June, 2009 Lakeland Tennesee Meetings and events in a slide show "Channel 19" format:
http://www.youtube.com/user/CityofLakelandTN
Sunday, May 24, 2009
Saturday, May 23, 2009
Draft ZIP code request available for review
A draft of the ZIP code request to be considered by the Lakeland Board of Commissioners is noted below.
This draft will continue to be corrected, updated, and amended until final approval by the Board. U.S. Postal Service policy provides for the request to be submitted to the U.S. Postal Service District Manager.
Comments, suggestions and corrections are welcome, either on the blog, or e-mailing me directly.
This draft will be continually updated and posted on this blog.
SUPPLEMENTAL INFORMATION FOR CITY OF LAKELAND REQUEST FOR SEPARATE ZIP CODE
This is additional information to support the City of Lakeland request for a specific, exclusive, "community identity" five digit ZIP code for the incorporated area within the City of Lakeland.
1. General Character of the City of Lakeland
Enclosed is the City of Lakeland's Comprehensive Plan which indicates the City of Lakeland is a unique, separate community with demonstrated substantial growth and substantial future growth.
2. City of Lakeland Board of Commissioners Resolution
Enclosed is a copy of the Resolution of the Board of Commissioners of the City of Lakeland's Resolution requesting a specific, exclusive ZIP code for the City of Lakeland.
3. Current ZIP code situation
Although the City of Lakeland has been incorporated for 32 years and is a significant separate, identifiable community, there is not a specific, exclusive, ZIP code for the incorporated area of Lakeland.
Instead, the City of Lakeland shares a ZIP code with a smaller town, and, in spite of repeated requests, Lakeland residents and businesses continue to receive mail addressed to the other City. (However, "Lakeland" is not an acceptable alternative for the other city in ZIP Code 38002).
When we request large mailers (including Shelby County, utilities, cable TV, magazines etc.) to use "Lakeland", we are advised that the U.S. Postal Service has designated the other city as the "preferred" alternative, in spite of the fact that it is a Lakeland address.
100% of the City of Lakeland is within ZIP code 38002.
4. The City of Lakeland is requesting a separate, specific ZIP Code which encompasses the City of Lakeland incorporated area separate from the current ZIP code of 38002.
REASONS FOR A SEPARATE ZIP CODE FOR THE CITY OF LAKELAND
!. The City of Lakeland loses a substantial amount of sales tax revenue to businesses, especially internet businesses, submitting their sales tax revenues to the other city sharing the 38002 ZIP code.
As an example a sample survey of large Lakeland businesses located in Lakeland showed 100% of the businesses were listed as “Arlington” on Whitepages.com, which leads to widespread confusion.
The U.S. Postal Service continues to provide “Arlington” instead of “Lakeland” as the preferred city address to large mailers including such large sales tax payers and mailers as Memphis Light Gas and Water, cellular phone companies, ATT and other phone companies, mail order companies which mistakenly direct that “Arlington" is the preferred address for "Lakeland" addresses and thus submit their sales tax revenue to the City of Arlington rather than the City of Lakeland.
In additional, ATT, Comcast Cable, Memphis Light Gas and Water and Millington Telephone Company all pay franchise fees and many of these fees appear to be going to Arlington rather than Lakeland. In addition, a review of the sales tax receipts shows some cellular phone companies pay no sales tax for Lakeland, so we assume the sales tax are misdirected and not received by the City of Lakeland.
Just recently, an audit by the Shelby County Fire Department indicated that 62 apartments in Lakeland still are mistakenly shown as “Arlington” by Memphis Light Gas and Water, which misdirects fees for fire fees and ambulance fees.
The usual procedure for an internet or mail order business is to ask for a ZIP code. Since the U.S. Postal Service assigns "Arlington" to Lakeland residents, the sales tax is frequently distributed to Arlington rather than Lakeland.
A separate ZIP code for Lakeland will eliminate this problem and result in the fair distribution of franchise fees and sales taxes for the benefit of Lakeland residents.
2. The City of Lakeland loses Hall Income Ta revenues, which is considerable for the City of Lakeland. This means that Lakeland residents who use "Arlington" have the portion of the Hall Income Tax due the City of Lakeland are misdirected and not received by the City of Lakeland.
3. The lack of a ZIP code identified as Lakeland has cost Lakeland residents in insurance and other costs. Just as one example, a member of the Lakeland Board of Commissioners discovered his house was identified as in "Arlington" rather than "Lakeland". He was being charged $300 per year in excess homeowners insurance due to this mistaken identification.
