Good afternoon everyone! I have received an email from Tim Holm...so without further adieu...
Greetings Fellow Citizens!
My name is Tim Holm, candidate for Alderman, Ward 3. I wanted to take this opportunity to inform you as voters as to where I stand on key issues that Spring Hill is facing as a city. Spring Hill is changing daily. We need motivated city officials that will be able to keep up with the changes and make decisions based on the needs of the community, not one’s political agenda. I have lived in this city for almost 9 years and have seen the many faces of Spring Hill. Together let’s make Spring Hill better than what it already is… a great place to live!
Traffic Mitigation
Speaking to concerned citizens, traffic seems to be the number one issue on everyone’s mind. I’ve had people tell me, “If I don’t leave my house by 5:15am, I’m stuck in traffic.” With a booming population that is growing daily, it is imperative that the BOMA looks to mitigate traffic immediately. We cannot afford to wait on the State of Tennessee to finance our roads when they are ready to move forward. We need to take matters into our own hands and develop a working system that will allow us to mitigate traffic effectively.
In my plan, I will aggressively work with legislators in Nashville and find ways to “speed up” the 20-year Highway 31 project. Additionally, I will seek to allocate excess city-funds to finance our own road projects. Furthermore, there are other elements that must be taken into consideration when mitigating Spring Hill’s traffic problems, and for this reason, Spring Hill must have more “disciplined growth.”
Spring Hill’s Growth
Spring Hill has gotten too big for its shoes too fast. As a result, the passive ways of the existing BOMA no longer works for a city like Spring Hill. We need to be more proactive when it comes to the growth of our city. Spring Hill needs “disciplined growth.” Spring Hill needs to place caps on commercial and residential building projects so we can have the opportunity to grow our city progressively without having these projects get in our way. We need to lay foundations for new access roads which will prevent further traffic problems. We need to revisit the Master Land Use Plan and clearly define commercial and residential zoning so businesses won’t pop up in your backyard. I believe in small city values and will work to maintain that “small-city feel” here in Spring Hill.
Additionally, I will vote against any measure to reintroduce a city-imposed property tax. As a city, Spring Hill needs to research new avenues of obtaining revenue. Spring Hill needs to research raising impact fees and introducing occupational licensing fees and determine how they will influence both businesses and the city as a whole. To grow strong financially and maintain a solid infrastructure, Spring Hill needs a working Capital Improvement Plan. With a Capital Improvement Plan under our belt, we can plan for the future by putting projects on the map that will be beneficial to our city and allocate funds as needed to improve roads, build parks or walking trails, and make our city a better place to live. Once these goals are accomplished, Spring Hill can then flourish as a city with disciplined growth and improved infrastructure.
Community Involvement
The existing BOMA has gotten off-track when it comes to listening to citizen’s wants and needs. I would like to restore the relationship between city leadership and its citizens. To do this, I would propose the introduction of a decentralized management government. This would take the absolute power and authority from the BOMA and put government into the hands of citizens. In this plan, there would be Independent Advisory Boards where appointed citizens would be responsible for making decisions that would affect the city. For example, a “Beautification Board” would be responsible for introducing and executing projects in Spring Hill to revitalize the overall appearance of the city. This plan, overall, would keep the community involved in Spring Hill’s decision making process and improve relations between both city leadership and citizens.
Improved Public Services
As a Deputy for Williamson County, I see the need for improved public services everyday. In my agenda, I plan to work aggressively with the Chief of Police and Fire Chief to improve their departments and services to you, the citizens. I will seek more operational funding for these departments in order to equip them with the materials they need to be successful in their mission. I will research and propose the need for a Public Service Office, which will serve as a headquarters for both the Fire and Police Departments. Additionally, I will seek a more structured training doctrine for both departments and create a plan for retaining proficient firefighters and police. Furthermore, I will work diligently with the Fire Department to improve their ISO rating, so you can have a better peace of mind. Also, improving the Spring Hill Fire Department’s ISO rating could save you money on homeowner’s insurance, so it can be a win-win situation.
In Conclusion,
I thank you for taking the time to read through and I hope this information has given you the opportunity to make a more informed decision when you go to the polls.
