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.

Thursday, October 13, 2011

Update: October 13, 2011

Good Evening MJ:

A few updates as we head into the weekend:

1. Thanks to a couple of you who have expressed interest in participating in the Community Resiliency System (CRS) initiative which MJ is serving as one of 7 pilot cities in the U.S. If you would like more info on CRS or how to participate, please call Mark Hinesley, President of the MJ/West Wilson Chamber of Commerce, at 758-3478, or me at 754-2552 for more details. Our inaugural meeting will be in early November, so there’s plenty of time to check out some details.

2. September was another great month for sales tax receipts across MJ with nearly $22k more than in September 2010 ($500k v $478k). Remember how important it is to our local economy and our own businesses to “Shop MJ First.”

3. Several local church youth groups are partnering together to host a “Glow Party” at the Charlie Daniels Rec Center on Saturday, 22 October, from 8:00 pm to midnight. A nominal entry fee will be charged which will cover the cost of glow sticks, refreshments, music and more. This promises to be a great event for our teens (13 to 18), and the churches and Parks and Rec Team who are sponsoring this have asked me to encourage all our readers to let your teen’s know this truly great activity. For more info or to help with the cost of the event, call Taylor Bates (566-1660) or Tim Henson (642-6130).

4. Kudos to the MJ Parks and Rec Team and our own PD for great planning and execution of last week’s Halloween in the Park. We estimate about 6k rolled through the park that afternoon, loading up on tons of candy, sun and fun. One of the more interesting things I found from manning the city’s booth is how many of you there were who were already on Nixle. Most of the people I spoke with about signing up said they’ve been on for months and how much they loved the service. For our newcomers, you are an army of nearly 2,300 and growing. Tell your friends to sign up by going to the city’s web page (www.cityofmtjuliet.org) and go to the “Nixle” logo at the bottom left side of the screen.

5. A couple events to be on the lookout for: first, Sam's Sprint 5k Run, this Saturday (15 Oct). Sign up at 7 a.m. with the run/walk starting at 8 a.m. For those who don’t know, Sam's Sprint was created to honor the memory of infant Sam Clark, from here in MJ. Through your kind donations, last year Sam’s Sprint was instrumental in underwriting the cost of creating our “Squirrel’s Run” tot area at Charlie Daniels Park. This year proceeds from the run will go to support the Mt. Juliet Library. What a fantastic way to spend what promises to be a beautiful Fall Saturday morning.
Also, MJ’s own Senior Citizens Center will be holding its own “Celebrate MJ Walk” on Saturday, 29 October, right along North MJ Road. Vicky Yates, News Channel 5 Anchor, will serve as the Honorary Chair and Official “Celebrate Mt. Juliet Walk” Starter for this 6 mile event. Registration starts at 0600, ( yes, that’s 6 a.m. for the rest of you), with opening events at 6:45 a.m. For more details google the “MJ Senior Citizens Activity Center.” Proceeds go to the Center in it’s expanding mission to improve services for our senior population.

6. Did you see the latest edition of the front page of the MJ News? Our own Casey Binion, Project Officer for the NMJR widening project was interviewed, and reiterated, that barring major bouts of inclement weather, all 5 lanes of the road should be “drivable” by the end of the year. While there’s still touch up work to be done, this will be months ahead of what was forecasted when the project started. Many thanks to LoJac, TDOT, the City of MJ, Piedmont Gas, MTEMC, TDS, WWUD, Comcast, and others who have been involved in this tremendously complicated and expensive endeavor. Also, a special thanks to all the businesses and home owners along NMJR, and to our commuters for your patience and consideration. It’s been a long journey but the end is in sight.

7. On a final note, hopefully by early November, we’ll be looking to unveil a major initiative in City Hall with our plans to go to a “311” call in system. You’ll no longer need to remember a whole litany of phone numbers for individual city departments, by using a easy to use, menu driven prompt, you’’ be able to go straight to the department you wish to talk to. There’s still a few more “bugs” to work out, but we’re shooting to be up in the next few weeks.

Have a great weekend. Take care, God Bless and talk with you later.
R. Robertson
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