Stacey Trumbo is the quiet guardian of public safety in Oklahoma County. As County Engineer, he oversees the infrastructure that the county’s 800,000-plus residents rely upon every day, including the bridges and roads that criss-cross the metropolitan hub within its borders, Oklahoma City.
As he reflects 18 years in what he describes as the perfect role, Trumbo is reluctant to highlight any one milestone over the others. Instead, he points to a trait that has been a constant throughout his tenure: stability.
“Along with supporting elected officials, I’ve really focused on customer service to ensure that I take care of taxpayers and resolve basic problems,” he tells The CEO Magazine.
“That’s often where people get into trouble. If you’re not focused on the basics, you tend to get the boot.”
Protecting public safety
There is one project on the horizon that – once it eventuates – looks set to be Trumbo’s crowning achievement: a new county jail. The current jail, Oklahoma County Detention Center, is one of the most scrutinized jails in the United States, thanks to long-standing issues with overcrowding and staffing shortages among other building problems.
Despite the fact that county voters have previously approved bonds for the construction of a new jail, progress has stalled.
“We’ve been trying to solve the problem, but it’s such an expensive one,” he says. “It’s the biggest job in the county right now.”
Inroads are starting to be made and a new facility is in development, the Oklahoma County Behavioral Center.
“We’re trying to decriminalize mental health, like other communities around the world,” he explains.
“You have to have solid public safety in the community. If you don’t, any good you’re doing at the county level is going to be lost.”
The planned 60-bed facility is intended to provide treatment for those in mental health crisis and offer clinical help over incarceration.
The county still needs an extra US$635 million in funding for the jail, a figure likely to be raised through a sales tax. Trumbo knows it’s still too early to call whether the citizens will vote for it, but he hopes they appreciate how important it is to get this facility right.
“It’s one of those things that’s not popular and that nobody wants to spend money on, but it’s one of those that you have to,” he points out.
“You have to have solid public safety in the community. If you don’t, any good you’re doing at the county level is going to be lost.”
Giving back
As with all large-scale public works, a project like this will rely heavily upon third-party partners. When it comes to working with the private sector, however, Trumbo knows the importance of emphasizing strong relationships with local businesses, such as civil engineering firms Smith Roberts Baldischwiler and TEIM Design.
“If you can keep those tax dollars at home, circulating in your own economy, you’re miles ahead,” he notes.
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Trumbo has been careful to cultivate a workplace that not only attracts talent to execute such projects, but also retains them.
“We’re not the highest-paying agency around, but people stay here because they like the environment,” he says.
He places much value on mentorship, knowing firsthand the benefits that come from having such guidance.
“I was mentored as a young engineer, so it’s a way for me to give back,” he explains. “I give employees assignments and the responsibility that goes with it so they can grow and make their own decisions.
“If they make a mistake, then we’ll sit down and talk about it. Everybody’s going to make mistakes. If there are failures, then we mentor and we go at it again.”
Tackling growth
Together, his team is prioritizing the infrastructure upgrades that come with a growing population. In 20 years, the population of Oklahoma County has steadily increased by nearly 150,000 people.
“People are coming from both the east and west coasts and moving to the midwest, I suspect because land is available and more affordable in comparison,” he says.
“The more successful your projects are, the better you feel about it. That, for me, is the measure.”
Trumbo’s role is ensuring the subdivisions that are built are high quality, so that the population has a good place to live, in addition to roads and bridges so they can easily travel between the suburbs and the city.
“We have to anticipate where the problems are going to be and be proactive,” he confirms.
“Our biggest problems are traffic jams, but I think people recognize that we’re doing it in the best way we can and prioritizing work. That doesn’t mean everyone is happy, but it’s hard for them to be critical of our program because we are focusing on the biggest issues first.”
Success in the public sector isn’t defined by tangible targets such as revenue increases, geographical expansion and product R&D. Instead, Trumbo cites program execution as one of its key measurements.
“We don’t have profit-and-loss statements, so we can’t measure ourselves that way. What we can do is measure consistency with the budget we are given, to ensure we get the best bang for our bucks in our projects,” he says.
“The more successful your projects are, the better you feel about it. That, for me, is the measure.”
