Dean's retirement

There will be a retirement party for Water/Wastewater Superintendent Dean Uitermark on Wednesday the 30th from 3 to 6PM. The event will be at City Hall, and will be Dean's last day of work. Dean has served the citizens of Roland for about 14 years or so. The public is welcome to attend his sendoff to new adventures.

One of the main functions of our city government has been to provide clean water to its residents, and to make sure the waste gets treated properly. That has been the case, and I thank Dean for his efforts in that regard.

So I invite you to stop in and thank Dean for his efforts.

Boards and Commissions

Just wanted to mention that I will have slots on various boards and commissions come up this year that I will need to appoint. I, and the city council, are always on the lookout for interested citizens who want to fill these roles. Before I was mayor, and on the city council, I served two years on the Planning and Zoning Commission.

Here is a link to the spots, and when they expire. Also you can see which of your friends and neighbors have stepped up to help Roland. Let me know, or contact City Hall if you have an interest.

http://www.cityofroland.org/boards_commissions.htm

Roland Community Center

Had a city employee/city council Christmas party at the Community Center last night. I've been in to eat at the Roland Lunch Box, which is on the south side of the building. (And I endorse visiting Roland's lone restaurant when you can!) I've never been to a private event on the north side of the building, which is the community center part.

It is a really nice setup for a friendly gathering. Kudos to all those who contributed or worked on that facility.

So I post this as a reminder, if you need to gather for a group, consider using the Community Center, contact City Hall for reservation details. And if you need some eats, the Lunch Box is a great choice.

Sewer work

The city council continues to work on plans for what to do to help Roland meet the DNR requirements for our sewage treatment plant. The biggie for 2010 is cutting down on the inflow from sump pumps and storm drains going into the sanitary sewer system.

If we cut that down, it really cuts down on the size of sewer treatment we need, saving everybody in Roland BIG bucks. As it is, if you are running your sump pump down the drain into the sanitary sewer, we are obligated to treat that, the same as how we treat what comes out of your sinks, toilets, and tubs.

See the city's website for more information on the ordinance regarding sump pumps.

Tornado Siren time change

Accepting comments here about a potential time/date change of countywide tornado siren testing that has been proposed. Currently it is done on every Saturday at noon. The proposed change is to have it on the 2nd & 4th Tuesdays at noon. As mayor, I will have a vote at the county level to represent the City of Roland's position on the matter.

There are various pluses and minuses to this. One problem with Saturdays is many communities do not have a public works employee on duty to listen, and availability to fix if needed.

A problem with Tuesdays is the potential interference with schools and such. I think that would be a problem here in Roland, as the siren is a half block from the school.

For now, my plan is to vote to keep it on Saturdays. But am open to hearing reasons to move the date. Replay here if you have input. Thanks!

Opening Post

Well, I'm not the Mayor yet, I was sworn in on the 4th of December, but I do not begin until January 2. But I will start this effort towards open communication now.

I went to the City Council meeting tonite. Not much on the agenda, it took all of 12 minutes. Mayor Juhl has just finished up his 2nd term. Though the public in attendance for this meeting was all of 3 people, Sam stated his thanks to the citizens of Roland for the opportunity to serve as Mayor.

Sure was a different scene than his first meeting as Mayor. There were a couple TV cameras there, and a large crowd in the gallery. I was on the city council then, and I had a camera guy standing just over my shoulder to record the proceedings, as Roland's 18 year old mayor took over. Four years later, it was just a regular ol' council meeting, just like 100s of other small towns across Iowa.

I'd like to mention another Mayor too. Just wanted to note the passing of Ken Peterson, the Mayor of our neighboring town Story City. I didn't know him real well, but I knew him enough to know that I wanted to talk to him to get some pointers about being the Mayor of Roland. But unfortunately I didn't get the chance to do so. He was a good guy, and Story City will miss him.