June 2017 Update

A busy summer continues for your City Council and Mayor’s Office. At our June 12th City Council meeting, we will appoint Deputy Chief Dave Jernigan as our new Police Chief. Dave and his family have been residents of Madison for 22 years and he is both committed and invested in our city. Chief Jernigan has been the Deputy Chief for the Madison County Sheriff’s Department for several years and previously worked for the FBI for the majority of his career. He has established contacts and resources with the Local, State and Federal agencies. I believe our city will be in good hands under Chief Jernigan’s leadership. On a personal note, thank you to the many in our community that contacted me via phone call, text or Facebook Message during the selection process in support of Chief Jernigan. Your opinions are very much appreciated!

Mayor Finley’s Update for May 29-June 4

Good Friday Afternoon,

I hope everyone has had a great week.  Certainly appreciate everyone’s efforts and want to share a few of your high lights:

• Progress on Downtown Phase III will continue next week with Madison Utilities beginning relocation of the water line in Martin Street.  This work is expected to begin next Wednesday and take approximately three weeks to complete.  Also, we met with the folks at 112 Martin Street (David & Daniel) to take one last shot and finding common ground on a solution forward.  Hopefully by next Friday we will be able to share good news.
• Our building department is working on quotes to replace (and meet ADA requirements) the drinking fountains at City Hall, Dublin Park, and Palmer park.
• Adult ultimate Frisbee started in Dublin Park.  We hope this is the first of many more adult programs for our citizens.
• The Holiday Inn has communicated the hotel is completely booked for the Dizzy Dean State Tournament scheduled for June 28-July 4, 2017.  The Hampton Inn has booked 30 rooms.  We have not heard from the other Madison Hotels.  Since we established a room rate for the tournament participants, more teams are staying in Madison than in past years.
• Our Memorial Day celebration at Veterans Park was a huge success.  The new monument was unveiled and our team did a great job of having everything looking (and sounding) great.
• Council named Madison resident David Jernigan as their choice for our new Police Chief.  I have met with Dave and feel comfortable we will be able to bring his contract to council at the June 12 meeting.  Special thanks to Captain Terrell Cook for his countless hours supporting this process!
• We are excited to welcome our new Communications Specialist Samantha Magnuson to our team.

As you may or may not have already investigated this email includes an attachment.  An explanation of who these two are came to me in an email from their mother:

Dear Sir,

I wanted to send you a quick email thanking four of your fire fighters for their kindness to my kids and I tonight. We were at 32 degree frozen yogurt on Hwy 72 getting a treat for myself and my kids, ages 7 and 4 around 7 pm. Four of your fire fighters came in shortly after us and ended up sitting near us outside. They were all friendly and said hi to my kids. As we went to leave one of them hopped up and asked my kids if they’d like a fire hat which quickly turned into an offer to go see the truck. The kids were super excited and had a great time.

I shared with the guys that not only was today our 7 year old son Declan’s birthday but that my husband had just left early this morning for a 4 month assignment at the Pentagon. We live here in Madison and he’s a subcontractor for NASA but he’s also a Captain in the Air National Guard. He serves with the 187th fighter wing out of Montgomery and this 4 month tour away from home is a part of his duty.  Of course your guys knew none of that when they were so kind to my kids. I filled them in as my kids explored and they were very nice & supportive, sharing that some of their coworkers also serve in the Air National Guard.

It was a small thing but it made a bright spot for our family in an otherwise hard day. It was an encouragement to me as I hold down the fort solo for the next few months and it also reaffirmed how much I love our new home town. June marks our 2 year anniversary as Madison residents, we live very far away from WA state where we grew up and our family. Despite that, we consider ourselves really lucky to have gotten the opportunity to relocate here.

On the way home my 4 year old daughter, Ainsley, said “I’m not scared of fire fighters anymore” and we had a great conversation about being safe at home and what to do if there’s an emergency. So it ended up being educational for them too.  I didn’t think to get names or pay attention to their vehicle markings so I can’t identify them specifically but hopefully you’ll be happy to get a general thank you. I’ve attached a couple a picture of my happy kids in the truck and with their new hats.

I hope this email is a bright spot in your day too. Have a great week and thank you for service to our community.

Sincerely,

Carrie Giles

Wife of Captain Mike Giles

I hope this made you smile and also hope you share my pride.  I would venture to say this is just one of the countless times our employees “made someone’s day” this week.  Thanks again to all of you and please have a fantastic weekend!

