Lex Hester

Infobox person
name = Lex Hester

---

image_size = 150px
birth_date = December 24, 1935
birth_place = Washington, D.C.
death_date = October 7, 2000
death_place = Jacksonville, Florida
nationality =
alma_mater = Florida State University
known_for = Being a Public Administrator
spouse = Kathy Hester

Lewis Alexander Hester, III (December 24, 1935 – October 7, 2000) was a public administrator in Jacksonville, Florida. He was "the consummate no-nonsense administrator, the very best in his field,” according to M. C. Harden III, past chairman of the Jacksonville Chamber of Commerce. "Lex helped design Jacksonville's city government and managed it for three mayors. He put his knowledge and organization skills to work to create strong government structures that led Jacksonville and a number of other Florida cities into the 21st century." [ [http://jacksonville.bizjournals.com/jacksonville/stories/2000/12/18/daily7.html Jacksonville Business Journal: December 18, 2000-Chamber remembers Lex Hester] ]

Tennis

Hester was born in Washington, D.C. on December 24, 1935, but raised in Jacksonville Beach. He was a gifted tennis player, frequently ranked among the top 10 in Florida in his age group and the No. 1 player at Florida State University, where he earned the scholar-athlete award for the highest grade point average. He continued playing tennis after college and was a fierce competitor. He was named the tennis player of the year by the Florida Tennis Association in 1990. [ [http://www.jacksonville.com/tu-online/stories/100900/met_4287339.html Florida Times-Union: October 9, 2000-Pioneering city administrator Lex Hester dies] ]

Personal

Lex met his future wife, Kathy, at FSU and they married and had two girls, Danielle and Tracey. They were together over 40 years.

Jacksonville needed change

After graduating from Florida State University with a master's degree in public administration, Hester was working as a wage and child labor investigator for the United States Department of Labor when the Florida legislature created the "Local Government Study Commission" (LGSC). Their goal was to reform Jacksonville’s corrupt, inefficient government, and Lex Hester was hired as the executive director in 1965, with J.J. Daniel as chairman.

In November, 1966, a grand jury indicted 11 Jacksonville Public Officials on 142 counts of bribery and larceny including:
* 4 of 9 city councilmen
* 2 of 5 city commissioners
* the city auditor
* executive secretary of city recreation department
* 1 of 5 county commissioners
* the county purchasing agentThe city tax assessor took the Fifth Amendment, refused to testify, and resigned. [ [http://www.orangecountyfl.net/cmsdocs/cssc/103105jacksonvilleconsolidationpresentationbyjames.doc Orange County Florida.net: Outline of the History of Consolidated Governmentin Jacksonville, Florida] ] . No indictments were handed down against the police & sheriff departments, but it was common knowledge that misconduct occurred.

Consolidation

The LGSC produced a consolidation proposal titled, "Blueprint for Improvement" that was placed on a referendum in 1967, with Lex Hester coordinating the campaign for passage. The indictments the previous year convinced the voters that a major change was necessary and the referendum passed. Hester was the key architect of Jacksonville's consolidated government and was the transition coordinator and chief administrative officer following consolidation. In that effort, a troubled city and county government, which provided few services and had been plagued with waste and corruption, was replaced with a new unified government, one that attracted positive nationwide attention for years. It continues to work better than most cities and better than most citizens realize.

The right man for the job

Hester served as Jacksonville Mayor Hans Tanzler's chief administrator from 1968-1975. During that time, his guidance provided for a better and more effective fire and rescue service, with unified command, control and coordination throughout the city and county. He was a supporter of fire-based emergency medical services, which were copied throughout the nation. Hester was often a tough adversary when it came to collective bargaining. However, he was an honorable man, never taking personal offense. He never threatened or damaged the careers of city employees involved in those negotiations, in stark contrast to some previous administrators. More importantly, the consolidated government, which he did so much to create, initiated a system of hiring employees impartially, by high standards, encouraging and supporting their higher education, and providing fair and objective promotional opportunities. [ [http://www.jacksonville.com/tu-online/stories/101400/opl_4331703.html Florida Times-Union: Oct 14, 2000-Lex Hester created a blueprint for city] ] This ended the cronyism and nepotism present in prior administrations.

