Update: July 15, 2011

Good Afternoon MJ:

Here’s a few items of interest for you:

The Music City Star set a single-month record for ridership in June with 26,989 passenger trips. It’s the third single-month ridership record set by the Star this year. Record ridership was achieved in February with 20,465 passenger trips and again in March with 25,321 passenger trips. For this June, ridership on the Star increased 53 percent compared to June last year; while for the year Star ridership is up 40 percent. Discussions with many newcomers indicate the Star is one of biggest reasons they chose to live in MJ. Beat the high cost of gas, save the wear, tear and time of the daily drive, and help reduce the ozone level. Take the Music City Star.

Sales tax receipts were slightly up last month, with MJ receiving $9k more than in June of last year. The concern is our percent of growth is the lowest it’s been in several years. MJ’s principle revenue stream is from sales tax receipts so please consider “Shopping Mt. Juliet First” when buying.

Our Parks and Recreation Team will be hosting MJ’s first ever “Splash Day”, on Saturday, 23 July, starting at 11:00 at Charlie Daniels Park. Come on out and bring the family during these “dog days” of summer to beat the heat with an afternoon of water oriented festivities and fun. There will be several water slide inflatables, dunking booths and even a water gun corral. Food will be available and prizes will be awarded. Best of all . . . its FREE!

Remember, invite your friends and family members to follow MJ activities through Nixle. For info on sign up procedures, simply go the city’s web page (www.cityofmtjuliet.org) and click on the “Nixle” logo at the bottom left side of the screen.

Kudos to the 2nd shift of the MJPD for some great police work this Wednesday night. While most of us were resting at home, the members of the MJPD conducted an extended vehicle pursuit of a drunk/reckless driver across a large segment of the southern portion of the city. After the driver did several evasive turns and maneuvers the force managed to get the vehicle pulled over. The driver was charged with DUI, evading the police and reckless endangerment. Well done! Speaking of DUI, we received a note from the Office of the District Attorney this week noting that of the 139 DUI cases disposed this quarter in Wilson County, 122 were found guilty; an 87% conviction rate. While these figures were for the entire county, they clearly demonstrate there’s a price to pay for DUI.

Thanks goes out this week to two Tom’s . . . first, Tom Hickle of H&H Supply off Belinda Parkway, for donating a unique air handling device for the conference room of City Hall. Valued at $600, this state-of-the-art machine will do wonders to combat high temps during these hot and humid days we’ve been experiencing. Our second Tom is the city’s old friend, Tom Needham, who donated shrubs, flowers and mulch to spruce up the front of the MJ Animal Shelter. Many of you who know Mr. Needham, recognize his long standing contributions in underwriting and conducting MJ’s 4 July fireworks. Tom’s not only loyal to his city in July, but throughout the year by donating materials and supplies. A final tip-of-the-hat goes to Mr. Jon Bateman, Construction Manager for Mapco. Jon, and the Mapco Team, just donated a couple of ice machines from the Mapco station that will be renovated at the intersection of Lebanon Rd and North MJ Rd to the city’s Parks and Rec and Public Works crews. Your kindness and generosity are truly appreciated. Thanks Gentlemen.

Stay cool, take care and talk with you later.

R. Robertson