Additionally, I do regularly keep up with the “Spring Hill Alternate” Blog and have decided during the course of this campaign to refrain from posting comments as I have seen many quarrels between candidates and citizens. I have learned in politics that you can’t make everyone happy and if you try, you will fail. Instead of arguing on a public website with citizens and losing potential votes, I have decided only to put information out on the table and let the public make an informed decision. If you have any questions or concerns that you would like for me to address, feel free to contact me by the methods provided below. Thank you once again and see you at the polls!
Sincerely,
Tim Holm
Email: tim.holm@us.army.mil
Website: http://www.myspace.com/holmforspringhill
Phone: (615) 599-4673(h) or (615) 481-1794(c)
Friday, February 16, 2007
Tim Holm Introduction
Posted by Gorilla in the Corner at 5:03 PM
Labels: Board of Mayor and Aldermen, Election 2007
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Post Ratings
IMPORTANT DISCLAIMER: The information on this website is a series of personal opinions and is not meant to reflect an official position by the City of Spring Hill.
37 comments:
Ah yes, the other half of the sign ordinance violators team. This one's a tripple whammy though. Like Duncan, violating the law while running for Alderman seems ironic. But you are also a law officer. Did you write yourself a citation? And while Duncan at least had the wisdom to take his signs down after realizing he was wrong, you evidently said "Damn the torpedos, the signs stay up". Perhaps this is your definition of "integrity" that's printed on your signs.
Why bother commenting, he's made it clear that he's not going to respond...
Which is exactly what would be expected of a 20 year old...
Tim
I am confused about something. You value this format enough to post your ideas but not enough to reply to comments or questions in the same format. Instead of being concerened about losing voters, I would think you would want to use this public arena to gain voters by explaining your ideas further. I may not agree with everything they have said but I respect Ron and some of the others who put it out there and then will debate what they say.
So without expecting any reply I have some comments and questions for you. You directly touched upon emergency services which is obviously a geat concern for me. First by a public safety office are you referring to an organization to run the police and fire depts or a new building to locate the headquarters in? Either would seem to be an unnecessary cost at a time when infrastructure demands are high. As far as structured training doctrine goes, if Spring Hill is a part of the state training incentive pay program then the doctrine is set by the state. As far as ISO is concerened much of what they look at has little to do with operational reality and is more a bean counters way of looking at fire depts. You know that insurance companies are looking at iso less to determine rates. One more issue that you did not address but could fall in your lap if elected is ems. When the R/M contract expires would you favor paying tax dollars to keep them, or would you fund fire based ems? You talk about decentralized government and taking some of the power from the BOMA but alot of what you say sounds like micromanagement. I would say let the chiefs determine the priorties and the BOMA provide the resources.
Playing devils advocate for a minute. You idea of advisory boards with the power to make decisions concerns me. It could become a way for unelected people, appointed as a political favor, that do not answer to anyone deciding what is best for citizens. There are ways for the residents of Spring Hill to be involved now. They can attend meetings, campaign, talk to the BOMA etc. The decisions you talk about are the job of our elected officials. If they do not like what is being done then they get involved and vote them out at the next election.
Just my two cents worth
ole fire fighter
Capital Ole Fire Fighter, capital!
Your idea of advisory boards with the power to make decisions concerns me. It could become a way for unelected people, appointed as a political favor, that do not answer to anyone deciding what is best for citizens.
Tom Miller campaigned for and implemented a plan to expand advisory boards and include more citizens on these boards in Franklin after he got elected in 2003. There were two problems that surfaced:
1. Lack of attendance at the meetings. Most meetings had to be canceled because they couldn't even get a quorum to show up.
2. There was a perception (rightfully so, in my opinion) that although the boards were advisory in nature, issues got 'killed' in committee, by board members who were not elected.
Both problems came down to one major issue; lack of accountability by unelected officials.
The Franklin BOMA ultimately voted the citizens completely out of most of the advisory boards and now many of these boards consist only of aldermen - the other extreme.
If a city of 50,000 couldn't get enough citizens involved to make this work, how can we expect this to work for Spring Hill?
