Bernie Matsuno, awaiting confirmation as director of the city Department of Neighborhoods, met with the Southwest District Council on Wednesday night, asking for “patience.” She inherited big changes required by big budget cuts last year – most notably the reorganization of the District Coordinators team, no longer including one coordinator per district, but now serving 13 districts with 9 coordinators who work in teams. “It’s going to take some time before they know the region as well as they know their own district.” (The South Region team now serving West Seattle does not include either of the area’s longtime coordinators – Stan Lock, who had staffed Southwest, moved to another part of the city; Ron Angeles, who had staffed Delridge, retired.) Though district councils including SW have expressed concern, Matsuno said she doesn’t expect that staffing level to change any time soon – especially with directors having been asked by the mayor to come up with potential 12 percent budget cuts.

An extra wrinkle for Matsuno: Mayor McGinn has asked her and four other department directors (Economic Development, Housing, Sustainability/Environment, and Arts/Cultural Affairs) to explore the possibility of consolidation . She told SWDC members she doesn’t believe the mayor wants to get rid of Neighborhoods or “minimize it to the point where we don’t know what it is any more,” but she admitted it’s tough to review without knowing where he’s leaning. Earlier in the day, she said, had been the sixth meeting regarding the “feasibility study” for the potential consolidation, and the question remains whether it would save any money. “We have it down to five different options,” she revealed.

Speaking of research: DON has an online survey going, asking you how they should prioritize their “outreach and engagement” activities. Share your thoughts here.