Good morning, good morning, good morning. Welcome, welcome, welcome.
It it's time now for city matters right here on Kay one, the one
new trust of It matters to you, It matters to the city. And
we have Councilwoman Billy Rohan on with is today and city councilor a nice little
meeting we had last night that wrapped up a few things. But I want
to go to the to the audit first because folks are kind of concerned about
their money. So nothing to be worried about here, No, not at
all, not here in Bartlesville. We you know, I've been watching the
council for since twenty ten is when we first moved here, and Tom and
I were very aware of what was going on with our city council because it's
you know, we're interested in that, and they have had clean audits,
done a great job. And this last stot up for twenty twenty two,
it's no exception. It was outstanding. The only notation had to do with
unavoidable filing due to the new software changeover that affected to other people too,
it did, we were not the only community that had affected. And then
Jason and his staff received high marks for their handling of the federal ARPA money,
which that grant I remember looking that over. Uh. Of course,
when we get federal dollars, there are lots of streams rooms and to jump
through, and if you mess up on anything, then it doesn't go well.
But they commended our Jason and his staff for the work that they had
done on the office. So that was very exciting. Well, on the
other matter of money, looks like folks are shopping at home. They are
Oh my goodness, we love our citizens so much because they have just uh,
they have really gone above and beyond. We had a five point one
percent i believe increase this month over last year, and we're about four percent
over what we budgeted. It was a last year record or something. Well,
yes, it'd bed record since twenty twenty and and so just a year
after year. And of course some of that has to do with inflation,
but much of it has to do with people shopping here at home in Bartlesville.
And so we so appreciate that. Oh that is that is really really
good. Now, we had a little talk about litigation. People getting nervous
when we start talking about lawsuits. Miss Rohan, Well, you know there
are that happens all the time. Frankly, that's exactly why. And this
has to do with uh, with the litigation that's been going on, and
we just kind of uh were contacted late in the game. That's because the
more people they have signed on to this proposed litigation than the more clout that
it holds. And after a good investigation intending some workshops concerning that jess Kine
are legal, which we're so fortunate to have him on stay uh he he
visited with us and thought there might be a better way for Bartleswell to go
to go, mainly because there are so many unknowns in this particular litigation.
We don't even know if we have an issue with it, and so we
opted instead to hire uh oh, I can't believe. I can't think of
the name McGraw and Uh, well, we hired someone that we had been
working with on others. Yes and so, and so they are going to
uh we have to actually opt out. If you don't opt out, you're
automatically in if they've contacted you. So it sounds like legal needs, doesn't
it. And so it sounds like anything that you buy on the internet.
That's true, So they will be uh. We recommendation by Jess was that
we hire them and uh engage them to file the correct paperwork for us,
and then to follow up with doing appropriate testing and working with Terry Lawrence and
our city utilities director so that we can even find out if we have an
issue and then go from there on what we need to do. So that's
guy. I'm pretty sure he went to college. He is very smart,
and I appreciate we have just really we have great people working on the city.
They don't do anything halfway, and they do their investigation and they pay
attention to what's going on. They're always looking out for the well being of
Bartlesville. And this is just a perfect example of it, because we are
not the only city that have decided to opt out for those very same reasons,
because there are so many unknowns in the litigation, so we don't want
to be caught up and settling something that we don't need to be settling.
And so, oh yeah, that's true. You know. Now, everybody
likes to have a clean town, that's true. Nobody wants to be that
one that's you know, a little on the rating side. Who wants to
do that? Not at all? And you know, That's one of my
favorite things is in community service and volunteering and have done that for many,
many years. Is working in our communities to make them look better because it's
just it's a good thing to do. It's a great way to serve your
community. And of course here one of the things that we started a couple
of years ago was our Brush Up Martlesville, which had to do with residents
and painting. We had some early Christmas presents this year to a couple of
families with trim and so makesious to put something in the city beat about that,
but we decided to approve an ordinance for the establishment of a Keep Bartlesville
Beautiful Committee, which will be a part of the Keep Oklahoma Beautiful and a
part of the Keep America Beautiful. And so I've worked with this organization from
almost from its very beginnings in Oklahoma and different cities, and it is just
a great way for volunteers to work in their community. There's actually funding attached
to this will budget twenty thousand dollars in next year's budget. There are opportunities
suit this organization for grants to do roadside and environmental projects that are environmental friendly
projects that I'm positive we could all agree on and a way for us to
organize volunteers that are already doing things in our community and just have a general
operation and there'll be a committee of seven people, and I think it'll be
very successful. I think it'll be well you will too, pardon me,
and an opportunity for us to work together and do some great things in Bartlesviel.