Ole Fire Fighter,
I would like to comment on some of your questions, as some of the items discussed are things that Tim and I have discussed and seem to both favor with some minor differences;
1. Public Safety Office (Building) - I would like to begin planning for this now as part of a five to seven year infrastructure plan. As our city continues to grow, we will need more police officers, more fire fighters and more city employees, which will require more space than City Hall permits. If we move the Police Department into their own building (and build it with future growth in mind so that it can sustain our needs well into the future) with a new Main Fire Station on the same grounds with space for Administration, training rooms and an Emergency Operations Center, this would free up space at City Hall for further expansion of other City Departments as it becomes needed. This will also address a need proactively rather than reacting later after our departments are all cramped together.
2. EMS - As I have stated before, I am highly in favor of making our Fire Department into a Fire Rescue Department, giving our city more of an identity by having Spring Hill Fire Rescue on the side of ambulances and being proud of the fact that we are able to provide these services for our residents and visitors.
3. I am all for giving our department heads the ability to RUN their own departments. Let the BOMA set the budget and provide the resources and let the department heads take it from there. Do as we do now, where the BOMA gets regular reports, but not micromanage.
4. As far as taking power away from the BOMA, I support a reduction of influence. I want to remove the Mayor and Alderman from all boards and commissions (ie Planning, BOZA, Economic Development) and make these nine member boards of all residents, each member appointed by the Mayor and each Alderman. This will give the residents more influence in the development of their city, distribute the appointments to boards evenly between each member of the BOMA and keep the influence of the BOMA to BOMA meetings and final decisions on the recommendations of these boards, rather than giving BOMA members a vote in the advisory stage and the decision stage.
5. In addition, I want to expand our volunteer programs to give residents interested in being involved the opportunity to work within different departments. Examples would be Reserve Police Officer Program, expanding the Volunteer Fire Fighter Program rather than disbanding it, as well as allowing volunteers in other city departments. This will give the city more manpower at little to no cost, and allow for emergency assistance in the case of a disaster or major event.
As always, it has been a pleasure sharing my thoughts and opinions with you.
Ron and Tim, what issues do you have with Duda on the PC, Eliot on the EDC and Cantrell on the Library Board????
You guys are amazingly intelligent. Perhaps one day you'll decide to run for office and hopefully I'm not the one you're running against :-). The city would do well with folks like you questioning the decisions being made.
Appointing people to various boards with decision making power would only serve to clutter things up. Silverback showed the perfect precedent as to why it should not be done. Tim's not the only one advocating doing this.
The reason for this post is because you raised a question about an issue, namely EMS, that hits sort of close to home with me and I'd like your opinion on the matter. And, since apparently no one else is going to be posting opinions on this thread, I figured I'd throw my two cents in.
You asked, "When the R/M contract expires would you favor paying tax dollars to keep them, or would you fund fire based ems?"
I'm torn on this one. A couple of weeks from now will mark the one year anniversary from when I held my unconscious one year old daughter in my arms, watching the skin around her eyes and the bridge of her nose turn blue and waiting desperately for someone to respond to the 911 call. I remember thinking that I didn't want my two year old daughter to see her sister die and so I told her to go upstairs to put on her shoes with mommy while I stood in the doorway and just whispered "Stay with me for just a couple more minutes" over and over again to my one year old. THE FIRST ONES ON THE SCENE was the fire department and thank God for them. As I recall, there were three guys who got out of that truck. They put some oxygen on her and began taking her vitals. Very shortly after they arrived, the ambulance showed up, brought her to the hospital and the fire department went back to business as usual. That's the background. Here's why I'm torn - the fire department was the first to show, but I would have taken three guys and a truck out of the system for an hour if they would have taken my daughter to the hospital. Either way we go, the city would have to fund it. If we used the fire department, would that take away from the equipment and manpower in the event that a fire related emergency happens while the EMS crew is doing the job of the ambulance? Would we need to hire more people into the fire department and buy more trucks? If so, would that cost be more than the cost of running an ambulance? If so, then stay with the ambulance. If it's less expensive then I see no reason to switch.
So, I would say that certain conditions would have to be met to answer your question. IF the fire department wasn't going to be put in a situation where they are short of people or equipment AND it would cost less than the ambulance, then have the fire department run the show. If both those conditions can't be met then the ambulance should stay.
I'm interested to know what your answer is to your question. And, as always, if there's an error in my thinking I'm sure you will be kind enough to point it out to me (and it will be appreciated).