Sincerely,

Mayor Finley

Weekly Update from Mayor Finley for June 4-18

Team,

It has been a very busy couple of weeks for all of us.  Tonight, on Father’s Day, I write this as a thankful Dad.  I sure hope each and every one of you enjoyed this weekend.

Here are a couple of the high lights form the last two weeks:

• Council approved Dave Jernigan as our next Madison Police Chief.  Chief Jernigan will officially start Monday July 3^rd.  No sooner was he  approved that Chief attended the New Chief’s Development Seminar in Anniston for 3 days.
• Recreation held the Madison 5K/10K Saturday, June 10, 2017.  Over 120 runners were pre-registered for the run.  The race went off without a hitch….thanks to everyone from Rec, Police, Public Works, and many others for helping to make this happen.
• Our School Resource Officers attended the 2017 TAASRO Safe Schools Training Conference in Gulf Shores, AL. After returning from training the School Resource Officers hosted the 1^st Week of Kid’s Camp with 94 students in attendance
• A new 85 room Fairfield Inn & Suites Hotel has been approved for the south side of Madison Boulevard, west of Hughes Road.
• A third IGA convenience grocery, with a fuel station and drive-thru, has been approved for the northeast corner of Old Madison Pike and Shelton Rd.
• Building, Engineering and Planning staff attended a Building Industry Association (BIA) Roundtable meeting last week to discuss upcoming code updates and City processes
• Public Works built drainage ways and installed erosion control at Bradford Creek Trailhead.  We are working on a final Phase 1 project cost and will soon bring this before Council for approval.
• School Resource Officers hosted the 1^st Week of Kid’s Camp with 94 students in attendance.
• Detective Corporal Christie Gover and Team hosted a RAD Class with 14 participants.
• Building inspection, Engineering, and Fire have met multiple times with the owners of the new movie theater, supporting them in every possible way to get the theater open as quickly as possible.  Based on an email I received their hard work is paying off, hopefully for a soft opening the weekend of June 23^rd.
• Council approved a contract with an independent specialist to support Legal/Planning in the upgrade of our sign ordinance.
• I had the pleasure of speaking to our Seniors at the Senior Center last week.  They were very attentive and asked many questions, even though I was the only thing between them and B-I-N-G-O!
• I also had the pleasure of speaking to the Huntsville-Madison County Builders Association at their Annual Meeting.

As I close I am so proud of our City of Madison Team.  We continue to get far more positive than negative comments in the Mayor’s office.  Thanks for all of your hard work for our citizens!

Hope everyone has a great week.

Sincerely,

Mayor Finley

Weekly Update from mayor Finley for June 18-25

Team,

Happy rainy and wet Friday!  Hope everyone has had a great week….I know we have all been busy.

• Thanks to  Engineering, Public Works and Parks and Rec for all that they have done over the past few months to improve the adaptive playground at Palmer Park.  Almost every one of the areas of concern that were brought to our attention have been taken care of.
• Public Works finalized a quick ADA sidewalk compliance upgrade on Gooch Lane.  The request was initiated at the last council meeting….pretty quick turnaround.
• Dispatcher Brooklyn Bradley received a Letter of Commendation for her exceptional dispatching skills during a pursuit of a possible stolen vehicle with a possible armed driver in which several police agencies were assisting our agency
• Multiple Council and City employees, in addition to a huge Madison crowd, attended the Ribbon Cutting at CinePlanet 15 Cinema this morning.  What a great day for Madison…thanks to each of you who had a hand in making this happen.
• I spoke to the Women’s Council of Realtors Wednesday, giving them an update of our Madison happenings.
• Our Fire Department responded to a water leak in an upstairs apartment that completely flooded a downstairs apartment. A young mother and her 3 month old were displaced. Crews moved furniture, squeegeed the floors, and helped take care of the 3 month old while the mother packed. Two crew members remained behind until the husband arrived at 3 a.m. Great job for going the extra mile to lessen the impact on this family.
• Our Fire Department EMS Team also made major positive impacts in a near drowning, two drug overdoses, a suicide, and multiple vehicular accidents.  These guys see and are a part of things each day that are tough situations.
• I helped Councilman Clark and the Beautification Team hand out over 90 Beautification Awards at their annual luncheon.
• Taylor and I conducted multiple economic development discussion supporting Mary Beth & team.  Big projects take a while but positive direction continued to happen.
• Building welcomed a new Building Inspector, Rickey Osborne, this week.  They are now fully staffed with inspectors and better prepared for projects coming down the line.  Good thing as the existing team conducted almost 150 inspections alone this week.

