Third Quarter 2023

Summer is here so welcome to hot temperatures and afternoon thundershowers Your city government has been very busy so far this year. We have a lot to talk about so let’s get to it!

Mayor Finley’s Weekly Report

June 26th to July 7th

City of Madison Team,

We have had a lot going on during the past two weeks, here are a few of the highlights.

• The Star-Spangled Celebration took place from 7-9.m. July 3^rd.   The event was shortened to two hours due to storms in the area. There was a large crowd for the fireworks and band.  The Parks and Recreation food tent served 480 items in the two hours we were in operation. Thanks to Parks and Rec, Public Works, MPD, and Madison Fire for all that you did to create a safe and enjoyable event.
• The July 3^rd “Battle for the Paddle” pickleball tournament took place at Dublin Park with 66 teams participating.
• Dublin indoor had 984 visits, Dublin outdoor pool had 1321 visits, and MARS completed 315 trips during the two weeks. 
• Our Rocket City Trash Pandas celebrated July 4^th with over 7500 in attendance and fantastic fireworks show.
• We would like to welcome Gerald Smith, our new Director of Facilities and Grounds. He has hit the ground running with multiple departmental and facility meetings…..Welcome Gerald!
• We have had a crew resurfacing Eastview for the past two weeks; they should be finished next week. 
• Madison Police shared that they responded to 2250 incidents, made 78 arrests, issued 211 citations, and gave 249 warnings during the two weeks.  
• MPD also shared that they had a call with the CALEA commissioner and were advised that they had a perfect assessment during their first CALEA re-accreditation attempt in March. Great job MPD team.
• Congratulations to Dispatcher Angela Sharp on her promotion to Communications Supervisor assigned to Days B Shift
• Sergeant Ralph Dawe and the School Resource Officers conducted the 3^rd week of Kid’s Camp for 49 participants.
• Chief Gandy swore in 2 new officers,  Officer Randi Biggs and Officer Hayden Walton. Congratulations Randi and Hayden.
• Our Court team shared they opened 183 cases, closed 256, and issued 69 warrants during the two weeks.
• IT shared that they had 115 work orders submitted this week along with multiple calls and in person requests.
• IT also shared that the downtown wireless is currently down because we housed all our wireless equipment in MainStreet Café, and their power is currently turned off after the fire that took place last week.
• Our Fire Marshall’s office shared that they have conducted 946 annual fire inspections, 339 new construction inspections, and 12 new school construction inspections in FY23.
• Madison Fire and Rescue responded to 227 incidents, 170 of which were EMS related during the two weeks. Our MFR team also had quick response to our Main Street Café fire, quickly putting it our with minimal damage to the structure.
• Revenue shared that total sales tax collections for the month of June 2023 increased by 17.04% over the collections for the month of June 2022. The year-to-date collections are up 10.78% over the same period last fiscal year.
• Revenue also shared that they issued a total of 117 Business Licenses with 86 being new and 31 renewed this week.
• Sherwin Williams will be establishing another location in Madison.  Approved by the Planning Commission, the 14,000 square foot store will primarily carry industrial coatings and cater to contractors.  The store will be located off Cleghorn Blvd. Their location on Madison Blvd. will remain.

I hope everyone has a great weekend…..stay dry!

Respectfully,

Mayor Finley

July 8th to 23rd

Happy Saturday!

What a crazy weather week. As I write this the sun is finally out and it is starting to get a little steamy. The thunderstorm Thursday night was one of the longest and most intense I have ever been in. Sure hope each of you made it through with minimal damage.

It has been a busy middle of July, here are a few of the highlights.

