Water Utility Public Meeting 1/12/16

We had a great turn out for the public meeting this Tuesday evening at the King Center. Thank you to everyone who was able to make it. Thank you as well for all of the feedback you gave regarding this very important issue.

For those who were unable to make it to the meeting, please see the video posted below for a recording of the proceedings. After watching, please don’t hesitate to call or visit the city office, the mayor, or a member of the city council to add your voice to the many we heard Tuesday night.

Water Utility Public Meeting

There will be a public meeting Tuesday January 12, 2016 at 6pm at the King Center regarding the need for a new water tower and other improvements to our water system. All of the citizens of Jetmore are invited and encouraged to attend. Dennis Bowman of Earles Engineering will be in attendance. He will make a brief presentation after which the floor will be opened to the council and the community for questions. Please attend the meeting on January 12 and have your voice heard.

Click here: Revised Report – September 2014 to view the engineer’s report.

Council and Staff

I’d like to take this opportunity to remind the community of who makes up the city council and staff. Our Mayor is Derek Olson. Derek was raised in Jetmore and has come back with his wife and three children. Derek was elected Mayor in 2015 after serving two years as a councilman. Larry Steinbring is our veteran councilman! Larry has served since May 2005. Mike Hendrickson has been a councilman since May 2013. Jess Pitts and Orval “Pete” Shewry were elected in 2015 and Scott Smith was appointed in May 2015 to fill the unexpired term of Mayor Olson. These six people have chosen public service and the chance to serve the citizens. Get to know these men and share any concerns you have. But more importantly, thank them for their time and service! Let them know that they are appreciated!

Our staff consists of six full time employees and up to six part time and seasonal employees. In the office we have Michael Ort, City Administrator; Deb McKivergan, City Clerk; and Carol Herrmann, Billing Clerk /Assistant City Clerk. Craig Crosswhite is the City Attorney and Brenda Ringle is the City Treasurer. Linda Hubin keeps the King Center, Clubhouse and City Office clean for us! The outside crew is made up of Brian Beil, Foreman, Larry Fagen and Chad Burns, Maintenance; and Russ Hunt, Golf Course Supervisor. These men do it all! They take care of the electric, water and sewer utilities; street maintenance; lake; airport and golf course. Nick Goebel and Dan Shuler provide seasonal support in keeping the golf course in tip-top shape. Again, I would encourage you to get to know these people and let them know you appreciate their service.

The Middle School and High School both have home football and volleyball games this week. A perfect opportunity to support your favorite athlete!

The Street Is Finished

The Main Street project is nearly complete; both lanes of traffic are open! The only thing left to finalize is painting the center lines and parking spaces. That will be done in early September. A ribbon cutting was held on August 28th with Secretary of Transportation Mike King, Deputy Secretary of Transportation Jerry Younger and representatives from Lochner Engineering, JAG Construction; KDOT and the City of Jetmore. We appreciate the teamwork that it took to get this project completed!

Our new Administrator, Michael Ort, has hit the ground running and is familiarizing himself with his City responsibilities and the community. He and his family are enjoying Jetmore and appreciate the welcome they are receiving. He welcomes anyone who wants to stop in and meet him and will listen to any concerns you have for our town.

The regular September council meeting will be held on Thursday, September 3rd. All meetings are open and the public is welcome to attend.

We’re still a few weeks from the official start of fall, however Labor Day traditionally marks the end of summer. Enjoy your weekend and have a safe and fun Labor Day!

Welcome New Administrator

Please stop in and welcome our new Administrator! Michael Ort comes to us by way of Missouri and is excited to make Jetmore his home. You’ll be hearing more about him and from him as he gets better integrated into his routine. But for now, he is anxious to start learning about the City of Jetmore and our citizens!

The day/night tournament scheduled for August 29th has been cancelled. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause. The next club tournament will be held on September 20th and will be a two person scramble

Electric usage has been unusually high the last couple of months. High humidity causes our air conditioners to work overtime to draw the moisture out of the air before cooling it. High humidity also makes it feel warmer, therefore we prefer a lower temperature to be comfortable. Overnight temperatures are beginning to drop, but until recently our air conditioners didn’t get a break during the night. Fall is around the corner and our usages should drop over this next month! Another thing to remember is that our meters are read in the middle of the month (11th – 15th) then billed and mailed out the beginning of the following month. When you receive your bill in the mail, some of the electricity was used almost six weeks earlier. Our electric rates are $.0133 per KWH, regardless of your usage.   There is also a monthly customer charge of $13.00 per meter. Thanks to a wetter than normal summer, our water usage hasn’t been extraordinarily high. Our water rates are $4.00 per 1000 gallons, with a monthly customer fee of $8.50. These rates have been in effect since January of 2014.

School will be starting May 27th, so please watch out for the students and extra traffic when school takes up and lets out. The school calendar is full of events, so check it out and do what you can to support the youth in our community!