Good Afternoon MJ:
Here’s a few items of interest for those on Nixle or who follow the City Manager blog:
1. We’ve finished the initial draft of the city budget and overall things are looking fairly good. Generally you can classify MJ revenue from three primary sources: sales tax, court revenue and development/building related. The good news is sales tax receipts are up. While the numbers are not astronomical, sales tax receipts are better than projected. The challenging news is both court and building related revenues are down. While court revenue is off, again, it isn’t an astronomical number. On the building side though, just like virtually everywhere else, anything related to new building has taken pretty much of a nose dive. When you put all three into the mix, the overall news is the city has a slightly better revenue stream than projected. The real challenge is each of our primary forms of revenue aren’t static; predicting dollars associated with them with accuracy during a recession can be difficult at best.
2. This is an all points bulletin for volunteers at the Animal Shelter. The numbers of animals housed are on the rise, and while we have a great cadre of volunteers, too few are carrying the load. Give the Shelter a couple hours a week and you’ll be hooked for life. Interested? Check with Sgt Keith Youmans or any staff member or volunteer at the MJ Animal Shelter. Their number is 773-5533.
3. We’ve named a new Parks and Rec Director, Mr. Jay Cameli, of Mt. Juliet. Jay has been a MJ resident for nearly 20 years. He’s a graduate of Purdue University and has a license in Landscape Architecture. Jay has tremendous experience in greenway design and grant development, and will be a tremendous asset to the Parks Department and the city team. On that note, all of us in City Hall want to thank Mr. Rocky Lee for his leadership as Acting Parks Director this last year. During his tenure the Parks crew unveiled the new Rec Center expansion, built the para course and skate park at Charlie Daniels Park, build a Frisbee Golf Course at Mundy Park, fielded new programs like Futsal, and our semiannual flea markets and fashion shows. He also led the team through clean up and repair from the historic 2010 flood. Thanks for all you have done for the city and its citizens Mr. Lee.
4. If you drive North Mt. Juliet Road, you have probably see the two “thermometers” that are tracking the pace of work on this major road and utility project. We are nearing the end of the first year. While it may seem slow, overall the progress has been on track. It has been an extraordinary wet winter and summer, and the various crews are doing a fine job working with businesses and traffic to keep things moving.
5. Please encourage your friends and others within the community to sign up for Nixle. During the recent floods, we were able to communicate in near real time with over 1k of you who are on the Nixle distribution list. We’ve received many words of support, encouragement and thanks from across the city from those who followed the near hourly changing events of early May via Nixle. It’s fast, easy and can be tailored to the type of information you desire. Just tell your friends to go to the city web page (www.cityofmtjuliet.org) or to www.nixle.com for instructions.
6. On a final note, please take time during this weekend to remember what Memorial day is all about. Our thanks and prayers go to the men, women and families who have given their lives or lost a love one in defense of this great nation. In specific my thoughts will be with Private Ernest Robertson, MIA and later classified as KIA from the Yellow River Campaign of the Korean War, and with those whom I have lead and served who are no longer with us.
Take care and talk with you later.
R. Robertson
1. This won’t be a “blog” per se. It isn’t meant to be a place to post all commentary or opinions. Everyone is invited to send in a note, but don’t be offended if it isn’t posted. There’s other sites that are perfectly content to drag through what they believe to be wrong with every issue at every turn. This is about what was done, why and where do we go from here. We won’t talk about two and three year old issues. If the desire is to engage in those discussions then look somewhere else.
2. This isn’t the Board of Commissioner forum. MJ has a City Manager form of government. The Board makes policy; the staff implements. I’ll be happy to pass your comments along to the Board, either good or bad, but the intent of this medium is to address how we could better enact policy and improve city services.
3. The narratives will be directly from me, your city manager. I won’t hide under some pseudonym or other persona. My name is Randy Robertson. My phone number is 754-2552. I am your City Manager. If your issue or concerns involves another department of the city (Public Works, Police, Animal Control, etc.) I will invite the appropriate team member to provide some comments, but it will still be done under the auspices of the City Manager.
4. I will try and be as timely as possible, but this is another one of the “additional duties” for which civil service is renown.
5. The City Staff is here for you. The desired outcome is for us to have a positive relationship with the citizens we serve, but we all know that always won’t happen. Everyone has an opinion. It is the staff’s responsibility to work through the opinions and emotion, meet the requirements of the laws and rules under which we operate, and hopefully serve the greatest number in that process. It is not an exact science. The more we have a relationship with you, the better we can meet your expectations.
6. Finally, this is about telling our story. Hopefully you will be able to sort the myth from reality or see the issue through a different set of lens. I hope you will find this of value and participate.
2. This isn’t the Board of Commissioner forum. MJ has a City Manager form of government. The Board makes policy; the staff implements. I’ll be happy to pass your comments along to the Board, either good or bad, but the intent of this medium is to address how we could better enact policy and improve city services.
3. The narratives will be directly from me, your city manager. I won’t hide under some pseudonym or other persona. My name is Randy Robertson. My phone number is 754-2552. I am your City Manager. If your issue or concerns involves another department of the city (Public Works, Police, Animal Control, etc.) I will invite the appropriate team member to provide some comments, but it will still be done under the auspices of the City Manager.
4. I will try and be as timely as possible, but this is another one of the “additional duties” for which civil service is renown.
5. The City Staff is here for you. The desired outcome is for us to have a positive relationship with the citizens we serve, but we all know that always won’t happen. Everyone has an opinion. It is the staff’s responsibility to work through the opinions and emotion, meet the requirements of the laws and rules under which we operate, and hopefully serve the greatest number in that process. It is not an exact science. The more we have a relationship with you, the better we can meet your expectations.
6. Finally, this is about telling our story. Hopefully you will be able to sort the myth from reality or see the issue through a different set of lens. I hope you will find this of value and participate.
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