4. The lack of a separate ZIP code for Lakeland is confusing to persons who want to purchase a home in Lakeland, either due to the property tax rate, the excellent Elementary School, amenities, because they wish the protection of Lakeland codes and ordinances which are significantly different than surrounding cities or the county or for other reasons. Due to the lack of a ZIP code, many Lakeland houses are listed as Arlington addresses. If someone wishes to move to Lakeland, this lowers the property values of persons selling Lakeland homes and also may confuse someone who wishes to move to Arlington.
5. GPS location devices have become widespread and are used for emergency response, shipping and other commercial and personal uses.
Due to the lack of a specific ZIP code, “Lakeland” does not even show up on may GPS devices, which could lead to tragic delays in emergency response, as well as costly confusion in commercial and personal use.
6. Lakeland Mayor Scott Carmichael, the Board of Commissioners and the City of Lakeland City Hall is also listed as or receives mail addressed to "Arlington, Tennessee 38002". Obviously all are located in Lakeland, but it creates confusion.
A 440 unit apartment complex in Lakeland is listed as "Arlington" although it is 5 miles from the Arlington City limits. Until recently, the apartment staff answered the phone as “the best apartment complex in Arlington, Tennessee and all addresses were given out as “Arlington, Tennessee”.
This creates safety problems since apartment residents calling for emergency services give their address as "Arlington", leading to tragic delays. The City has had persons who live in Lakeland absolutely insist they live in Arlington because all of their mail is addressed to Arlington, Tennessee.
The City of Lakeland needs its own ZIP code.
7. The latest official population of Lakeland is 10,848, based on a Special Census approved by the State of Tennessee.
In spite of rapid growth, being incorporated for 32 years, and being a specifically identifiable community, Lakeland does not have its own ZIP code and the U.S. Postal Service continues to assign Lakeland residents and businesses as "Arlington, Tennessee 38002", which is a separate identifiable community.
No matter what it says, the U.S. Postal Service must realize the importance of the ZIP code. The City of Lakeland is losing thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of dollars a year due to not being assigned an identifiable ZIP code and the U.S. Postal Service continuing to identify Lakeland residents and businesses with an "Arlington" address.
It is time that the U.S. Postal Service assigns a separate ZIP code to Lakeland. Lakeland's boundaries are "set" by Tennessee Law 1101 and the City of Lakeland is requesting that a separate ZIP code be assigned to Lakeland residents and businesses.
This draft will continue to be corrected, updated, and amended until final approval by the Board. U.S. Postal Service policy provides for the request to be submitted to the U.S. Postal Service District Manager.
Comments, suggestions and corrections are welcome, either on the blog, or e-mailing me directly.
This draft will be continually updated and posted on this blog.
SUPPLEMENTAL INFORMATION FOR CITY OF LAKELAND REQUEST FOR SEPARATE ZIP CODE
This is additional information to support the City of Lakeland request for a specific, exclusive, "community identity" five digit ZIP code for the incorporated area within the City of Lakeland.
1. General Character of the City of Lakeland
Enclosed is the City of Lakeland's Comprehensive Plan which indicates the City of Lakeland is a unique, separate community with demonstrated substantial growth and substantial future growth.
2. City of Lakeland Board of Commissioners Resolution
Enclosed is a copy of the Resolution of the Board of Commissioners of the City of Lakeland's Resolution requesting a specific, exclusive ZIP code for the City of Lakeland.
3. Current ZIP code situation
Although the City of Lakeland has been incorporated for 32 years and is a significant separate, identifiable community, there is not a specific, exclusive, ZIP code for the incorporated area of Lakeland.
Instead, the City of Lakeland shares a ZIP code with a smaller town, and, in spite of repeated requests, Lakeland residents and businesses continue to receive mail addressed to the other City. (However, "Lakeland" is not an acceptable alternative for the other city in ZIP Code 38002).
When we request large mailers (including Shelby County, utilities, cable TV, magazines etc.) to use "Lakeland", we are advised that the U.S. Postal Service has designated the other city as the "preferred" alternative, in spite of the fact that it is a Lakeland address.
100% of the City of Lakeland is within ZIP code 38002.
4. The City of Lakeland is requesting a separate, specific ZIP Code which encompasses the City of Lakeland incorporated area separate from the current ZIP code of 38002.
REASONS FOR A SEPARATE ZIP CODE FOR THE CITY OF LAKELAND
!. The City of Lakeland loses a substantial amount of sales tax revenue to businesses, especially internet businesses, submitting their sales tax revenues to the other city sharing the 38002 ZIP code.