I think it's going to be great, going to be absolutely wonderful.
Speaking of wonderful, we have some people who have achieved some wonderful recognitions,
yes we do. You know, the firefighters held a dinner this year as
they do every year, and recognized Vaux Formbree. He was named Firefighter of
the Year. Excuse me, okay, and both's no stranger. He's been
with the fire department for a while, yes he has and has done a
great job. And of course Ace Ulrich was named Rookie of the Year.
And from what I understand working with him, it's hard to tell he's a
rookie because he is doing just a great job, really adapted to the position.
Huh. And you know there were some other firefighters that were recognized.
Chance Neeson he was reconciled. He received the Silver Life Saving Award, and
Justin Butterfield received the Meritorious Service Award. Cody Neeson received the Meritorious Service Award,
and Barry Campbell received the Meritorious Service Award as well. And so all
through the year, you know, our chief fire chief and our police chief
had been bringing forward our policemen and our firefighters who have been doing outstanding life
saving things in our community. Well, you know what, we just had
Brady, our fire Marshal, in here a couple of weeks ago, and
he is really gung hole about everybody having a safe Christmas so that your house
doesn't turn into a barbecue because December ain't no time for a barbecue. That's
true, you don't want anything like that going on in that You're absolutely right.
In the City Beat. By the way, I'll just do the plug
ride here for the City Beat. If you don't receive the City Beat each
week, that is a newsletter that's put out by Kelly Williams, our public
relations person, which she's much much more than that, but she does the
City Beat. You can receive that just by signing up free on City of
Bartleville on the homepage right there, and you can also see the archived and
if you want to know what we know, you can find out right there.
They save Beat because Kelly does a great job, but he did have
a there is a wonderful in the city. Beat Fire Department offers holiday fire
safety tips and there are some great tips in there that we know, but
sometimes we forget about, of course when we're caught up in the season.
But probably one of my top priorities is we're all cooking, we have all
of our family in the kitchen. Is watching out for our kiddos, what
are they doing? Are they in the kitchen, they probably ought to be
playing somewhere else, watching them around candles and if we have our fireplaces going,
and so that is a big deal to me, is watching our kiddos,
where are they at and what are they doing? Because we do a
lot of unusual things during Christmas. And having a three and a half year
old grandson, he's full of energy and creativity and curiosity, and so for
sure. And then of course portable heaters, we know about that. And
our Christmas trees. If you have a live Christmas tree, be sure that
you keep it watered. I've seen a cedar tree go up, and it
can go up in just a moment. So there are some good tips in
there reminding us of what we need to be paying attention to this time of
the year because we're doing some different things than we do usually. Oh yeah,
we've got some events going on too. I wait, boy, do
we ever have some events going on? Do you know? Yeah? Where
do we start? Where do we end? I think we just dive into
it, don't. My goodness. I will tell you Bottlesville loves Christmas and
they love celebrating Christmas, and that is proven all across our little city here,
and every little organization is doing something as well as big organizations. Of
course, our biggest deal is Christmas in the Ville. I love that.
Will love my Goodness and her crew. You know, that's a tiny crew
with a lot of volunteers and it is a fun time every year. And
yes, Sunday my grandchildren were here skating down on the ice rink, and
so it is just a lot of fun. So of course we have all
that going on downtown. You know, it's really kind of cool. There's
some brand new businesses that into that refurbished little area and Keeler and Second Street,
and they were opened up on the opening night on Friday, and there
were people going, Oh, that's where you are, that's right, And
that's kind of the magic of what happens with Christmas in the vill People get
reacquainted with the bill's true, and there might be something new, there might
be something they haven't been to for a while, you know, But you
know, it's always great because what that does it brings so many people in
from all over the place to come visit our city and maybe spend a nickel
or two. Well, absolutely, we love it when they come and spend
their money here. But they have a great time and it's just magical downtown.
It truly is on Friday night that I know, it is exciting.
And then of course, you know, we have the lights going on in
Johnstone Park, which Rotary Club does an outstanding job with that. That is
very exciting and that's a drive through for free, but we hope you'll make
a little donation there. That, yeah, absolutely, And then of course
out at will of Rock Festivals, lights is going on out there on the
weekends. Right here in town, our Bartleswell Area History Museum is doing story
time with Santa Oh really, and I want to I've got to find my
paper here because I want to be sure and tell you when that's going to
happen, because they have, of course, they have Santa Claus there,
sure our Bottlesville Santa Claus and that's on Thursday, December twenty first, from
twelve to t to two. So they'll have crafts, they'll have refreshments,
the kids will just have a wonderful time. And you know we're going to
be out of school, so you're gonna be looking for places for the kiddos
to be having a good time. Don't forget about our public library. There
are all kinds of things that go on down there and it is just a
wonderful place to go, young or old. The middle schoolers have taken over
from about three to five thirty, and it's so cool because they're all engaged
in something positive, right, And that's what it's all about, is,
you know, positive engagement, learning a few things, having a little fun.