• The City held its second public meeting on redistricting, with the consultant reviewing one possible scenario for new Council District boundaries.  Based on public feedback, the consultant will prepare a new scenario, and another public meeting has been scheduled for August 14^th.
• Plans for a new commercial rental facility, Equipment Share, have been approved for a five-acre site on Production Avenue, and Walk-On’s Sports Bistreaux has pulled permits to start vertical construction in Town Madison.  The 6,000 sf+ restaurant will be located behind Cava Grill and Chipotle.
• IT had 130 work orders submitted during the two weeks along with multiple calls and in person requests.
• IT along with HR’s assistance interviewed two applicants for the ERP Support Specialist position. This recently created positions will support all departments in maximizing our New World investment.
• Another position our city council recently supported was the addition of a Director of Facilities and Grounds. Gerald Smith has been on board for a month, and he is already deep into multiple projects. From replacing landscaping to meeting with multiple departments to learn their needs for space to working on power issues Gerald has taken the lead on areas critical to supporting our employees and maximizing the assets already at our disposal. That’s a long way of saying we are glad Gerald is here.
• Madison Fire and Rescue had a busy two week, responding to 233 incidents, 174 of which were EMS related.
• Our Community Risk Reduction team with MFR taught a CPR class to 70 Madison Utility workers…..very cool.
• Our Building team shared that the permitting division created 262 permits, issued 284 permits, and the inspection division performed 724 inspections.
• Code Enforcement performed 155 inspections/re-inspections, created 79 cases, and picked up 83 signs in the R.O.W.
• Quick shout out to our HR team as we recently hired 12 crossing guards for the upcoming school year. Also, thanks to HR for the monthly newsletter….helpful info.
• Madison Police shared that they responded to 2410 calls for service, made 69 arrests, issued 194 citations, and gave 242 warnings during the two weeks.
• Detective Teresa Taylor-Duncan spoke at the Senior Citizens Center for their Senior Safety Awareness presentation.  There were 32 attendees.
• Congratulations to Officer Chandler Cox, Officer Jacob Hillis, Officer Jacob Kramer and Officer Michael Lucente who graduated from the Law Enforcement Academy in Tuscaloosa, AL.  Officer Jacob Kramer was elected Vice-President, Officer Jacob Hillis was elected Secretary/Treasurer and Officer Michael Lucente was elected class Historian. 
• Captain Nic McRae conducted “Field Officer Training” training course for Officer Benjamin Bradford, Officer Josh Hensley, and Officer Craig Smith to become certified FTO Officer for our Department.
• Construction has begun on the pickleball project at the Hexagon facility.   Weather permitting, the project should be completed by mid-October.
• During the two weeks the outdoor pool at Dublin had 967 visits, the Dublin indoor pool had 1749 visits, and MARS completed 327 trips.
• The playground equipment has been installed at Kids Kingdom.  Public Works is in the process completing the site work around the site so the playground installers can come back and install the poured in place surface matting.  The project should open in early August with dry weather.
• Our Court team shared that during the two weeks they opened 248 cases, closed 323 cases, and issued 125 warrants.
• And our last bullet is saved for our public works team…..thank you, thank you! Multiple intense thunderstorms throughout the past two weeks have brought trees and fences down, flooded ditches, and just created havoc. Our public works team has been there throughout, fixing, digging out, or cutting up whatever is needed to keep Madison moving forward. Again, thank you PW team.

As I close, I again want to thank you for everything you do for our citizens and employees. Madison, Alabama is a special place, and our City of Madison Team is one of the reasons why.

I am proud to be your Mayor, thank you for all that you do!

Have a great rest of the weekend.

Respectfully,

Mayor Finley

July 24 – August 6

What a quick two weeks… lots going on to share. Here are a few of our highlights.

• Multiple city and school officials participated in the Journey Middle School ribbon cutting. What an incredible facility!
• Madison City Schools started classes yesterday. Thanks to our SRO’s, crossing guards, and all personnel who support our schools and continue working hard to keep them safe.
• Our Building team shared that the permitting division created 257 permits, issued 275 permits, and the inspection division performed 680 inspections during the two weeks.
• Code Enforcement performed 178 inspections/re-inspections, created 83 cases, and picked up 39 signs in the R.O.W.
• Our Madison Fire Marshall’s office shared that they have permitted 373 new construction inspections and completed 1055 annual fire safety inspections in FY23.
• Ogle Tree Service will begin work on removing hazardous trees along the Bradford Creek Greenway soon. We will give as much notice as we can to notify the public the greenways will be closed during the tree removal process.
• Steve Perry, City Emergency Manager, presented our updated All-Hazards Plan to our Department Heads. Feedback will be obtained with the final plan ready soon.
• Madison Fire and Rescue shared that they responded to 257 incidents during the two weeks, 198 of which were EMS related.
• The restroom building for Kids Kingdom has been set in place and hooked up to utilities. A Hugh shout out to our Public Works CIP crew for all of their work on the Kid’s Kingdom project. They have provided high quality work that allows significant cost savings as we close to finishing this project.
• Public Works has also made significant progress on the Highland Drive drainage improvement project.
• IT shared that they supported 113 work orders that were submitted during the two weeks along with multiple calls and in person requests.
• Our Court team shared that they opened 125 cases, closed 407 cases, and issued 63 warrants during the two weeks.
• Recreation staff identified areas for the Rotary group to install fitness station locations along the path in Dublin Park. Parks and Recreation crews will install the concrete for the project.
• The Dublin outdoor pool had 760 visitors during the two weeks and the Indoor Facilities had 774 visitors. With the start of school, the pool will be open on weekends only through Labor Day.
• Madison Police shared that they responded to 2139 calls for service, had 69 arrests, 65 citations, and gave 122 warnings during the two weeks.
• MPD also shared that they celebrated Sharon Monk’s retirement after 26 years of service.
• Detective Teresa Taylor-Duncan, Officer Garrett Hyatt, and ACO Janice Posey taught 16 participants RAD this week.
• All departments are in-process of finalizing their FY24 budget.

