City Notes - March 14, 2009

I have to apologize for my lack of posts recently. I've been in the midst of a large project at work which is finally complete and we've spent a lot of time getting ready for our forthcoming edition to our family. Once little Ava arrives and things settle down a little, I'll get back to posting on a regular basis.

For now, I wanted to give you a couple of quick updates on what's been going on at recent council meetings:

- The elementary school has started an after school program with a grant they recently received. Early indications are that the program is very successful. The city council agreed to provide $1500 from the discretionary fund to provide scholarships for those kids who qualify for need.

- The advisory board proposed using $5000 of the discretionary fund on reducing the principal of the note used for building the high school softball field. While not being opposed to the idea, I abstained noting that I wanted to know more about the loan itself. The original intent was the city would take on the loan and the payments would have been made by the booster club. I know the booster club has made a couple of payments, but I wanted to know the terms of the loan and who's been making the payment since. The proposal did go through and that's ok by me, but I still want to know more about how this note is being paid.

- The city council reappointed Richard Wates to a position on the Industrial Development Board. We also appointed Stan Junkin, Ken Randolph, and LeAnn Burns to vacant positions on the Board.

- Matt Leduke was appointed to the position of city judge for a term of two years.

- A decision on using RPS for our ambulance service has yet to be determined. There were several issues that needed to be resolved before making a decision. I think most of those questions have been answered and we can move on with this item in the near future.

- Discussions have been on going about how we can recover our costs for the Independence Day celebration we have each year. There are several ideas on the table, but nothing has been set in stone yet. This is a celebration I personally enjoy each and every year. It brings in thousands of people to our area and it gives our city a great image that's important during such tough economic times. We have to show potential investors that our city is a great place to work, live, and play and this is one way of doing that. I want to make it clear that I am not in favor of eliminating this event to help reduce costs. I personally believe eliminating this event would cost the city more in the long run.

- The access road into our property along Corridor X is moving along nicely. If weather cooperates, the project should be complete in the coming weeks.

- Indications are that our city tax revenue for the first few months of the year are better than normal. During this economic slowdown, it appears as if our local residents are shopping closer to home. I encourage you to continue to do just that. The local tax revenue is important for providing for our local schools, local infrastructure, and for funding the quality services we provide to our community.

That's all for now. Please keep Heather and me in your prayers as we prepare for the birth of our little girl.