Thanks
MD
the first move for the fd would be to get rid of the fire chief. The dept would be a lot better of. All he has done is get rid of the Fire Marshall. So this is his job, Fire Chief, Asst. Chief, Fire Marshall, Training Officer. How can one man do all of that. He cant.
Ron
Always a pleasure. While I agree with somethings you say I see the expanded role of unelected decision makers frought with peril. I think we get better results with buisness conducted in the open by elected officials that we the voters hold accountable for their actions.
IF Tim is talking about the office building being a facility for a HQ then I can see the need in the future. I could see a multi use facility with classrooms, offices, a range for the police,and a burn for fire. After seeing what it took Franklin to get it's facility I know that these are long term projects that require massive planning and large budgets. I feel we have more pressing infrastructure needs now.
Again a pleasure I enjoy a civil conversation about any issue.
ole fire fighter
MD
First I hope your daughter is ok. That type of call is a nightmare for us, I promise you can not get there fast enough when a child is involved.
To answer my question FIRE BASED EMS no doubt! You are right it will cost money no matter what we do. I would rather spend tax money on city employees. IT costs about $400,000 per year per unit to run als ambulances. I would rather see that money going to fire dept ambulances staffed by city paramedics than a private service that we must negotiate a service contract with. I promise you when R/M contract is up it will be a negotiation not a simple renewal. I have worked for private services that provide emergency transport. I have seen it before.
TO adress your other points, the three guys that were there first were from an engine company. My engine provides the same service. In 16 years in the fire service I have never seen a fire or other call go unanswered due to the time on an ems run. Another unit simply runs the next call. The bottom line is fire based ems can be a boost to a fire dept's level of service not a drain on its resources. The city would only be limited by it's imagination as to the form ems can take in the fire dept. We need people of vision to think outside of the box. Some examples would be crosstraining the paramedics, buying multi use trucks that can function as both rescue trucks and ambulances. Using your crosstrained paramedics as two out rescue teams per NFPA 1710 on fire scenes. You can put paramedics on the engines and ladder so if an ambulance is delayed you still can perform advanced life support. This just scratches the service of options, we are only limited by our creativity. I hope that answeres your question. Take care
ole fire fighter
Occupational licensing fees? Mr. Holm, that sounds like a new tax to me. How do you propose to determine which occupations should be taxed and which ones shouldn't? Do we tax financial services professionals, physicians, attorneys? Would you tax homemakers who earn extra income selling things on E-bay? Do you really want to take punitive action against those who chose to provide products and services for our citizens here at home? It seems to me that if you want to bring jobs and encourage the growth of small businesses while attracting professional services to our area, taxing them is not a practical approach. Why pay a tax when you can lease space in Thompsons Station just across the line?
As for roads, candidates need to focus on what they have control over and not make promises they can't keep. There is a process in place regarding state and county roads and our elected officials are actively engaged in it. So, let's take Hwy 31 and Duplex Road off of the table. As for city roads, I'm all open to hearing any suggestions you have.
I really don't understand why you wish to raise impact fees that were just doubled recently. It seems to me that if you want to promote orderly growth, you utilize the tools at hand such as our city's master land use plan, proper zoning, and deed restrictions where appropriate. By making new residential developments cost prohibitive, the result would be a shrinking supply of available new homes, which will only serve to drive up existing home prices to the point where young families will not be able to afford to live here (Have you priced homes in Franklin lately? Median price $439,000.) Likewise, if you make commercial development cost prohibitive, it only serves to perpetuate the same traffic problems you are seeking to avoid as our citizens and their dollars leave our community to fund the coffers of our sister cities. I do not understand this "last one in, then close the gate" mentality exhibited by those who have lived here for only a short time. We have a wonderful quality of life here. It's only natural that others will want to be a part of it. The landowners who were here long before Saturn and your subdivision deserve an opportunity to realize a gain on the value of their land. After all, for many of them, it is their retirement plan. I'll bet some of them, if they had their druthers, probably didn't want us or you here either.
Your proposal to staff and equip our fire department to earn a better ISO rating is a wise investment for our citizens, both financially and as a matter of public safety. Franklin currently enjoys a class 3 rating while ours is a class 7. The difference this would make in insurance rates and peace of mind would be well worth it. Everyone would benefit; renters, home owners, and business owners alike.