And you know, when I when I'm taking a twelve thirteen, fourteen
year olds, a library usually doesn't come into mix, but our library is
like the big magnet for that age group right now. Well, libraries have
certainly changed whenever I was there. Actually have a library of things in books,
that's true, we do, we do. There are a lot of
different things which reminds me you're looking for special holiday baking cakes and those kinds
of things. There are cake pans. You can check out cake pans at
the Bottleswell Public Library. It's the library of right. I would just really
encourage anybody to and you might be able to dig a lesson or two because
we got the kitchen there kids. That's exactly right. There are all kinds
of you should go online. Take a look at that calendar because it is
cram full of activities that are going on at the library. And then the
White Rose. The dar ladies are going to be doing Reads across America this
year out at right rows White Rose Cemetery and they'll host the day and celebrate
them on December sixteenth. Last year, my granddaughter participated in Collinsville. Out
there Reads across America and goes on all across the nation, and it is
quite breathtaking to see them there, just beautiful. And so if you're interested
in helping with that or helping to support that, you can go to resacross
America dot org. Or you can contact any of our dar ladies, and
it is a very worthy cause. Of course, Shelley McGill, our librarian,
is also our cemetery director, and she can answer any questions you might
have for that knows everything she does that could never retire. She just smiles
and she does it's over there. She does such a great thing. That's
why we have that library of things and all those good things. And interestingly
enough, for what I truly appreciate in our staff and especially Shelley along with
others, is that they find grant dollars to pay for that, and so
it is. It's amazing how many grant dollars come into that library. And
that's all because of the tenacity of Shelley McGill and that that crew working on
that. You're always looking for a good opportunities. Absolutely, speaking of opportunities,
I understand we might have some jobs or positions open with the City of
Bartlesville. I will tell you I don't know that there. It ranks up
there in one of the top jobs in Bolsworth, Oklahoma, and people do
not realize the benefits and uh medical alone, oh my goodness. And and
not only that, but just the staff that you work with. These are
It is a great job, it is a great opportunity, and so I
always encourage young people don't forget about staying right here at home and taking a
look at the City of Barswell, because you can move up in in that
particular organization, just as in any large company and so, and it is
a large, a large organization. It has amazing things that are necessary and
also in you know, to enhance our community and keep us all safe and
sound. And so it's a great opportunity. And you can go on the
Bartlesville City Council city page and take a look at the positions there. You
can even look at what the benefits are, what kind of benefits come along
with that job. And then I believe the firefighters and the police, if
you go to their web page, then you can find out how to get
involved in both of those. And so I would encourage any young person that's
graduating out of high school, out of college to consider staying right here at
home in Bartlesville and working for the City of Bartlesville. Let your kids know
what your grand what your grandparents look like instead of pictures. Yeah, I
know how that goes. So we also have some boards and commissions. Yes,
we do. We talk about this every time we come on the radio
because you talk about a unique opportunity to participate in city business. Learn about
how the City of Bartlesville works. This is the greatest place to start.
And right now we've got openings on the Ambulance Commission and on the White Rose
Cemetery Board, and so you can check out that on our City a Bottlesville
website. There's where it taught. You can see all about all of the
commissions and trust authorities and committees that we have and also find an application if
you want to fill an application and be considered for one of these appointments.
It is voluntary position, and it most certainly is something that is not time
consuming that most certainly is very very important. And I've lived in a lot
of different cities. My husband was in city management, and this is really
a great opportunity and something you don't see in every city where they invite citizens
in. We we have twenty six committees. That's a lot of citizens involved
in our community because it's made up by the majority of citizens with a council
person and then a staff person on each one of those as well. So
great opportunity there. Thank you very much, Mss Billy. I appreciate you
being with us. And how can folks get a hold of you if they
have a question, Well, they can call me on my cell phone eight
five five nine two six three four. They can email me at Ward four
Council at Cityobartlesville dot org. And I'm happy to help anyone. My award
is Ward four, but none of our counselors UH turn someone down because they're
not in their ward. So you know, I'm always happy to help anyone.
And I most certainly want to wish everyone to marry Christmas, a safe
Christmas celebration and New Year celebration.