Hunter Williams thought it would take a simple email, maybe a phone call.

All his District 2 City Councilor constituents wanted was for someone to unlock the bathrooms at Crestwood Park, which is consistently utilized throughout the day by citizens living in surrounding neighborhoods. The 12.11-acre park is one of 113 overseen by the Parks and Recreation Board, which includes District 4 City Councilor William Parker.

Williams fired off an email and thought someone would soon arrive to unlock the facilities. Nope. Instead, he was told, the bathrooms could only be opened if someone rented the entire park for an event.

"The park was built by taxpayers, is maintained by taxpayers; yet taxpayers have to rent it out to use the bathroom?" Williams says.

Ultimately, the bathrooms were unlocked. It took, however, several weeks.

"The idea that the Park board would block usage of bathrooms by taxpayers is a sign," Williams adds, "of dysfunctional management."

Unfortunately, that's not the worst said of some of the boards, agencies, and commissions comprising the city's bloated and bureaucratic mosh of 128 entities--yes, 128--created to provide guidance and leadership for public services and facilities.

Over the last decade, the Water Works Board, City School Board and, lately, the Birmingham-Jefferson County Transit Authority have been an outright embarrassment of indictments, indecision and petty infighting.

Some haven't hired nationally respected leaders (BJCTA, you're on the clock) or retained them (note to school board: you've got one, keep her), and none have yet provided the quality, professional oversight and service citizens deserve (and should be demanding).

Mayor Randall Woodfin has long bemoaned the city's litany of high-profile board embarrassments. In April, he told the Birmingham Association of Black Journalists: "Boards and agencies can't be in the papers every week. It's hurting us."

Williams is even more blunt. "People are involved in the process of spending millions of dollars on all these boards and agencies," he says. "It's not always their intent but it leads to the opportunity for graft and corruption."

To be sure, some boards are operating as capable stewards of taxpayer dollars. Among them: Vulcan Park & Museum, Railroad Park, and Zoo boards.

They're examples of effective and consistent communicate with city officials, sound business decisions, and board members well-apprised of their responsibilities.

And they stay out of the headlines.

Many boards, agencies, and commissions, though, are inactive. Some maybe even defunct.

Last week, the council had to resurrect the Public Athletic, Cultural and Entertainment (PACE) Facilities board to accomplish one job: approve a contract to build a new restaurant at the city-owned museum.

PACE was created in 2011 to oversee construction and management of Regions Field and the Negro Southern League, yet it ended up costing taxpayers $4 million in cost overruns. Terms of the original board members expired year and no new directors were appointed--until last week, which was the only means of getting the contract approved.

"I wish it wasn't necessary for us to go that route to get this one thing done, but it appears that is what the law requires," City Councilor Darrell O'Quinn said during a meeting of the Committee of the Whole in April.

Then there's this: you've probably never even heard of some boards, commissions and agencies on the list, i.e. Arlington Antebellum Home and Gardens, Educational Building Authority (there are three of them, really), Health and Benefits,Downtown Redevelopment (there's both an authority and a commission), Historical Commission (and, yes, there's a Historical Preservation Authority, too), Overall Economic Development Program, and, not to be overlooked, the Urban Forestry and Tree Commission and the Image Committee.

Directors are typically appointed by the City Council, the mayor (or both), state legislature or another municipality. Some directors are elected. Others, particularly non-profits responsible for raise perhaps millions to support operations, select most of their own directors, with at least one appointed by a city representative (the Zoo, for instance, has two such seats, both appointed by the mayor).

That's a lot of seats to fill and it's an awesome opportunity for the city to leverage the time and talents of its citizens to our benefit.

Unfortunately, that isn't always happening.

"There seems to be a breach of fiduciary duty and a lack of training and full understanding of the role," Woodfin has said. "And unfortunately, there seems to be [and attitude of]: 'I'm a board member; I don't care what you say.' Which is scary."

Blame a lingering lack of oversight and lax, inconsistent (or non-existent) standards for board service.

"There is no clarity on what's going on with boards," Williams said. "No requirements on a number of meetings, how they function, and definitely no requirement to have a background check or any sort of certification, level of education, skill set or industry knowledge."

Oh, there is too often one requirement: know someone. Be buddies with someone on one of the appointing entities, maybe a frat or soror, maybe an ex-co-worker or childhood friend.

Yes, citizens are publicly encouraged to "apply" for openings, but too often their resumes are quickly relegated to the nearest circular file without even a face-to-face interview.

In the dictionary, that's called cronyism. And we're paying for it.

The confluence of neglect, mediocrity, and ineptitude regarding the city's phalanx of boards must end--soon.

Thankfully, it's actually in the works.

Woodfin has initiated a complete review of the city's board operations, led by Earl Hilliard, the mayor's deputy director of intergovernmental affairs. Aims are to "improve the quality of candidates on various boards," the mayor's office says, plus streamline unnecessary bureaucracy, and ensure remaining boards are operating more efficiently and effectively.

"The plan would include required training for current board members and those seeking to serve," the mayor's office says. "Training would cover governance, ethics and Robert's Rules of Order as a way to improve the service these individuals provide to the people of Birmingham."

To clarify: be better stewards of our money, stop embarrassing us--and stay out of the headlines.

Birmingham Boards & Agencies by Roy S. Johnson on Scribd