By Staff
Spring quarter came and went in a great rush of activity for the mayor's office.
Our exceptional educational environment afforded multiple opportunities for me to interact with our bright active youth. Whether throwing a strike on opening day at the ball park or cheering a Moon Buggy on its laborious journey 'round a sandy track, interacting with Madison's kids is one of the best "perks" to come with my job! Big kids, little kids…they all continue to amaze me with their talent, enthusiasm and great spirit!
In addition to meeting with local students, Scouts and youth leaders, I had the pleasure of introducing three contingents of guests from Argentina, Russia, and Germany to life in Madison and telling them about our greatest asset…you, our residents. Our visitors were businessmen and women, teachers, government officials and sports enthusiasts visiting the U.S. to learn about our way of life and our method of doing business. They were all very interested in hearing about city government and touring City Hall…but the REAL highlight of the visits was the chance to slide down the fire pole at Station #1.
Various council members and I were ourselves visitors when we traveled to Montgomery and to Washington D.C. in the spring to meet with our legislators and discuss funding for critical local needs, specifically an Interchange at I-565 and County Line Road and extension of Balch Road from Highway 72 to Madison Boulevard. They very graciously took the time to listen carefully, ask questions and then commit to help us fund those projects. A huge thanks to Senators Shelby and Sessions, Congressman Cramer, Senators Butler, Enfinger and Roberts for your time and support.
Economic Development continues to be my top priority and I am pleased to say that Madison has recently been the focus of several development teams. It's been exciting to show them around town, listen to their comments and educate them to the benefits of doing business in Madison. Our message is clear: We want your business and are ready to help you in that process. The new Downtown Development Committee, chaired by Councilman Marc Jacobson with David Buschmann is the most recent and exciting initiative to enhance that process.
Inside city hall, we are working diligently to improve our Customer Service Skills in all departments, finalizing a plan for enhanced building security, and upgrading the old telephone equipment to more efficient, current technology. Our facilities staff is evaluating all of our public buildings and plans made to budget now for anticipated maintenance. Multiple grant funding sources are being investigated to identify possible monies for Madison, especially in the areas of Public Safety and Green Space.
Successful events like the Scottish Festival and the Fourth of July celebration, and Shop Madison First Business Expo are concluded and the coming months will bring the Madison Street Festival for your enjoyment.
Overall Madison continues to grow and prosper. Our educational system continues to excel our sense of community remains strong. Your comments and suggestions are encourages because they are the barometers that measure our success.