Update: 7/29/09

Good Afternoon MJ:

Some items of interest to pass along:

Many of you know the city applied for a federal grant to supplement the force size of the MJPD. Basically, the COPS (Community Oriented Policing) grant, would have covered salaries of additional police for three years. Chief Garrett and his staff worked very hard collecting and analyzing data and developing a comprehensive grant application to submit for 8 officers. We learned yesterday that we were not selected. 168 cities and municipalities across Tennessee applied for the grant with only 19 selected. Of the 19, only one city, Nashville, was in middle Tennessee. The federal government applied an extremely complex scoring methodology to the decision process. The good news is while we didn’t rate a grant, MJ crime rates, a primary factor in the award process, continues to be one of the lowest in the region.

QUESTION: What do you get when you put close to 50 men and women in a room to talk about a building project?
ANSWER: The first full “pre construction” conference for the North Mt. Juliet Road (NMJR) widening project; the largest and certainly the most expensive infrastructure effort the city has ever undertaken. This morning representatives from TDOT, the Federal Highway Administration, West Wilson Utilities, Comcast, TDS, Piedmont Gas, the Mt. Juliet Sewer Department, MJ Public Works and Police Departments, Middle Tennessee Electric, and the Nashville Eastern Railroad packed City Hall for a round table planning discussion on this bold and exciting initiative. While most of the dialogue dealt with technical issues, there were several “takeaways” for the average resident and commuter.
First, the City will host a “Town Meeting” on Tuesday, 11 August, at 6:30, in Mt. Juliet High School auditorium. Representatives from all the utilities and the Tennessee Department of Transportation will be on hand to walk attendees through project plans, concerns and timelines. Whether you are a resident along the road, a daily or frequent commuter or simply interested in a project, this meeting outlines an initiative that promises to transform the face of Mt. Juliet. You’ll want to be there!
Second, we’ve spoken with the contractors and there is a high possibility of having a traffic light at the intersection of Charlie Daniels Parkway and NMJR installed early in the project. City leaders have pressed TDOT for a light at this intersection for years, but now, with the construction, there’s a good chance we can have a light installed in the next few months. I’ll provide more info on that issue as details unfold, but if it holds true what a welcome site for all of you who use Charlie Daniels Park during the football and cheerleading season!
Third, the tentative plan for the actual road widening is to start on the left side (western side) and then go to the right (eastern side). There will be lane closures so we’ve asked TDOT and the project manager to keep us up to date so we can use the web, Channel 3 and our new Nixle messaging system to post the latest info for you.
Fourth, as MTEMC replaces the poles along the route, the City will pay for upgrades to metal.
Fifth and last, 31 October 2011 is the estimated project completion date. Now remember, that’s an estimate and its over two years away. Lots can and will happen between now and then. It is a long and very complex project, but it is the price of progress.

A tip of the hat to WEMA and the MJPD for their magnificent performance this past Monday during the natural gas leak on NMJR. The men and women of both organizations were on-site within a matter of a minutes after a 4” line was breached. They quickly assessed the situation, established a perimeter, evacuated the area and established a safety buffer zone, and sustained essential emergency traffic and communications the entire time. While television helicopters buzzed overhead, these brave civil servants maintained their professional demeanor as well as control of a dynamically developing situation despite the sweltering heat and humidity. Topping things off there was a citizen who decided to try and take the traffic measures in his own hands, “crashing” the police barrier. It was all in a day’s work and demonstrated the great cooperation, teamwork and superb inter-agency training between the MJPD and WEMA. Well done ladies and gentlemen!

A short note on the Nixle messaging system mentioned above. Mr. Taylor, the City’s Director of Information Technology, recently rolled out Nixle for city “alert” messaging services. For simplicity Nixle is basically a “pushed” emergency message notification that can go via email, text or website. Nixle will not only be used for emergency's, but if you choose the option, you'll get community and traffic alerts as well. We were amazed how many people let us know during the gas leak/NMJR road closure that they had received an timely alert message. For more info or to sign up go to the city home page or check out the advertisement on Channel 3.

Finally, the Charlie Daniels Skate Board Park is about done. We plan to have a ribbon cutting on Saturday, 8 August, at 11:00 at Charlie Daniels Park. Come check out the newest and only skate board park in Wilson County. We’ve got a great program lined up and hope to see you there.

That’s about all for now. Take care and talk with you later.

R. Robertson