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16MAY2008

City Beat - May 19 Edition

The May 19 edition of City Beat focuses on Public Works Week, including: an update on various construction projects, information about the 25 mph speed limit change, and more. The employee spotlight this week is on Carrie Lamb of the Public Works Storm Water department. As always, the show airs all next week on TV23.

posted by Mike Brothers, Public Information

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15MAY2008

Budget May Get Council Vote Monday

The agenda for the May 19 City Council meeting has been posted. There are quite a few items of interest, not the least of which is Bill No. 2008-132 (PDF), otherwise known as the fiscal year 2008-09 budget.

The Council could vote to approve the budget on Monday. The vote could be held over, however, if anyone on Council has any other remaining questions or concerns. Under the City Charter the budget needs to be approved by July 1, so there is time built into the remaining schedule for any final concerns. While some of the final issues concerning funding for non-profits and reinstating a handful of police positions have been decided upon by the Council, those changes will likely have to be introduced as an amendment before becoming official because the bill as written includes only the originally proposed budget.

To see everything we’ve posted related to the budget, including links to the proposed FY08-09 budget in its entirety, click on the “budget” tag under Archives, By Category in the sidebar on the right.

Entering into the agenda on Monday is Bill No. 2008-142 (PDF), which is a resolution that would grant Mediacom the naming rights to Jordan Valley Ice Park and the tennis stadium at Cooper Park. Since this is a resolution, it only requires one reading and can be approved right away on Monday. A separate bill to adjust the budget and accept the $200,000 a year Mediacom will pay the City for the naming rights will also be introduced on Monday, but will not be approved until at least June 2, after a second reading.

Also on the agenda is a rezoning bill (No. 2008-129) concerning a proposed apartment complex at 3900 South Lone Pine Avenue. There was a staff error in calculating a formula that determines how many units can be built on the property, and now Council is trying to determine how to handle the developer’s request.

There will also be new appointments to the Airport Board, the Board of Adjustment, the Park Board and the Police Civilian Board.

posted by Mike Brothers, Public Information

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13MAY2008

Disaster Response Review, One Year Later

Disaster response is linked to the problems created by the disaster, not the cause of the disaster.

So, it really was relevant to be discussing the lessons learned from the January 2007 ice storm after a weekend of killer tornados in other areas of southwest Missouri and a year of more ice, tornados and flooding, Emergency Management Director Ryan Nicholls said at today’s City Council lunch meeting.

The meeting with representatives from Greene County, City Utilities and Springfield Public Schools was a follow-up to a report prepared last year by the Disaster Response Action Committee, a group of citizens who brought an outside perspective to the emergency response and recovery efforts for the ice storm.

The full report looks at the major areas the committee covered — debris removal, communications, sheltering, weatherheads and individual responsibility for preparedness.

Nicholls also noted that Emergency Management staff members, Springfield firefighters and City Utilities have provided mutual aid for our neighbors in Newton County who are recovering from the devastation of the F3-F4 tornado that swept through there Saturday night.

posted by Mike Brothers, Public Information

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12MAY2008

City Beat - May 12 Edition

The May 12 edition of City Beat takes you to the Springfield Sister Cities Association's ArtsFiesta celebration at Founders' Park and to the Springfield Police Department's 150th anniversary celebration held last week. As always, the show is airing all week long on TV23.

posted by Mike Brothers, Public Information

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09MAY2008

How About Some Ice with Your City Events?

No one really wants to think about ice right now as the trees leaf out and flowers bloom. That’s why we’re glad the Office of Emergency Management thinks about it instead.

After the January 2007 ice storm, a citizens’ committee reviewed the public emergency response and recovery efforts to that historic event. The Disaster Response Action Committee spent several months listening to presentations, doing research and holding a series of town hall meetings to get feedback from residents.

They presented their report to City Council, Greene County, City Utilities and Springfield Public Schools last July. As part of their report, the committee asked for a one-year follow up on the progress of their recommendations.

It hasn’t quite been a year – though there have been two more ice storms since then – but OEM Director Ryan Nicholls is ready to give his update at another joint session during the weekly City Council lunch meeting on Tuesday, May 13. (For anyone interested in attending, please note the change of location to the Springfield Boathouse at Lake Springfield.)

Overall, it’s a busy week at City offices next week, as the weekly events calendar shows. The Landmarks Board, Airport Board and Planning and Zoning Commission will hold meetings along with a number of other boards and committees.

posted by Louise Whall, Public Information

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07MAY2008

Police Celebrate 150 Years Today

The word has spread pretty well the last few days, but we wanted to remind everyone that the Springfield Police Department is celebrating 150 years of serving the public today. There will be a ceremony at 2 p.m. at the Historic Calaboose downtown — it's the small brick building right next to the new College Station Car Park.

There will be comments by Poice Chief Lynn Rowe, Mayor Tom Carlson and others, as well as tours of the Calaboose and more. Hope to see you there. For more information call the PD at 864-1702. 

posted by Mike Brothers, Public Information

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