I hope everyone has a safe and enjoyable weekend… stay dry and thank you for all that you do for Madison!

Respectfully,

Mayor Finley

August 6th to 20th

Madison, Alabama has shined during the past two weeks, with our Madison Chamber of Commerce hosting the 25th year celebration of our Madison City Schools and then hosting our Celebrate Madison State of the City Address at Toyota Field. Thanks to Michelle Epling and her Chamber staff for two great events!

We are so proud of our city and all that has been accomplished. A special thanks to our Communications team, Samantha Magnuson and Gabe Kuenzli, for their fantastic work on the videos for the Celebrate Madison event.

We have had an incredibly busy couple of weeks, here are just a few of the highlights!

• Our FY24 budget is now in the Mayor’s hands, and we will be working with all departments as we move it forward to the Finance Committee. Special thanks to Roger Bellomy and Jon Howard for all they have done to get it this far.
• We are pleased to welcome Traci Gillespie as the City’s new Economic and External Affairs Officer. Traci will be working with both the Mayor’s Office and the Planning Department to advance the City’s goals.
• The Edgar’s Bakery ribbon cutting was held this week. The company is also building additional adjacent tenant space, which it will be leasing in the coming months.
• Main Street Cafe reopend this week. Main Street would not have been able to open so quickly if it had not been for Madison Fire’s quick response time and the great job we did putting out the fire.
• Two new restaurants are anticipated to begin tenant improvements soon: Wingstop is planned for the Publix Center on Hughes Road, and Big Bad Breakfast will locate on Hwy 72. Opening dates have not yet been announced.
• Town Madison has also had announcements of some new tenants. Chicken Salad Chick, Walk Ons, and Steam Boys restaurants and the Marriott Town Place Hotel are confirmed.
• Recreation shared that mowing of neighborhood parks has fallen behind schedule due to the recent storms. We are trying to catch up as quickly as possible.
• Mars completed 322 trips and the Dublin Facilities had 1367 visitors during the two weeks.
• Youth Volleyball began last week. We have 17 teams, the most teams we had in the Fall Season.
• Madison Police shared that they responded to 2201 calls for service, made 101 arrests, issued 130 citations, and they gave 111 warnings during the two weeks.
• 43 MPD officers and supervisors worked a large traffic and crowd control event, that ended with no issues, involving a book reading hosted by Mom’s for Liberty, featuring the actor Kirk Cameron at the Madison Library on Saturday the 5th. Great job MPD!!
• Director of Facilities and Grounds Gerald Smith has been busy working with multiple departments on “space” utilization. We are looking at every option to find our best plan for optimal success… more to come.
• Revenue shared that the total sales tax collections for the month of June 2023 year increased by 14.71% over the collections for the month of June 2022. The year-to-date collections are up 11.23% over the same period last fiscal year.
• Our Court team shared that they opened 303 cases, closed 257 cases, and issued 117 warrants during the two weeks.
• IT received 141 work orders during the two weeks, as well as multiple calls and in-person requests.
• Our Building team shared that the permitting division created 344 permits, issued 342 permits, and the inspection division performed 598 inspections during the two weeks.
• Code Enforcement performed 145 inspections/re-inspections, created 56 cases, and picked up 103 signs in the R.O.W.
• Madison Fire and Rescue shared that they responded to 213 incidents, 156 of which were EMS related during the two weeks.
• Our Fire Marshall’s Office shared that they have now permitted 388 new construction inspections, completed 1120 annual fire inspections, and reviewed 159 architectural plans in FY23.
• Our City Clerk’s office has been very busy with deposits, notary support, and insurance documentation, all while short staffed.
• Congratulations and thank you to Madison Fire and Rescue for securing an AFG grant of $435,454 for new SCBA units.
• City Prosecutor Tim McFalls managed 193 cases during the two weeks.

