Congratulations to the Mayor, Department heads, employees and the production staff who produced the 2019 State of the City booklet. The State of the City was presented by the Mayor last night in the civic center. It was not just a speech but an expo. Tables lined the walls representing different departments, with department heads and employees present to answer questions. The atmosphere was positive, the employees moral was high and their sense of pride was obvious.
The booklet produced, State of the City 2019, is an excellent window for citizens to review the City’s operations, financial position and projections. It also lists departments and staff and provides a wealth of statistical data.
The Ripp Report suggests that you drop by city hall and pick up a copy. Compare it to the 2018 State of the City report and you can see the progress Fairhope has made in the last year.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LYbxMnvg8to
Since 2014 I have attended countless public meetings, last night’s meeting should make citizens of Fairhope very proud. It was the best public meeting I have had the pleasure of attending and the booklet is the most comprehensive report Fairhope has ever produced.
A few facts in the booklet stand out:
The City Debt of 6.83 million will be paid in full by June 2019
The budget includes the purchase of the K-1 Center. If the council’s plan of using applied grants fail.
Population of 22,320, medium age 45.82, medium income $66,237, with 1486 businesses.
Fairhope first female Police Chief Stephanie Hollinghead. The Chief has 65 employees that cover 88 miles of police jurisdiction that received 24,178 calls in 2018.
Fairhope Fire and Emergency management, has 50 Firefighters on the roster with 10 explorers from the Boy Scot learning for life Program, they made 1041 total calls in 2018
Public Utilities has a 5 year, 32 million dollar, Capital improvement and Utility upgrade plan.
Decreased the utility Department debt by 21%, 4 Million Dollars. In the past the previous Mayor and Council used the utility fund as their own piggy bank to pay off lawsuits or plug holes in a fractured
Book keeping system. The previous Mayor drew a second city paycheck from the utility of $60,000 a year, that is now history. Mayor Wilson, a public servant, found this second check unethical and refused the additional salary.
Economic and Community development secured 21 million in Grant funding.
Fairhope secured 18 Million in BP Restore Act Funded Projects, with 10 million going to sewer upgrades, that had been overlooked by the previous administration. Extra Congratulations are in order for the staff who worked for over a year on the project.
Get the booklet, there is much more information available.
Congratulations to the Mayor, Department Heads, Employees, First Responders and volunteers that made last night a fantastic success. The 292 full time employees and 101 part time employees are the best assembled staff Fairhope has ever employed.
How dare you make the mayor look good! Wait, she did that!
Yep. Karin has been strong in the face of the bullies. I am impressed with her. She has earned my respect
The event was wonderful! I was very impressed with every department. It was so nice to see the entire city council, the council president, the mayor, the city police, the departments heads and staff uniting for a community event and dinner. It was a positive experience.
Thank you to everyone!
Thank you Ripp for a great report!
I have been impressed with Karin.
Yet I am no catalyst real estate developer person.
Public enema number one as far as I am concerned.
The council sees the bold writing on the wall.
They are cooked.
Does Jay run for Mayor?
So what is the city going to do to control the predatory developers?
I thought Wilson was going to control the wild growth that is crowding out this town
Catalyst still owns the council and the county. There is not a subdivision they won’t approve with the crooked kickbacks
I know the Catalysts will say they donot do bribes. I say ha ha. Look at the campaign finance reports and you will see tens of thousands of dollars. Our politicians aren’t cheap these days
They are knee deep with builders and developers and the donate, big time, to the CATALYST candidates
Good question.
Gonna hang up and listen Paul.
The Mayor cannot stop growth however she has made improvements in Planning and Zoning and a more planned and contained growth
Pick up the booklet. Growth is being addressed for the very first time in a comprehensive way.
Don’t know much about the City, but I do know some of the people who work there. Utilities, planning, and engineering are in the hands of some excellent people. If they are allowed to do their jobs, all will be well. I wonder who is whispering in the Mayor’s ear to lead her to people like this?
You are so right about the staff, they are the best in the history of Fairhope. I hope citizens realize this.I think the Mayor has listened to many people and made a lot of good decisions.
People Fairhope will always be for rich folk
It would be great to do a little research and list the candidates who are “catalyst” with an itemization of how much each candidate get from “catalyst.”
Thanks in advance.
Just look up the Secretary of State campaign reports. Under each candidate’s payments, you will see who they pay. If you see Catalyst, LLC., then that means they are a Catalyst.
You will see that Ball and Davis, county commissioners, are Catalysts. Politicians and judges here in Baldwin County are Catalysts.
Now go see who contributes to each candidate. You will see names such as DR Horton, Prebble, Real Estate PACS, Columbia Southern, and Volkert, See? It is a money trail. THIS ALL PUBLIC INFORMATION THAT THEY ARE HOPING THAT NOBODY SEES OR CARES ABOUT.
Now that people are figuring out who Catalyst is, do not be surprised if Stacey and Boone change their name to some other outfit. They probably will because the candidates are getting defensive on using this group. Watch the money take a different path….
When was the last time we had a jubilee near the pier?
If the entertainment district don’t pass does this mean there will be more parties at Jack’s house?
Asking for a friend.
I am a long time resident of Fairhope. I’ve been living here since the last term of Jim Nix, the former mayor (before Tim Kant). Fairhope has grown, but the county has too, and Fairhope’s ambiance now is tied to the growth of the rest of the county, particularly Daphne and Spanish Fort nearby, as they snarl around the road system surrounding Interstate Ten, a road most people in Fairhope have to use to get to and from work and errands everyday. As more continue to move into the county, the simple road system will be overrun.
Mayor Karin came into the game in the bottom of the eighth inning.
Fairhope was down by seven runs.
She had to get four critical outs…
1. She needed to out the holdovers from the former regime: DONE.
2. She needed to assess the deplorable raw sewage problem: DONE.
3. She needed to out the holdovers from the planning commission: DONE.
4. She needed to expose the corruption at the Fairhope Airport: DONE.
Mayor Karin has pitched well. However, it will take a team effort.
Karin has given a chance to win. We need some offense.
Some big hitters. Fairhope needs new political blood on the council.
As the county grows citizens must put equal pressure on the county commission to slow growth. If they are indeed catalyst-backed then you will see a continued irresponsible building spree that will only further increase our commute times, congestion and general
irritability.
I will finish with everyone knew Kant carried water for Nix. The problem is the town got too big for them to control anymore. That slow relinquishing is happening now and it’s the same thing that is going on in DC with Trump v. the Deep State.
Amen, BeforeKant, you said it well. I urge all readers to find out about the Catalyst Council and the Catalyst County Commission. They are puppets for the developers who seek to ruin this place.
Next election ask and CHALLENGE those who seek to get in political office WHY they have been bought by Catalyst and care NOTHING about the residents!