Thank you for your introduction and for expressing your positions on these important issues facing our city. It will aid us in casting an informed vote for those candidates who we feel have the best interests of our community at heart and who have offered the most practical solutions to the challenges we face.
Tim Richards
Old Fire Fighter, I think you've satisfactorily explained why the service would not be a drain on the department. So it comes down to money. I don't know that I agree with the idea that the city should use city employees simply for the sake of having more city employees. If a better cost can be found through the private market, then I would argue that it might be the better route. Wouldn't it save the city in the form of money, benefits, insurance, training costs, etc. as well as provide a better leveraging tool for future contract negotiations? For instance, the city can always deny a contract renewal saying, "at this point we can save more money by providing this service ourselves". In return, the private market would price its services accordingly so that it remains cheaper - thereby saving the city money or allowing the city to use its resources in other important areas.
MD
OK, I need to address several issues here...
1. As far as my comments on the re-structuring of City Boards - I have absolutely no problem with Jonathan Duda or Elliott Mitchell, personally I think they are both great guys with a lot of heart and passion for doing what is right for the city. My reasoning for this was to allow more citizen involvement in what happens to their city and allow them to advise the BOMA without influence from the same people that will vote again on the same issue. After several discussions with some very knowledgeable people, I have found that this is not feasible for some of the boards in the city, and can admit that while my idea had good intentions, it is not a good idea. For boards/committees not regulated by state law and where board members are not required to have extraordinary amounts of specialized training or experience, I would still like to use the one member appointed by each of the BOMA members and get our citizens involved.
2. MD,
I cannot imagine what you must have been going through that night, and the only thing I can even begin to compare it to would be in my past experience working in and around the law enforcement community and being on a hot scene, screaming over the radio for back-up and feeling the relief of hearing the sirens getting closer and knowing that the calvary was coming. I am glad that our Fire Department was able to get there quickly and begin providing treatment. Based on what I have experienced in the past, the costs must be better or at least comparable, as most cities I have dealt with in the past eliminated private ambulance companies and started their own EMS. I would definitely favor doing a cost analysis prior to making a decision on this issue based only on personal feeling. As ole fire fighter stated, we would hire new employees to staff the EMS units full time. Cross training is always a great idea, as it allows all of our Fire Department staff to be trained for all emergency situations and also allows them to switch between working Fire or EMS for a change of daily pace. Finally, I favor this idea if it is cost effective, as it will give our city even more of an identity, the ability to be proud that we are able to provide another service for our residents and the ability to have total control over our EMS operations and costs to patients.
Can you say "back-pedal"?
MD
While I agree that in some cases the private sector can be more cost effective, my experience has been that emergency work is not one of them. If you only see the cost then you are missing alot of what goes into emergency work. Franklin pays me well as a captain, I ride in a top of the line engine. I will never save Franklin money. On the other hand when I put on the uniform I basicaly took a pledge to serve the citizens of Franklin to the best of my ability. I have duties and loyalties that go beyond my paycheck. In the end the crews of any private service are employees of that company not the city and my experience is that most loyalties stop with the check. That is what I meant by favoring my money going to city employees.
As far as the price of the service remember that in the end any private company has to turn a profit. What I have seen is that when you get to negotiations if the parties cannot agree the serives will simply move the trucks to another area where they can make more money instead of lowering prices. Look at the licsense info on the side of the R/M units and see what county they came from. R/M has already shown a willingness to do this , look at Scottsdale AZ. One more thing to remember if negotiations go wrong then you cannot simply decide to start an ambulance service in a matter of days or weeks. It took Franklin close to a year just to take our rescue companies to paramedic level of care and we do not transport. To take over the entire program would take months of planning and a good deal of money set aside to start.
ole fire fighter
No, I can't say back pedal. What I can say is that I am not afraid to admit when one of my ideas, while good intentioned, turns out to be an idea that is not feasible, as much as I might like it to be. I still believe in that idea, and support it, with the realization that while it may be allowed by state statute and work very well in other areas, we are not currently in a place or time where it would work here. I can admit when I am wrong and continue moving forward with my life and campaign. Thank you for the opportunity to clarify that topic for you in case there were others that were under the wrong impression that I was back pedaling.
Ole Fire Fighter,
Thanks again for continuing to provide useful information and insight into a topic that I care a lot about, but lack the level of knowledge that you possess on it.
