Building Bridges: Dover's Approach to Inspiring Confidence in Local Government

Cities and towns across New Hampshire use localized approaches to decision making, transparency and accessibility, public engagement and provision of services. There are similarities and differences in those approaches to governance, and no singular set of practices right for all communities. At the same time, municipalities often learn from one another. With building and maintaining public trust as a high priority for many communities, Dover, New Hampshire is a small city with a distinct perspective.

In early November, I sat down with Dover’s deputy city manager Christopher Parker, and director of media services Michael Gillis, for a wide-ranging conversation about how the city approaches building and maintaining trust with Dover residents. The conversation is published as a two-part episode on the Dover Download Podcast, and complements an information brief from UNH Extension on understanding and building public trust at the local level. This blog captures some of the conversation’s themes and highlights. Quotes are edited for clarity.

A Foundation Built on Trust

"Trust is the bedrock, right?" remarked deputy city manager Christopher Parker as we started our conversation. "It’s the baseline that we should all have — decisions being made for the right reasons." This sentiment captures the essence of Dover’s approach: trust isn’t just a goal; it’s a non-negotiable foundation for effective governance.

Humanizing Government Through Storytelling

One of the city’s most powerful tools for building trust is the Dover Download Podcast, an extension of the longstanding Dover Download newsletter. Launched in 2022, the podcast offers an insider’s view of local government, covering topics ranging from budget planning to solid waste management to economic development. Its conversational style has captivated a diverse audience, with episodes averaging a digestible 20–25 minutes.

Listeners often discover a more personal side of government. For example, an episode featuring a plow driver resonated deeply with the community, shedding light on the challenges of keeping roads clear during winter storms. "We see these folks all over the place on those snowy days," Parker noted, "but hearing their stories makes you realize the dedication behind the work."

As Parker distilled it, “The podcast humanizes local government.” When the city’s deputy finance director Ann Legere joined the podcast, Parker recalled they weren’t sure if the topic would resonate. But it did. “It reinforced that not only is there a person back there, but that there is judgment involved.” Residents may also have some assumptions about certain departments and programs. “Having someone come on to talk about why it’s important to make sure your recycling bin isn’t on the sidewalk, or what it means from a response time perspective if snow gets pushed into something and the plow gets stuck or broken down, it impacts you.”

Recruiting and retaining top talent in municipal government is one of the most significant challenges cities and towns confront. When municipal staff have an opportunity to connect with residents and talk about issues outside the confines of public meetings, Parker reflected that it’s an opportunity to “shine some light on these folks and thank them for the work they’re doing.”

Humanizing local government through storytelling helps residents better relate to and understand everything that goes into providing reliable government services, and it also helps city staff feel seen, understood and valued.

Transparency in Action

Dover has embraced radical transparency to help residents feel confident in their local government. "If we hide the ball on something minuscule, what else are we hiding?" Parker asked rhetorically. From publishing detailed budget documents — right down to the cost of paperclips —to sharing public employee salaries, Dover works to ensure its operations are an open book.

The city’s website includes tools like a "Budget Revealed" feature, allowing residents to see exactly how their tax dollars are spent. For those looking for even more detail, the site offers access to every purchase order the city makes. While some find the sheer amount of information overwhelming, others appreciate the rare level of openness. "We’re committed to making everything available," said director of media services Michael Gillis. "Even international delegations visit Dover to learn about our transparency model."

Transparency isn’t just about publishing information; it’s also about reducing friction for residents who want to access it. Parker emphasized the importance of making it easy for residents to find contact information for all city staff, and to see the connections between budget line items and the staff associated with them. As Parker sees it, “the biggest chunk of the municipal budget is the people who are hired to do things; things don’t just happen.”

For New Hampshire municipalities, complying with Right-to-Know requests can be a significant burden on staff already stretched thin. But by ensuring all information is already published and available, Gillis has seen that “more often than not, we can point someone who has filed a Right-to-Know request directly to the website and where that document actually lives publicly.” This saves time for staff, and Gillis added, “it better serves the public to know that this information is out there, available and accessible.”

Transparency doesn’t just mean being able to find and access information. A more comprehensive view is that residents should be able to understand what they find, particularly for rules and regulations. Parker recounted telling the planning staff, “if you write rules and regulations that only you or an attorney can read, no one will use them.” To be more specific, Parker wants to avoid residents asking, “how do I build a fence and not have to go to law school?” For Parker, it starts with minimizing the use of acronyms. “We detest acronyms by default,” Parker told me. But he also approaches friends and relatives who aren’t in government, asking, “If I was going to tell you this, how would you want to hear it?”

A Culture of Accountability

Mistakes happen, and Dover tries to see them as opportunities to learn and improve. Leaders set out to openly acknowledge when projects don’t go as planned, fostering an environment of accountability. "Acknowledging failures shows accountability," Parker said. "If everything always looks rosy, people will assume we’re hiding something."