As an example a sample survey of large Lakeland businesses located in Lakeland showed 100% of the businesses were listed as “Arlington” on Whitepages.com, which leads to widespread confusion.
The U.S. Postal Service continues to provide “Arlington” instead of “Lakeland” as the preferred city address to large mailers including such large sales tax payers and mailers as Memphis Light Gas and Water, cellular phone companies, ATT and other phone companies, mail order companies which mistakenly direct that “Arlington" is the preferred address for "Lakeland" addresses and thus submit their sales tax revenue to the City of Arlington rather than the City of Lakeland.
In additional, ATT, Comcast Cable, Memphis Light Gas and Water and Millington Telephone Company all pay franchise fees and many of these fees appear to be going to Arlington rather than Lakeland. In addition, a review of the sales tax receipts shows some cellular phone companies pay no sales tax for Lakeland, so we assume the sales tax are misdirected and not received by the City of Lakeland.
Just recently, an audit by the Shelby County Fire Department indicated that 62 apartments in Lakeland still are mistakenly shown as “Arlington” by Memphis Light Gas and Water, which misdirects fees for fire fees and ambulance fees.
The usual procedure for an internet or mail order business is to ask for a ZIP code. Since the U.S. Postal Service assigns "Arlington" to Lakeland residents, the sales tax is frequently distributed to Arlington rather than Lakeland.
A separate ZIP code for Lakeland will eliminate this problem and result in the fair distribution of franchise fees and sales taxes for the benefit of Lakeland residents.
2. The City of Lakeland loses Hall Income Ta revenues, which is considerable for the City of Lakeland. This means that Lakeland residents who use "Arlington" have the portion of the Hall Income Tax due the City of Lakeland are misdirected and not received by the City of Lakeland.
3. The lack of a ZIP code identified as Lakeland has cost Lakeland residents in insurance and other costs. Just as one example, a member of the Lakeland Board of Commissioners discovered his house was identified as in "Arlington" rather than "Lakeland". He was being charged $300 per year in excess homeowners insurance due to this mistaken identification.
4. The lack of a separate ZIP code for Lakeland is confusing to persons who want to purchase a home in Lakeland, either due to the property tax rate, the excellent Elementary School, amenities, because they wish the protection of Lakeland codes and ordinances which are significantly different than surrounding cities or the county or for other reasons. Due to the lack of a ZIP code, many Lakeland houses are listed as Arlington addresses. If someone wishes to move to Lakeland, this lowers the property values of persons selling Lakeland homes and also may confuse someone who wishes to move to Arlington.
5. GPS location devices have become widespread and are used for emergency response, shipping and other commercial and personal uses.
Due to the lack of a specific ZIP code, “Lakeland” does not even show up on may GPS devices, which could lead to tragic delays in emergency response, as well as costly confusion in commercial and personal use.
6. Lakeland Mayor Scott Carmichael, the Board of Commissioners and the City of Lakeland City Hall is also listed as or receives mail addressed to "Arlington, Tennessee 38002". Obviously all are located in Lakeland, but it creates confusion.
A 440 unit apartment complex in Lakeland is listed as "Arlington" although it is 5 miles from the Arlington City limits. Until recently, the apartment staff answered the phone as “the best apartment complex in Arlington, Tennessee and all addresses were given out as “Arlington, Tennessee”.
This creates safety problems since apartment residents calling for emergency services give their address as "Arlington", leading to tragic delays. The City has had persons who live in Lakeland absolutely insist they live in Arlington because all of their mail is addressed to Arlington, Tennessee.
The City of Lakeland needs its own ZIP code.
7. The latest official population of Lakeland is 10,848, based on a Special Census approved by the State of Tennessee.
In spite of rapid growth, being incorporated for 32 years, and being a specifically identifiable community, Lakeland does not have its own ZIP code and the U.S. Postal Service continues to assign Lakeland residents and businesses as "Arlington, Tennessee 38002", which is a separate identifiable community.
No matter what it says, the U.S. Postal Service must realize the importance of the ZIP code. The City of Lakeland is losing thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of dollars a year due to not being assigned an identifiable ZIP code and the U.S. Postal Service continuing to identify Lakeland residents and businesses with an "Arlington" address.
It is time that the U.S. Postal Service assigns a separate ZIP code to Lakeland. Lakeland's boundaries are "set" by Tennessee Law 1101 and the City of Lakeland is requesting that a separate ZIP code be assigned to Lakeland residents and businesses.
