Mississippi State University Rated #18 on Forbes.com Best College Buys

This is really great news for MSU and another reason why this University stands out.

http://www.forbes.com/2009/08/02/best-buys-colleges-opinions-value.html

JULY 2009 CODE ENFORCEMENT REPORT

VEHICLES REMOVED OR UPDATED-13
OFF SITE SIGNS-10
BANNERS W/OUT PERMITS-9
SIGNS REMOVED FROM R.O.W-36
BANNER & SIGN PERMITS SOLD-8
OVERGROWN LOTS-20
DEBRIS-2
SNIPE SIGNS-3
IMPROPER SIGNAGE-1
IMPROPER DIRECTIONAL SIGN-1
HEALTH CODE VIOLATION-1
IMPROPER SNIPE SIGN-3
BUSINESS W/OUT PERMIT-1
IMPROPER POST SIGN-1
NO SIGNAGE PERMIT-1

TOTALS- 107

May 2009 Building Permits

Here are the building permits issued during the month of May. Of note is that this report is the first generated using some new software in the building department. (Click to enlarge)

Four More Years

First I want to thank everyone who voted in the 2009 municipal election and also those who supported me even though they didn't live in Ward 4. I look forward to taking the knowledge and experience I've accumulated over the past four years and use it to help lead the board and the city towards becoming even better than it already is.

Electronic Packets

Sometimes people ask me what the packets look like that the board of aldermen use for their meetings. These packets are a matter of public record and to help facilitate ease of access for the general public as well as making our city hall more sustainable by reducing paper waste. Long term I would love to see some members of the board rely on electronic packets entirely. Below is a link to March 3rd's packet and below that is another link for the section of our website that has the agendas, minutes, and e-packets.

Board of Aldermen March 3rd E-Packet


Agenda/Minutes/E-Packet webpage

Starkville Shooting

Really bad news. There was a shooting incident at the local McDonald's following a high school basketball game between Columbus/Starkville. One comment I heard was "you know we're a big city now when we start having shootings at the local McDonald's." Jokes like that aside, this is really a terrible incident and really should be a warning to all of us that Starkville is not immune to the serious types of violent crimes that can plague any city.

Full story here.

MSU/Starkville Recognized As Green Community

The community is mainly being recognized for efforts made through Starkville in Motion in regards to working to provide alternatives to transportation. Not mentioned in the article should also be Starkville's adoption of LEED standards for all future public buildings, starting with the new Starkville Electric Department building.

Full story here.
http://www.msstate.edu/web/media/detail.php?id=4429

November 2008 Code Enforcement Report

Our code enforcement officer, Jeff, provides a report every month regarding the total number of code violations he has worked on. I thought I would start providing those numbers for anyone who is interested:

• VEHICLES REMOVED OR UPDATED-6
• OFF SITE SIGNS-2
• BANNERS W/OUT PERMITS-3
• SIGNS REMOVED FROM R.O.W-131
• BANNER PERMITS SOLD-10
• PERMANENT SIGN PERMITS SOLD-3
• TRASH VIOLATIONS-4
• BUSINESS OPERATING W/OUT PERMIT-1
• TRAILER PARK REINSPECTIONS-13
• 
  
• TOTALS- 173

I imagine the large number of signs moved from right of way are probably related to clearing up the mess left after the elections this year. It's always discouraging to see how many signs are placed everywhere, littering the sides of the streets and often left long after the election is over.

100th Post, 2009 Elections

This is my 100th post since starting this blog. While not as many posts as I would have liked, I have enjoyed the opportunity to spread some information about what's going on with the city with various readers.

On another note, some people are already talking about the 2009 municipal elections. In fact, some people have been talking about it since 2006. While qualifying papers aren't due until the beginning of the new year, the forms are now available online via the Secretary of State's office and are posted on the city website.

2009 Municipal Election Forms

As If I Had to Remind You...

Go vote!