Accountability helps enable a trial-and-error approach to governance. If a municipal government recognizes something isn’t working, and acknowledges it, there’s an opportunity to innovate. Parker sees the importance of residents seeing that, so “they know that the level of competence, intelligence, and creativity is there in the municipal staff.”

For example, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Dover faced the challenge of streamlining outdoor dining applications — a process that had never existed before. The city consolidated multiple approval steps through a single decision-maker and user-friendly tool, reducing bureaucracy without sacrificing oversight. This process became a permanent improvement, demonstrating Dover’s ability to adapt and innovate under pressure.

The city places a strong emphasis on strategic planning, aligning council goals, department objectives and community needs. Progress is meticulously tracked, with over 700 metrics reviewed monthly. This culture of continuous improvement ensures that Dover remains a learning organization. “One of the reasons I’ve stayed here so long is that it’s a learning environment,” Parker shared.

Civic Engagement Beyond the Surface

The Citizen Leadership Academy, a joint initiative with the Greater Dover Chamber of Commerce, offers residents hands-on experiences with city services. Participants tour the wastewater treatment plant, ride fire trucks and learn about municipal operations. Many graduates go on to join city boards or commissions, bringing fresh energy and ideas to local governance.

"The Academy is about demystifying government," said Parker. "It’s not about talking down to people — it’s about showing them that they can make a difference."

Local government can be complex. The Citizen Leadership Academy, combined with transparency initiatives, outreach initiatives like the Dover Download podcast and newsletter, and robust community engagement, enables residents to get informed, participate, get involved and make a difference.

Customer Service at Its Core

In Dover, customer service is a high priority. "We’re not in the government sector; we’re in the customer service sector," Parker explained. Every interaction — from paying a water bill to obtaining a building permit — is an opportunity to build trust.

City employees are trained to be approachable and responsive. Front line staff greet visitors with a smile, while inspectors take the time to explain complex regulations in plain language. This philosophy extends to digital services as well; online portals make tasks like permitting seamless and accessible, saving residents time and hassle. Sometimes the best customer service reduces the need to contact the city at all.

Providing good customer service experiences requires instilling a culture and expectation of quality customer service throughout all departments and at all levels. "We don’t just do things because we’ve always done them," Parker emphasized. "We evaluate, adapt and improve."

“Part of it is we have core values, integrity being one, customer service being another,” Parker added. City staff can do this better when they can put themselves in the shoes of residents. “We want them to have that feeling... I’m going to get impacted by that tax increase, or that service cut, regardless of whether an employee lives here or not.”

Staff and Elected Officials Embrace Their Roles

Trust between residents and local government is made possible by trust and respect within local government. City counselors set policy and are responsible for implementation of that policy, starting with hiring and supervising the city manager, who coordinates and supervises municipal departments and staff.

The city manager prepares and shares a detailed bi-weekly report with the city council, which includes project updates, department updates, and data benchmarks. These reports are publicly accessible and easy to find on the city’s website. Something apparent from reading the city manager updates is the importance placed on staff recognition, professional development and collaboration.

A challenge every organization confronts is siloing, and local government isn’t an exception. This can be in part a product of a hierarchical structure, in which department staff report to department heads, who reports to the city manager, who reports to the city council. But the City of Dover places an emphasis on breaking down natural silos, especially between departments. “Everyone has a seat at the table,” Parker emphasized, sharing that their goal is for all departments to have equal voice at leadership meetings. According to Parker, this is because “in order to be successful, you need help.” When all departments are at the table and have a voice, that helps align objectives and foster collaboration to solve problems and meet overarching goals. Quarterly social gatherings for department heads and team building exercises help reinforce that.

Fostering Confidence in Local Leadership

Cultivating connection sparks a virtuous cycle. Transparent practices and responsive services build public confidence, which in turn empowers the city to pursue long-term planning and innovative projects.

At the heart of Dover’s approach is a simple yet profound principle: government should serve people with integrity, transparency and respect. As Parker eloquently put it, "It’s not just about running the city — it’s about being your neighbor." Elected officials are in most cases the decision makers, not city staff, and they really are neighbors. Parker sees success when residents can say, “someone like me is on that board, they’re the ones that are making these decisions, so I can trust that it’s coming from a good spot.”

When people trust each other, and can relate to municipal staff and elected officials, that’s when representative governance works and when public trust enables good governance.

Listen to the full two-part conversation on the Dover Download podcast.

UNH Cooperative Extension’s Community & Economic Development team provides training, resources, and technical assistance to municipalities to support their community engagement efforts. Learn more about understanding and building public trust at the local level, how we support community leadership on the UNH Extension website.