As I close, I wanted to again thank each of you for your continued focus on our city and our employees. I am proud to be your Mayor and I hope each of you has a fantastic rest of your weekend.

Respectfully,

Mayor Finley

August 21st to September 3rd

Happy Friday Afternoon,

Many are headed out for a long Labor Day weekend…..let’s take a few minutes to share some of our highlights for the last two weeks before you go.

• Our FY24 Mayor’s budget is being finalized now and will be headed to our Finance Committee for review and discussion. Thanks to Roger & Jon in Finance, Steve Smith in the Mayor’s office, and our Department Heads for all their hard work.
• Congratulations and thank you to MPD for their quick work in arresting the bank robber of PNC Bank. Keping our community safe is critical and their focus and follow up is absolutely second to none!
• Our facilities and grounds crew led by Gerald Smith was busy during the two weeks, addressing HVAC issues at the Dublin Park gym, City Hall, Fire Stations 1 & 3, and the Library. They also worked on water leaks at Public Works, Dublin Park, and the Senior Center.
• Our Building team shared that the permitting division created 328 permits, issued 362 permits, and the inspection division performed 714 inspections during the two weeks.
• Code Enforcement performed 178 inspections/re-inspections, created 58 cases, and picked up 93 signs in the R.O.W during the two weeks.
• Michelle Parker, the city’s new ERP Support Specialist, started her new role last week.  She will be helping all city departments with their New World Systems questions and needs.
• IT received 118 work orders during the two weeks, as well as multiple calls and in-person requests.
• IT and the Police Dept. worked together to install replacement computers in three patrol cars.
• Our Fire Marshall Office has completed 1,319 annual fire inspections and permitted 423 new construction inspections in FY23.
• Madison Fire and Rescue responded to 249 incidents, 218 of which were EMS related incidents during the two weeks.
• Our Madison Police Department responded to 1643 calls for service, made 110 arrests, issued 89 citations, and gave 85 warnings during the two weeks.
• Our Court team shared that they opened 278 cases, closed 304 cases, and issued 106 warrants during the two weeks.
• GSA posted their FY’24 hotel per diem rates, which starting October 1^st raise the Huntsville/Madison County per diem rate from $98 per night to $127 per night.   This is an increase from $29 per night which equals almost a 30% increase.
• Our recreation staff met with Debbie Overcash about Christmas events.  The tinsel trail tree lighting is scheduled for December 1^st, Christmas Parade scheduled for December 9^th, and the Christmas Cappers for either December 16 or 17.
• The playground matting is being installed at Kids Kingdom.  This process should take two weeks and we anticipate the playground opening in late September.
• Dublin Park had 1536 user visits and MARS completed 335 trips during the two weeks.
• The pickleball courts at Hexagon Site have been paved and poles for the fencing has been installed.

I hope everyone enjoys their Labor Day weekend. Thanks for all that you do for our Madison community and our Madison City employees. I am proud to be your Mayor!

Respectfully,

Mayor Finley

September 3rd through 10th

City of Madison Team,

Wow, we sure can get a lot done in a 4-day work week. Here are just a few of the highlights.