Consolidation Reports Available
Reports on "consolidation" or "merger" of cities and counties are available at www.lakelandtn.gov. The reports are by the Municipal Technical Advisory Service and by the the Shelby County Chambers of Commerce Alliance. The City of Lakeland was not involved in the preparation of these reports.
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Board of Commissioners Meetings rescheduled
The Lakeland Board of Commissioners have rescheduled meetings as follows:
-The Work Session normally held at 6:30 p.m. on Monday, May 25 will be held at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, May 26 due to the Memorial Day Holiday.
-The Board of Commissioners Regular Meeting scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Thursday, June 4, 2009 has been rescheduled to 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, June 9, 2009. The Design Review Commission meeting is expected to be canceled. If a Design Review Commission meeting is held, the Board of Commissioners meeting will start after the Design Review Commission meeting.
-The Work Session normally held at 6:30 p.m. on Monday, May 25 will be held at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, May 26 due to the Memorial Day Holiday.
-The Board of Commissioners Regular Meeting scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Thursday, June 4, 2009 has been rescheduled to 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, June 9, 2009. The Design Review Commission meeting is expected to be canceled. If a Design Review Commission meeting is held, the Board of Commissioners meeting will start after the Design Review Commission meeting.
Refuse collection schedule change for Memorial Day Week
The schedule for refuse collection, recycling and yard debris pick will be delayed one day later than the normal scheduled pickup for Memorial Day week.
There will be no pickup Memorial Day, Monday, May 25. Monday scheduled pickup will be Tuesday, the Tuesday schedule will be picked up Wednesday and the Wednesday schedule will be picked up Thursday.
There will be no pickup Memorial Day, Monday, May 25. Monday scheduled pickup will be Tuesday, the Tuesday schedule will be picked up Wednesday and the Wednesday schedule will be picked up Thursday.
Sunday, May 17, 2009
Week of May 18, 2009 in Lakeland
Monday May 18, 2009: Municipal Planning Commission Meeting 6:30 p.m. Agenda at www.Lakelandtn.gov
Monday, May 18, 2009: Land Development Regulations review, Joint Meeting of the Municipal Planning Commission, Board of Commissioners 7:15 p.m. (or immediately following the MPC meeting)
Tuesday, May 19, 2009: New Canada Road Advisory Committee, 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. at the IH Clubhouse. www.NewCanadaRoad.com
Tuesday, May 19, 2009: Natural Resources Board, 6:30 p.m. (Note: meeting will be held at the Oakwood Clubhouse). Agenda at www.Lakelandtn.gov
Monday, May 18, 2009: Land Development Regulations review, Joint Meeting of the Municipal Planning Commission, Board of Commissioners 7:15 p.m. (or immediately following the MPC meeting)
Tuesday, May 19, 2009: New Canada Road Advisory Committee, 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. at the IH Clubhouse. www.NewCanadaRoad.com
Tuesday, May 19, 2009: Natural Resources Board, 6:30 p.m. (Note: meeting will be held at the Oakwood Clubhouse). Agenda at www.Lakelandtn.gov
Saturday, May 09, 2009
Lakeland Park and Recreation Events in May:
Lakeland Fishing Rodeo: 8:00 a.m., Saturday, May 16, 2009 at IH Park is the annual Lakeland Fishing Rodeo. See www.Lakelandtn.gov for additional information or call 867-2717 for additional information.
Trustmark Bank Family/Movie Night: 6:30 p.m., Friday, May 29, 2009 at City Hall Park. See www.Lakelandtn.gov for additional information or call 867-2717 for additional information.
Lakeland Park and Recreation event schedule is at http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=ds25tv9_41c664wggb
Project Status Update
-Traffic Signals at Canada Road and Interstate 40: Bids will be opened on May 26, 2009 by Shelby County for this project. The Tennessee Department of Transportation and the Federal Highway Administration must approve the bids and the Shelby County Commission awards the construction contract.
Assuming no problems we anticipate the traffic signals being installed by late summer or early fall.
-Traffic Signals at Canada Road and Highway 70. The Tennessee Department of Transportation plans to bid this project in June of 2009. The construction award date and time of construction is not known at this time, but we anticipate having traffic signals at Highway 70 and Canada Road by fall of 2009.
-IH Clubhouse improvements: The interior repainting is complete and the new floor is expected to be installed in late May. Our thanks to the Lakeland Lions Club who donated funds for the new floor, R-A-F Construction (Lyle LaFave) for donating labor for installation of part of the floor and the Lakeland Civic Club for donating funds for the interior entrance lighting.
A special thanks to City of Lakeland personnel Bobby Carpenter, who painted and supervised the paint project, Jerry Potter and Dan Scott for the excellent painting and Jesse McCabe who did a super job of installing the chair rail.
