Ken Moore, Alderman, Franklin, Tn

It’s a Tie!-At the County Fair, there is always a friendly competition between the mayors in the County. This year the contest was a “line dance” competition. The quotation marks are there for a reason! Mayor Rogers Anderson and I made it to the final dance off and ended up tied for the prize, a western buckle.

Election Information-Are you registered to vote in the upcoming election for Mayor and Alderman?  If you are not registered to vote, you may do so by visiting the Elections Commission at the Williamson County Complex or on line at www.williamsoncounty-tn.gov. Election for Mayor and Alderman at Large will start with early voting on October 5-20, 2011 and Election Day will be October 25, 2011. In order to be eligible to vote in Williamson County elections, you must:

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be a resident of the State of Tennessee
• Be eighteen (18) years old on or before the next election
• Have never been convicted of a felony, or have had your rights restored as required by law.

Congratulations-For the twentieth consecutive year, the City Finance Department has received an award recognizing excellence in accounting. Our department is one of only a handful across the State to receive this recognition.

Survey-Thank you to all who responded to the survey, “Mayor Moore Would Like Your Input!” The response has been outstanding and I have a long series of comments that I will respond to over the coming months and during the campaign. I would like to give you a brief summary at this time of the results.

1. How is the City doing managing growth and development? 77%-very good to good.
2. How do you feel about economic development and new companies coming to Franklin? 73% just right.
3. Would you say the City of franklin is on the right track? 92% strongly agreed or agreed.
4. Would you say the City does a good job in managing its finances? 83% strongly agreed or agreed.
5. Is the City adequately keeping pace with infrastructure needs such as roads, water, sewer, etc.? 65% were very satisfied or satisfied.
6. How would you rate the quality of life in Franklin? 98% responded very good or good.
7. How do you feel about the City’s sustainability efforts including the blue bag-recycling program? 94% strongly approved or approved.
8. Do you feel safe in your community? 96% responded safe to very safe.
9. How do you receive most of your information about city government? 64% depend on the newspaper and 21% utilize “Moore About Franklin” and 16% use Internet websites.
10. Do you feel there is a need for more affordable housing the City of Franklin?

47% felt there was a need for more affordable housing and 34% felt there was not a need.

I look forward to further articles about these subjects and also on the multiple comments made in the comment section. Over 53% of the respondents made a comment on an issue that was important to them.

Financials-The City has saved over $200,000 over the past 12 months on its fuel-hedging program. Sales tax revenue continues to outpace 2010 and was up 4.4% for the month of June. Preliminary budget numbers reveal that our fund balance will be $500,000 higher than anticipated on budget estimates last year. Other positive indicators are that building permits, road impact fee collections, and facilities taxes are ahead of budget projections.

Iraq Dignitaries-The City of Franklin hosted a group of dignitaries from Kurdistan area in Iraq. Their titles included one of the judges from the supreme military court and a Mullah. I was presented with a tri-color hand woven rug, which represents their region. The flag symbolically represents the bloodshed by American soldiers, regeneration, and innovation. They all had positive comments about our troops and about our Country.

Census Data-We now have available the census data by aldermanic ward and it appears that Wards 1 and 2 will need to be rebalanced. This will be an issue that will be addressed this fall by the Board of Mayor and Alderman after the elections.

Clovercroft School Update-It has been a little over a year now since BOMA approved the rezoning of this property and now the school is a reality and is receiving students. Part of the agreement with the County was that they would provide signalization at two intersections: Clovercroft/ Wilson Pike and McEwen/Wilson Pike. These signals are not up yet but hopefully will be up in the next sixty days. In the meantime, police will be directing traffic at these intersections until the signals are functional.

Low Head Dam-Removal of the low head dam on the Harpeth River is a project that has been in the news recently and has received some comments that need to be addressed. This is a project that has been funded thru Federal and State grant money and also funds from the City of Franklin. The project, which is just under a million dollars, is more than just a demolition project but will include access to the river and two hundred feet of stream bank restoration. So, why are we removing the low head dam? Not only is it an ecological improvement to the river but it a TDEC requirement for our water plant to continue to produce water.

Tour-I am constantly amazed about our community. I recently had a tour led by United Way of Williamson County to view some the programs that they support and why these programs are important to our community. The first stop was at the American Red Cross where I heard about their blood drive but more importantly learned how they respond locally to adverse events whether they be the flood or a single incidence such as a house fire where families are displace. The second stop was at the Literacy Council of Williamson County who help adults learn to read and develop math skills, student tutoring for GED, assisting learners of English to develop conversation and reading skills, book clubs for assisted living facilities, and providing reading material to area hospitals. The Community Child Care program is an outstanding program that is helpful to families that are trying to get a leg up and need child care. The program has an outstanding record and is doing a great service for our community. The last visit was to the Boys and Girls Club where I learned of the many programs that they offer to protect our youth and help them to learn healthy living habits and prepare them for the challenges of the world.