I have to disagree with you on the personal loyalty arguement. Work ethic is up to the individual. I have a feeling you would do your job the exact same as you do now if you were with a private company. When it comes down to it, money usually plays a large factor (somehow) in anything. You prefaced your entire arguement with "Franklin pays me well..." For guys like you, there are probably ten others (at least) without such a work ethic who would be a "loyal city employee" of some other city if the money were better. I don't see how that differs at all from a private sector job.
If you mean loyalties of a company to a city, then that's entirely based on money and that's why we have contracts so that companies can't just pull out and leave us high and dry.
The timing of starting a service is a good point. In this case, there would have to be some overlap time for the training. That would mean a higher temporary cost to the city, but would ensure no interruption in service during the transition and the cost would hopefully be less than the money saved so that the city comes out with a net positive in the end.
"I am not afraid to admit when one of my ideas, while good intentioned, turns out to be an idea that is not feasible"
that's beginning to seem like the rule rather than the exception Ron. It leaves me wondering if you'll flip-flop like this if elected.
Anonymous,
As I have said, I realize that I cannot be right all of the time, and if the facts prove me wrong, I am willing to admit it if my facts or beliefs cannot stand up to the ones that are presented to me. If I do find us in a position later where this idea could be implemented fully, then I will bring it up again. I still want more citizen involvement, but unfortunately I cannot get as much as I would like yet.
Md
I agree that money plays a role, I have a family to support and bills to pay just like everyone else. That is about where the agreement stops. My comment about Franklin paying me was more about the high cost Franklin has to pay for good fire service than about personel reward. IF all a person looks at is dollar signs then most emergency services give little or no return for the cost.
It is too bad that you hold such a low opinion of what motivates most emergency workers. Of that ten others you spoke about, I know most and will admit that you will have 2-3 that do only care about money and will go where they get payed the most. Many of the rest of us started as volunteers where we got payed 0$ and either passed up on or left higher paying careers for a payed spot and a chance to make a living doing what we love. I might just be naive but I believe that most of my asociates still have a sense of service and community that is more than just dollar signs. IF that is not the case I still would rather see it that way because that to me is a better world.
As a person I respect your opinion and the civil way you present it even if I do not agree. AS a voter it troubles me that someone running for an elected office feels that a majority of city employees are motivated by money only, and the final benchmark for service is dollar signs.
just my thoughts this morning now on to a smoke and some coffee
ole fire fighter
ole fire fighter,
The anonymous person that made that crack about your salary was not MD. Just thought you would want to know that.
If it was not I am totaly sorry. We had been discussing the subject, it was early (no coffee yet) and I assumed it was him. SO MD if you did not post it I am sorry, my mistake.
Yes that was me.
In a prior post (21 Feb 20:29), you said "In the end the crews of any private service are employees of that company not the city and my experience is that most loyalties stop with the check." I'm sorry you feel that I am the one with such a low opinion of emergency workers. I certainly didn't mean for that message to be sent.
I think you read the intent of my reply wrong. I didn't call all your fellow workers lazy or non-caring. What I said (apparently not so clearly) was that your work ethic would be the same whether it was for the city or for a private company and whether it was for more money or less money. And it sounds like you are saying the same thing. Not all people are like you. Some are, some aren't. I'm not specifically targeting YOUR unit when I speak generically about workers. Your prior point was that we should hire city employees because they are more loyal. My point was emergency workers are emergency workers whether they work for a city or a private company and their work ethic and motives are the same. This stemmed from a discussion about which entity would be more cost effective for the city.
As far as thinking that money plays a baseline part in most of what we do, I can stand by that. Does that mean you CAN'T do something for free because you love it? No. But you have to pay your electric bills and eat somehow. Let me use myself as an example. My dream has always been to work for an airline. I have two daughters and my wife stays home to care for them. I make enough money with a charter company to be the sole provider. If I went to an airline, I would take more than a 50% cut in pay. It's what I would love to do. It's my dream. I could be hired tomorrow just by picking up the phone. But it's pretty hard to feed kids and keep the lights on when the family's only source of income drops to about $20K for a year (that's all we make the first year). The solution? The same as most parents - forget my dreams and think of the kids. But the baseline decision is still based partly on money (there are other factors (scheduling, location, upgrade times)as well). I hate it, but that's the reality of it.