Lured to South Florida

In 1975, Hester accepted the job as county administrator for Broward County for a substantial increase in salary. He stayed for three years before returning to Jacksonville in an unsuccessful campaign for mayor in early 1979. At the start of that summer, he was hired by then Governor Bob Graham to run the state energy office. He later spent several years administrating Orlando's city government, followed by another term in Broward County.

Return to Jacksonville

Lex Hester returned to Jacksonville in 1991, when newly elected Mayor Ed Austin hired him to oversee a government that was tightening spending during an economic recession. A reflection of the value placed on his background, Austin raised the salary for the administrator's job 42 percent to match the $115,000 Mr. Hester was earning in South Florida. Austin described Mr. Hester as "the most proficient and capable public sector administrator that I ever knew," and said he showed "unquestioned integrity." The former mayor said Mr. Hester also shaped much of River City Renaissance, a $220 million public works and downtown development initiative that was a later focus of Austin's administration. "They give me the credit for it, but Lex structured it and managed it and came up with the way to fund it," Austin said of the plan that included moving City Hall to its present site and redeveloping LaVilla. "My name is on it, but he came into my office and said, 'We can do it.' "

Hester had also been credited with helping develop the Jacksonville Children's Commission, which allots money for children's services. He had also been an advocate within City Hall for funding cultural and artistic programs.

Delaney years

Hester was also a key advisor to Mayor John Delaney on the $2.2 billion Better Jacksonville Plan, arguing for the inclusion of a new Main Library downtown, one of four downtown construction projects in the plan. He was also part of a team of top administrators charged with making the far-reaching work plan, which included thousands of miles of roadwork and a new half-penny sales tax.

In addition, Delaney said Hester was the person who recommended pursuing the Governor's Sterling Award, which became the impetus for a complex series of steps to improve efficiency at City Hall. One of Delaney's closest supporters, business executive David Hicks, said that he agreed to back Delaney's first mayoral bid in 1995 only if Mr. Hester stayed on as chief administrator. Delaney said Mr. Hester "brought tremendous fiscal discipline" to City Hall. He recalled how Mr. Hester was able to scan sheets of revenue totals and note a costly mistake in an arcane formula used to compute taxes the JEA owed City Hall for selling electricity. [ [http://www.jacksonville.com/tu-online/stories/100900/met_4287339.html Florida Times-Union: Oct 9, 2000-Pioneering city administrator Lex Hester dies] ]

Honors

Lex Hester suffered a heart attack and died on October 7, 2000 at age 64. The Jacksonville Chamber of Commerce posthumously awarded him their Distinguished Citizen Award. He was also designated a Great Floridian by the Florida Department of State in the "Great Floridians 2000 Program". A plaque attesting to the honor is located at Jacksonville City Hall. [ [http://www.flheritage.com/services/sites/floridians/?section=j Florida Department of State: Great Floridians 2000 Program] ]

The Lex Hester Family Dining Room at the downtown I.M. Sulzbacher Center for the Homeless was dedicated in honor of Lex Hester on May 14, 2001. Linda Lanier, executive director of the center stated,

Lex Hester "quietly -- behind the scenes as usual -- made sure the homeless center was part of the "River City Renaissance" plan, and also that long-range funding for the center was in place. The...appropriate thing to do was to name the room in honor of the man who so richly deserves it," Lanier said. "Everyone who knew him knew what a key role he played in city government, yet was so very unassuming. He never wanted the spotlight that he so often deserved ... He was a visionary public servant and advocate for all citizens of Jacksonville -- including the homeless." [ [http://www.jacksonville.com/tu-online/stories/052301/ner_6227335.shtml First Coast Community: May 23, 2001-Center honors Hester] ]

On August 13, 2002, the Jacksonville City Council approved an expenditure of $50,000 as seed money for an endowed scholarship at the University of North Florida honoring former city chief administrative officer Lex Hester. UNF will seek private donations for the fund, designated for students seeking a master's degree in public administration. [ [http://www.jacksonville.com/tu-online/stories/081402/met_10173741.html Florida Times-Union: August 14, 2002-City Council action] ]

References

External links

* [http://politicalgraveyard.com/bio/hessberg-hewson.html Political graveyard]
* [http://www.jacksonville.com/tu-online/stories/101000/opi_4293043.html Florida Times-Union tribute]