Summer is here and it’s a great time to be in Homewood! Since our children are out of school, I thought it would be a good time to remind everyone to please drive slowly in our neighborhoods. Our yards will be filled with children who have their mind on things other than safety, so let’s all do our best to help protect them. I have also directed our Police Chief to increase traffic enforcement around ALL our parks. Central Park will be filled with people and the traffic on Oxmoor Road and Central Avenue will definitely be a focal point and will be enforced heavily.
As you may have heard, we have some exciting news about upcoming city projects. We continue to meet with the architects on the new design for the public safety (police) building that will be located at the corner of West Valley Avenue and Bagby Drive, and we hope to get started on construction very soon. We also held a public involvement meeting at the Homewood Senior Center in May regarding the construction of the new Aquatic Center at Patriot Park in West Homewood. We had great attendance and input regarding the project and look forward to another meeting in the very near future to see the improvements that resulted from the previous meeting. We certainly want facilities we can all be proud of and greatly appreciate the comments and suggestions from those in attendance.
I also held my mid-year financial review with the finance committee. I am pleased to announce our revenues are on track, thanks to you investing your dollars in Homewood. Expenses are up some mainly, because of the increased police officers hired, resulting in full staffing. It’s a great investment in our city, adds to the public safety and improves our overall quality of life I have every reason to believe we are on track to end the year with a surplus (Revenues over Expenses) again, making it the ninth year in a row for that accomplishment. We are also continuing to make improvements to our city streets with our paving projects. You will see construction crews working within our neighborhoods and appreciate your patience while they are paving specific areas.
Our schools continue to enjoy top rankings within our state, along with our City of Homewood. This past We Love Homewood Day was the most attended in its history and the amount of residents enjoying all the activities in Edgewood was staggering. Each year, I have the opportunity to select and present the “Quality of Life Award” to an individual or to a group who have made a positive impact in our community. This year’s recipient was Mr. Stan Virciglio and his entire family from Piggly Wiggly grocery store. Their contributions to this city and their support for everything we do as a community deserves our appreciation and gratitude. Thank you for allowing me to serve and have a great summer!
Sincerely,
Scott McBrayer