Hupfer responded with this staff memo: "I wanted to avoid the pattern of two or three changes taking place each week." He told them to stop worrying about their jobs and focus on their work.
About that same time, he made a surprise visit to legislators and let them know he didn't appreciate being left out of the loop when it came to DNR business.
The legislators backed off of the bill they were trying to push through.
He returned the controversial hunting issue to square one and told people for and against fenced hunting they could have their say at public meetings across the state.
He has held those meetings. If more meetings are needed, he said he will hold them before making a decision on what the DNR's proposed rule will be at the next General Assembly.
• Hupfer also inherited internal problems in the department's law enforcement division.
But less than three weeks after he took command, Hupfer announced the bickering would end and Rob Carter, former Clay County sheriff, was the division's new leader.
He has told the department's 2,100 full-time employees that he wants them to find creative ways to increase the department's revenues, and he told them that if something is broken, fix it.
He made staff moves that have saved the state more than $1 million.
Last week, Hupfer called on Indiana businesses to submit proposals for the state's campground reservation system, which is being contracted to a Maryland vendor. Hupfer said he'd like to keep the business in state and he scheduled an Aug. 30 meeting for prospective state vendors.
• Finally, for several years, I have fielded complaints from the public who wondered why little, if anything, was being done about widespread illicit sexual activities in view of visitors at state parks, forests and field and wildlife areas.
The previous administrations and DNR directors ignored it, hoping it would go away. It didn't and it got worse.
Hupfer called it "an issue that has been festering in Indiana for much too long."
Last week, Hupfer ordered conservation officers to go undercover and patrol six properties. Eleven arrests were made in a five-hour period.
Hupfer said statewide patrols will continue to rid DNR properties of what he called "filth."
On second thought, let's give the new director an A-plus across the board.