• Our 35758 zip code was named the #1 zip code to live in Alabama by Niche and our 35756 zip code was ranked #5. Simply wow….!
• Our Rocket City Trash Pandas close out their 2023 season today at Toyota Field. Base on initial numbers they again went over the 300,000 attendance mark and they are already gearing up for a fall of non-baseball events our community can enjoy.
• Our FY24 budget is now in the Finance Committee’s hands and soon will be headed to the full City Council for review.
• Our Revenue team shared that total sales tax collections for the month of August 2023 increased by 13.51 % over the collections for the month of August 2022. The year-to-date collections are up 11.44% over the same period last fiscal year.
• Facilities and Grounds were busy this week managing the repair of a major water leak at the Senior Center, an HVAC issue at City Hall, and working with Tidewater to change out and “spruce up” the downtown landscaping in preparation for our upcoming street festival.
• Our Fire Marshall’s office shared that they have now completed 435 permits for new construction in FY23.
• Madison Fire and Rescue shared that they responded to 124 incidents this week, 105 of which were EMS related.
• Our Building team shared that the permitting division created 117 permits, issued 117 permits, and the inspection division performed 212 inspections during the week.
• Code Enforcement performed 56 inspections/re-inspections, created 26 cases, and picked up 28 signs in the R.O.W.
• Our Court team shared that they opened 68 cases, closed 153 cases, and issued 18 warrants this week.
• Our Public Works team stayed busy repairing road shoulders and sidewalks, trimming trees, cleaning ditches, and building additional sidewalks.
• Public Works is continuing with site work at Kids Kingdom.  We are having issues with people allowing their children to play on the equipment during construction.  We hope to have the playground opened by the end of the month, weather permitting.
• Speaking of Kid’s Kingdom Kory met with Arborist Stoney Grey about tree planting in Dublin Park.   We are looking to plant 30 trees in the park.  Most of the planting will be near the Kids Kingdom playground.  We anticipate the trees being planted in late November.
• IT received 43 work order this week, as well as multiple calls and in-person requests. IT also replaced the Ubiquiti access point that was damaged by the fire at Main Street Cafe.  This new access point has a higher user capacity and a longer range than the previous one, which will be a big help for the Street Festival
• The Dublin Outdoor Pool’s last day of operation was Monday, September 4, 2023.  Over 100 patrons attended on Labor Day.
• MARS completed 146 trips this week and Dublin had 589 visits.
• Madison Police shared that they responded to 862 calls for service, made 44 arrests, issued 27 citations, and gave 59 warnings during the week.

As I close and look ahead to next week, I know it starts with our 9-11 Remembrance Ceremony at 9:00 at Fire Station 2. 22 years ago, the City of Madison sent a team to NYC to support this tragedy and each year we take the time to remember all those who we lost on that terrible day.

Lastly, I had two high school friends that I had not seen in years come to the Trash Pandas game last night. They simply could not quit talking about our community, its energy and excitement, and how proud we should be of all that is going on. Rankings are one thing, reality is another and I hope you are as proud of Madison, Alabama as I am.

Thanks for all that you do to help make Madison a great place to “Plant Your Roots.”

Let’s have a great week.

Respectfully,

Mayor Finley   

September 10th – 17th

Happy Saturday,

I hope everyone had a great week and is already deep into enjoying your weekend. We accomplished a great deal last week, here are a few of the highlights.

• We held a successful Homecoming parade for James Clemens High School Thursday. Thanks to MPD, Public Works, and MFR and many others for their planning and support!
• We also held a moving 9/11 Memorial Ceremony at Fire Station 2.
• The playground portion of the Kids Kingdom project is complete.  Public Works is in the process of finishing the site work.  We are hoping to open the area/playground in mid-October.
• MARS completed 151 trips and Dublin Park had 608 visits this week.
• Our Court team shared that they opened 121 cases, closed 138 cases, and issued 12 warrants last week.
• Fencing for the new pickleball courts at the Hexagon facility is being installed.  The courts have been paved and are in the process of curing.  Installation for the court and softball field lighting has begun as well.
• IT received 45 work orders this week, as well as multiple calls and in-person requests.
• Our recreation staff took delivery of Christmas decorations purchased by the City Council.  They are being stored in building 23a at Hexagon.  We are working with Gerald Smith for a long-term storage location for all of the Christmas decorations.
• IT worked with Barracuda to roll back the interface to a previous version that was known to be working, to fix the problem of users being unable to release emails that had been caught by the spam filter.