-City Hall “Green” Parking Lot: The contract for the “green” parking lot at City Hall has been approved and City Engineer Philip Stuckert and Staff Engineer Emily Boswell are preparing the plans for the parking lot.
The parking lot is funded by a demonstration grant and will include pervious asphalt and other techniques to minimize the adverse effects of storm water.
-City Hall expansion project: The City Hall expansion project contract has been signed and construction is expected to start in the near future.
-Canada Road bicycle and pedestrian path (Canada Road from Interstate 40 to Highway 64): The grant agreement with TDOT has been signed for the $1.4 million dollar grant for the project. The Landscape Architect contract is expected to be signed in the near future. This is a 100% grant for this project.
Plans and specifications are expected to be completed this fall, with construction in spring of 2010.
This will provide much needed pedestrian and bicycle trails along both sides of Canada Road from I-40 to Highway 64.
Canada Road and Highway 40 Interchange project: Design is still being reviewed by the Federal Highway Administration and the Tennessee Department of Transportation. Engineering is expected to start in the near future, with construction to start in 2012.
New Canada Road (Interstate 40 to Highway 70): The Advisory Committee is currently reviewing the alignment, amenities etc. with a recommendation expected by October of 2009. This project is being funded by an 80% federal grant.
These and other projects are updated on a regular basis at http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=pP82UfX4tSM1zO96rBEo-JA
Wednesday, May 06, 2009
Recycle your old Electronics!
University of Memphis and Apple Computer E-Recycling Event
Can we take a museum relic off your hands?
The University of Memphis and Apple Computer will be holding a free electronics recycling event available to Lakeland and Shelby County residents and businesses on May 14 & 15 (for businesses) and May 16 for residents. This event will take place at the University of Memphis main parking lot on Southern Avenue (enter from Goodman) from 9: a.m. to 3:00 p.m. All dropped off equipment, including computer hard drives, will be ground to a confetti-like material to ensure information security before being recycled.
Don’t miss this opportunity to get rid of all those electronic relics that have been taking up space in your home or business!
For complete information, as well as directions and an application that only businesses must submit, please go to: www.memphis.edu/greencampus/erecycling
Can we take a museum relic off your hands?
The University of Memphis and Apple Computer will be holding a free electronics recycling event available to Lakeland and Shelby County residents and businesses on May 14 & 15 (for businesses) and May 16 for residents. This event will take place at the University of Memphis main parking lot on Southern Avenue (enter from Goodman) from 9: a.m. to 3:00 p.m. All dropped off equipment, including computer hard drives, will be ground to a confetti-like material to ensure information security before being recycled.
Don’t miss this opportunity to get rid of all those electronic relics that have been taking up space in your home or business!
For complete information, as well as directions and an application that only businesses must submit, please go to: www.memphis.edu/greencampus/erecycling
Lakeland ZIP Code
Recently a resident pointed out to me that a Baseball Stadium has it's own ZIP Code, yet Lakeland is continually ignored in our requests for even consideration of a ZIP Code change. Also, in spite of repeated requests, the USPS provides mailers with the Lakeland addresses as "Arlington" rather than "Lakeland" as the "preferred" address. I have contacted many organizations (including Shelby County, MLGW and numerous mailers and magazines) and they all advise me this is the case, that they simply are not provided with "Arlington" rather than "Lakeland" for Lakeland addresses.
The staff of Congressman Blackburn, Senator Alexander and Senator Corker have been very helpful in working with the City on a "Lakeland ZIP Code" or some alternative to the present arrangement where we can't even get the name "Lakeland" on our mail.
The city staff is also preparing a formal request to be sent to the USPS District Manager in Memphis, which is the legal starting point for a request to change the ZIP Code. We expect this to be sent in May or June and we will be publicizing this so Lakeland residents can support the application
The staff of Congressman Blackburn, Senator Alexander and Senator Corker have been very helpful in working with the City on a "Lakeland ZIP Code" or some alternative to the present arrangement where we can't even get the name "Lakeland" on our mail.
The city staff is also preparing a formal request to be sent to the USPS District Manager in Memphis, which is the legal starting point for a request to change the ZIP Code. We expect this to be sent in May or June and we will be publicizing this so Lakeland residents can support the application
Saturday, May 02, 2009
YouTube Channel 19 posted!
Channel 19, Lakealand News, Events and information posted at:
http://www.youtube.com/user/CityofLakelandTN
http://www.youtube.com/user/CityofLakelandTN
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