I hope all of you have a fantastic weekend!  Thank again for all that you do for our city and residents.

Sincerely,

Mayor Finley

MCDAB Fishing Rodeo

On May 20th, the Madison City Disability Advisory Board (MCDAB) held it’s annual Fishing Rodeo. It was a huge success with many children, young adults and young at heart participating. My many thanks to Gayle Milam for her support and organization of this fabulous event.

On May 22nd, I had the pleasure of attending both Bob Jones and James Clemens High School graduations. It was wonderful to hear about the accomplishments of the (850 seniors) class of 2017. Combined, they received over $50.3M in scholarship and accepted $22.37M. The average Scholarship value is $36,000. 16% (or 136 of the graduates) earned a 30 or better on the ACT! 89% of the students will be off to college in the fall, 4% will be entering the workforce and 4% will be serving our country in the military. What is most amazing is that Madison City Schools ranks 61st in per pupil spending in the state of Alabama. In other words, there are 60 school systems that spend more on educating their students than we do. This is definitely a ranking that I would like to see swing in better favor of our next generation!

On Saturday, May 27th Ron, Sarah, Lily (our Labradoodle) and I enjoyed attending Art For Paws at Dublin Park. We were able to see the amazing Disc Dog Competition. We all enjoyed ourselves and Lily made some new friends. I highly recommend attending this annual event.

On Monday, May 29th, Council and Mayor attended the Madison City Memorial Day Ceremony. We honored and remembered those that gave their lives in defense of our country. We also were able to participate in the rededication to the new monument honoring our Madison military heroes. If you haven’t had a chance to see it, I encourage you to visit the area. It is at the corner of Front and Church Street. My many thanks to American legion Post 229 for hosting this event. My father served in the U.S. Navy in World War II, Korea and Vietnam so these events evoke special memories of him.

We have also appointed Mrs. Samantha Magnuson as our new Communications Specialist. She is a Bob Jones graduate and resident of Madison. Samantha began working on May 30th and will be responsible for all external communication from the Mayor’s Office to include press releases, social media and website design. We welcome Samantha and she can be reached by clicking here:Email Samantha.

On Wednesday May 31st, I was honored to accompany Senator Bill Holtzclaw on a tour of both Madison Fire Department (MFD) and Madison Police Department (MPD). At MFD, we were able to see the new pumper truck and nozzles for which Sen. Holtzclaw provided the funding. At MPD, we were able to see the new specialized stainless steel tables to be used in the investigative lab. Both Senator Holtzclaw and I have great appreciation and respect for our first responders and the work they do daily to keep us safe. My thanks also to District 2 Council Member Steve Smith and the Finance Committee. They were able to purchase a brand new pumper truck and a new ladder truck with cash. It is a testimony to their due diligence that we don’t have to use bond funds or take out a loan to make these two large purchases.

The 2017 “Conquer the Hill” 10K and 5K race will be held this Saturday, June 10th. The 10K race will begin at 7:30 and the 5K race will begin at 7:40. There will be an awards ceremony at 9:30 am. All runners will receive a tee shirt with registration. Bob Jones will also be hosting an ACT exam that morning, so please be aware of road closures. Here is the route for your reference: Race Map

On July 29th, the Madison Chamber of Commerce will be hosting their Business Expo and Kid’s Day at the Hogan YMCA. The event will be from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. I will have more about this in July’s blog as there will be a special surprise.

We have approved financial allocation for the new Outdoor Air Supported Structure for the outdoor Dublin pool. We hope to have this erected by fall so that we will in effect, double our swim space year round. We continue to explore a long-term solution for our aquatic and recreational needs.

The Downtown Phase III project improvement to Martin Street and the City parking lot has begun. Utility poles are currently being relocated and the project is set for completion in October. You can read more about this project here:Downtown Development Phase III

We have also begun reconstruction of the bridge on Mill Road. We closed Mill Road after the last day of school to replace the bridge that was constructed in 1937 as part of Roosevelt’s Works Progress Administration. It has been 70 years and this bridge has been in dire need of replacement. We hope to have it completed and the road reopened by the time school starts on August 7th.

In closing, Happy Father’s Day to all the Dads reading my blog. I hope you have a blessed and relaxing day with your family! As always if you have any questions or concerns I can be reached at Email Maura. or 256.337.2408. Thank you for your continued support!