• The Senior Center had 43 new members join in August and the Madison Senior Expo is scheduled for Thursday, September 21, 2023.
• Our Building team shared that the permitting division created 201 permits, issued 212 permits, and the inspection division performed 445 inspections during the week.
• Code Enfircement performed 85 inspections/re-inspections, created 30 cases, and picked up 41 signs in the ROW.
• Our Legal team is finalizing revisions to bring to council for approval for a Huntsville/Madison County/Madison City joint funding agreement for the Slaughter Road Intersections Project
• Our City Prosecutor had 87 municipal court cases this week.
• Our Madison Police Department had 879 calls for service, made 39 arrests, gave 54 citations, and issued 39 warnings last week.
• Madison Police K-9 Division acquired 2 new k-9’s: Bolo and Dagger.
• Our Fire Marshall’s office has permitted 442 new construction inspections and they have serviced 2835 of our 3000 hydrants in FY23.
• Madison Fire and Rescue responded to 103 incidents last week, 90 of which (or 87%) were EMS related.
• Our Facilities and Grounds team shared that the installation and repair of parking lot lighting at Fire Station 4 has been completed.

Looking forward to another great week. Thanks for all that you do to help make Madison a fantastic place to live.

Respectfully,

Mayor Finley

Septermber 18th to 24th

I hope everyone has enjoyed a great week and are that you are looking forward to a beautiful weekend.

A lot has gone on in Madison this week, here are a few of the highlights.

• Madison Police shared that they responded to 905 calls for service, made 35 arrests, issued 56 citations, and gave 61 warnings during the week.
• A welcome to Sherry Vaughn, who joined the Madison Police Services Specialist team.
• Our City Council held a public FY24 budget work session. Multiple areas were discussed in preparation for passing the FY24 budget at the 9-25 council meeting.
• Madison Fire and Rescue responded to 98 incidents this week, 66 of which were EMS related.
• Several of us attended the retirement party for Judy Ryals, retiring after 45 years as CEO/President of the CVB.
• Our Fire Marshall’s office completed 77 annual fire inspections this week, bringing their total to 1489 inspections in FY23.
• Our paving contractor should finish re-surfacing Sullivan Road between Front Street and Browns Ferry Road early next week. They will then move to the southern portion of Sullivan Road between Madison Boulevard and Spenryn Drive. This work is taking place during overnight hours to reduce the impacts to traffic.
• During the week of October 2, we will be doing hardware improvements and re-wiring of the Hardiman Road and Mill Road signals on County Line Road. As a result, these signals will need to be taken out of service. Traffic control and detour routes will be in place. This work will take place during Fall Break for Madison City Schools to reduce the impacts to traffic.
• Our Building team shared that the permitting division created 141 permits, issued 161 permits, and the inspection division performed 423 inspections during the week.
• Code Enforcement performed 62 inspections/re-inspections, created 36 cases, and picked up 22 signs in the R.O.W.
• IT received 45 work orders this week, as well as multiple calls and in-person requests. IT has also been working on making sure Wi-Fi is maximized in historic downtown for our October 7^th street festival.
• Our Public Works CIP team poured 268’ of concrete bottom at the Highland Drive Ditch project.
• Our Public Works CIP team also poured three 12×12 pads and installed a water spicket for our new police dog kennel at the Celtic Drive facility.
• Our Facilities and Grounds team installed surge protection devices and bonding at the public works building, began downtown landscaping improvements, repaired our downtown electrical outlets, managed HVAC issues and relaced a water heater at City Hall, and held a contractor meeting for final repairs at Main Street Café among other items.
• Court shared that they opened 101 cases, closed 170 cases, and issued 37 warrants this week.
• Recreation shared that our new Pickleball courts at Hexagon should be ready to use by mid-October!
• MARS completed 174 trips this week and Dublin Park had a total of 608 visits.
• Our Senior Center shared that they served 275 meals this week, they had 939 activity sign ups and 1529 hours of member activity. They also hosted a wellness expo with 208 attendees.

Thank to all of you for what you do for our Madison community. Have a great weekend.

Respectfully,

Mayor Finley

Mayor Battle’s Weekly Update

Just a reminder that Huntsville Mayor Tommy Battle also has a weekly Newsletter. You can sign up here: Mayor Battle’s Newsletter

In Closing

As always, I will be updating this blog every couple of weeks. Please check back during the the third quarter of 2023 for new information. You can also provide your email address in the box below for a subscription and be notified when the blog is updated  I can be reached at Email Maura or 256.337.2408. Thank you again for your continued support!