TEXAS NEWS DIGEST SPECIAL: Y2K--A CASE STUDY OF THE CITY OF LUBBOCK
Here it is (at least of one thing I've promised you, the reader, in past months)!!! When people think of the problems that Y2K MIGHT bring come New Year's Eve, we find at least two very prevalent camps--the Chicken Little/"the sky's falling" crowd and the Pollyannas/"if we pretend nothing will happen, it won't" forces. Cities all throughout the world are at various levels of preparedness without knowing the exact impact and "devastation" it will have on us. Utilities, major banking and computer systems, defense infrastructures--people fear the worst. Riots, civil unrest- -how are we going to deal with these headaches?
Little do some know that one Texas city has not only contemplated these upcoming problems--but has also already taken steps to see that something is done about it. And in the process, the West Texas city of Lubbock has now become regarded in recent months as the world leader in Y2K preparedness prompting interest from cities such as Los Angeles and the Washington, D.C. area and generating massive media attention from major news sources in the process. In this case study, I wish to take a brief look at the question- -how exactly did they do it?
First, the logical question to start with is, "What is this thing about Y2K anyway?" (for those rare few who haven't heard about it by now). Lubbock Avalanche-Journal Business Editor Chris Van Wagenen briefly defines it as a problem that "...involves computers and other embedded chip hardware that might not perform properly on Jan. 1, 2000, because programming might recognize dates ending with 00 as the year 1900." Experts say that this could effect even those who don't know anything about computers--even right down to the ATM machines from your bank that a number of people use. Electricity and other utilities might experience some problems--and even emergency communications systems that police and fire officials use might be severely impacted.
But what makes Lubbock so special in preparations for this effort? City officials not only just ran exercises to simulate an Y2K emergency situation--but they made sure that both low-tech and high-tech solutions were properly checked out and utilized. In essence, they decided that it was better to be progressive and forward-thinking rather than sit back, wait, and then be forced to be on the defensive only able to react to situations as they arise instead of utilizing strategic planning to make sure all possible contingencies that could be thought of were carefully thought through in advance.
What particular things might other cities learn from Lubbock? Here's some major things that I found just off