Also keep in mind that I never said "a majority of city employees are motivated by money only, and the final benchmark for service is dollar signs". What I said was "When it comes down to it, money usually plays a large factor (somehow) in anything." There's a big difference in those two statements.
You stated that you have experience in both areas - private sector and city employment and that the city is the better way to go. I wonder if there are some who went from the city to a private company and if they would agree with you.
What's funny is that the same discussion that takes weeks to resolve here would be resolved in several minutes over a cup of coffee at McDonald's. But it's fun, ain't it?
MD
Good morning MD
WHat is funny to me is that everyone can type paragraph after paragraph and what is meant never seems to fully be understood by either side. It would be more fun to me to sit down over the cup of coffee and have this discussion. You will find most fire fighters etc are always up for coffee. You will also find that many emergency workes are type A personalities and take what they do too seriously. If I misunderstood what you were trying to say that was my bad. Now I must go get my coffee to get my day started.
take care
ole fire fighter
How about this. I can be at Saxby's Monday morning. If you want to grab a cup, meet me there at around 7:00. My treat. If that's not a good time, let me know what is. I have no idea what you look like, but you have a gigantic, wall sized poster of me (thanks Gorilla...:-) ) if you scroll down a bit on the blog.
MD
We are going to formally announce this on the Spotlight on Spring Hill radio show this coming Monday, but for the members of this blog, here is an advance notice.
I would like to announce that I am hosting a benefit concert for the Tennessee Children's Home on Saturday, March 10th from 1:00 PM - 4:00 PM.
The Children's Home provides a valuable service to children who have been neglected. I have learned that they are trying to start a school to teach the children some work skills (ie. carpentry, plumbing, mechanics, electrical, etc) and they need some equipment for that. The van they are using is also in bad shape and they need a new one of those as well. So, this is a chance for us to help our community and make a difference to some kids who need it.
Tickets are going to be $10 and can be bought in advance either through me or through the Children's Home. There will only be 200 tickets so I expect this to sell out fairly quickly once we announce who will be playing. The Children's Home will be offering bottled water, sodas and concession items for a small fee. Donations will also be accepted. Weather permitting, we plan to have a hot air balloon that you can take rides in.
All (100%) of the money collected in any form will be going to the Children's Home.
Please check your calendars and do what you can to support this cause.
Thank you
Mike Dinwiddie
MD
I am sorry that I could not get back to you before know. IT was my little girls birthday this weekend and we had family in from out of town so it was pretty crazy. To top things off we had a late call this morning so I just got home from work. I know that I am just one inconsequential little voice but I would like to sit down with you, Ron and anyone else that wants to talk city issues over a good cup of coffee(something other than firehouse coffee). Let me know. Again I am sorry for not getting back before now.
ole fire fighter
I would be interested in joining this discussion over some java. Saxby's Saturday morning at 8 am?
No problem at all. Little girl birthdays always trump everything. Next Monday morning then if you're up for it. The time is up to you as I have the day off.
In city politics, there's no such thing as an "inconsequential voice".
MD
6 am or 7 am at Saxby's on Monday? The radio show with the ward 1 & 2 candidates starts at 8 am, so I would like to enjoy this show. Ol firefighter, is that a good time for you?
Saxby's would be cool on Monday. My wife does not get home from her shift at ems until 7:30/7:45 so it would have to be after that. I am also off all Monday so anytime after that would be good.
ole fire fighter
Monday at 9:00 or 9:15 then. I'll head there after the radio show. I see a caffeine overdose coming...
MD
That will work. I hope the coffee is good, I have not had the pleasure yet so I am looking forward to it.
ole fire fighter
Tim, if you are reading this, please, please, please go back out and fix your signs...They look terrible!!!!
Ole Fire Fighter - I apologize. The Saxby's thing completely slipped my mind. I stayed up most of the night putting up some signs (if any of you saw a guy running across the streets in flannel pajamas, that was me) and I was pretty exhausted this morning. I'll be more than happy to still meet you any time today since we both have the day off. Call me 268-9009 and I'll stop whatever I'm doing to come meet you.
MD
Md
Too bad about the Saxbys thing, but I understand about being busy. Had a great conversation with Mr Graham. We can try another day, just let me know.
ole fire fighter
Post a Comment