Yard Waste Carts to be delivered starting Monday, November 2

Green yard waste carts will be delivered to all Lakeland refuse collection customer starting Monday, November 2, 2009. The yard waste cart will expedite recycling of yard waste material.


The green yard waste carts are for yard debris only so it can be recycled. Yard waste includes leaves, grass, tree limbs etc. Only yard debris (no trash etc.) should be placed in the yard waste carts.


NOTE: The schedule for pickup of yard waste carts is on a different schedule than the regular carts and recycling and will be Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.

Customers with Monday pickup will have the yard waste cart picked up Wednesdays, customers with Tuesday pickup will have yard waste carts picked up Thursday, and customers with Wednesday pickup will have their yard waste cart picked up on Friday.

This schedule is for the yard waste carts only, the current pickup schedule continues as usual for refuse carts and recycling.

City of Lakeland November Schedule

Schedule changes and Holiday schedules for November include:

-Wednesday, November 11, 2009: Veterans Day. City Hall closed.

-Municipal Planning Commission changed from Monday, November 16 to Tuesday, November 17.

-Thursday, November 26 and Friday, November 27: City Hall closed for Thanksgiving Day holiday and day after Thanksgiving

Remember the Halloween Party this Friday, October 30, at the IH Clubhouse, 4523 Canada Road. Details at www.Lakelandtn.gov

Be Ready for an Emergency!

Emergency Management Director Claude Talford advised of an excellent source for information on emergency preparedness at http://tinyurl.com/2fp8nw

Information on creating a family emergency plan, emergency kits etc is available at this site!

BOC Work Session Rescheduled

The October Board of Commissioners Work Session has been rescheduled from Monday, October 26 to Tuesday, October 27. The meeting will start at the usual time of 6:30 p.m..

Automotive Waste Collection Day scheduled November 12, 2009

An Automotive Waste Collection Day is scheduled for 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., Thursday, November 12, 2009 at the Shelby County Household Hazardous Waste Facility at 6305 Haley Road.

Shelby County residents (no businesses) are encouraged take this opportunity to properly dispose of used motor oil, gas, automotive batteries, anti-freeze, and transmission fluids.

This is a American Recycles Day Event sponsored by the Shelby County Public Works Division (Environmental Programs). Call 901 379-4439 for additional information.

The Shelby County Household Hazardous Waste Facility is a joint effort by Shelby County and the Cities of Lakeland, Memphis, Germantown, Collierville, Millington, Arlington and Bartlett.

Use of this facility is limited to residents of Shelby County for residential disposal only.

BOC/MPC Joint Session to review Land Development Regulations scheduled

The Board of Commissioners and the Municipal Planning Commission have scheduled a Joint Session at 6:30 p.m., Thursday, October 29, 2009 to discuss the proposed Land Development Regulations.

Residents and interested persons are always welcome at City meetings.

Yard Waste Carts to debut in November

Yard waste carts will be distributed starting November 2, 2009 to encourage recycling of yard waste (leaves, limbs etc.). All yard waste debris in the yard waste carts or in bags will be recycled to assist the City in meeting State of Tennessee mandates for recycling.

The new yard waste carts are part of a new contract with All Star Waste Systems which is effective January 1, 2009. All Star elected to start the yard waste recycling program in early November.

The refuse collection and recycling schedule will stay the same. The yard waste schedule will change to Wednesday, Thursday or Friday. A Newsletter is being prepared that will be distributed to all refuse collection customers detailing the schedule for when yard waste is being picked up.

The green colored yard waste carts will be delivered in addition to the regular refuse carts. Additional yard waste carts my be ordered directly from All Star Waste Systems for $3.30 per month. All yard waste in carts or in bags will continue to be picked up without additional cost. There will be an additional fee for loose limbs or tree debris not in carts or bags after January 1, 2010.

Watch for the newsletter to be distributed in the near future which will have detailed information on refuse and yard waste collection and recycling.

City of Lakeland Facebook and Twitter pages

The City of Lakeland Facebook page can be directly accessed at www.Facebook.com/LakelandTn

The main City of Lakeland Twitter page can be directly accessed at www.Twitter.com/Lakeland

Traffic Signal projects scheduled to start

Two traffic signal projects are scheduled to start Monday, October 19. Weather, or delays in receiving material could change the schedule. Motorists are encouraged to take extra precautions around the construction area.

Canada Road/I-40 Interchange: Traffic signals and lane improvements are being installed at the interchange to minimize delays, increase safety and reduce air pollution. The construction time frame is highly dependent on weather and the contractor receiving material, but the project should be complete by Spring 2010 at the latest.

Canada Road and Highway 70: Traffic signals and lane improvements are being installed to improve safety. The construction period is dependent on weather and the contractor receiving material. The project is scheduled to be complete no later than June of 2010.

City Hall E-mail disruption notice

The Lakeland City Hall e-mail system will be out from approximately 4:00 p.m. Wednesday, October 7, 2009, until approximately noon, Thursday, October 8, 2009 for a scheduled upgrade of the e-mail system.

This outage will only be on @lakelandtn.org.

CONSOLIDATION WATCH: Wharton proposes Charter Commission choices

The City of Memphis City Council and the Shelby County Commission have each adopted actions to create a “Charter Commission” to consider a Consolidation Charter (probably the “Metro” type of government consolidation).

The first step is for the County Mayor to appoint 10 members of the Charter Commission and then the Memphis City Mayor appoint 5 members to create a 15 member Charter Commission.

Shelby County Mayor AC Wharton has proposed the following members:

-Rufus Washington (representing unincorporated Shelby County)

-Chris Patterson (Germantown)

-J.W. Gibson (Shelby County Commissioner, but representing Memphis)

-Andrew Fowlkes (Representing Memphis)

-Julie Ellis (Representing Memphis)

-Lou Etta Burkins (Representing unincorporated Shelby County)

-Linda Kerley (Representing Collierville, former Collierville Mayor)

-Richard Hodges (Representing Millington, Mayor of Millington)

Bill Orgel (Representing Memphis)

Randolph Wallace (Representing Memphis)

The Memphis City Mayor appoints five members of the Charter Commission.

Assuming the Memphis City Mayor appoints all Memphis residents, the Charter Commission would have ten members appointing Memphis and only five people who don’t live in Memphis, or represent Memphis in some way.

City personnel or a Lakeland resident intend to attend every meeting of the “Charter Commission”, take notes and write a summary of the Charter Commission meeting so Lakeland residents can be aware of what is going on. (Note that no representatives were appointed from Lakeland, Arlington or Bartlett.)

The Athenian Oath

The Athenian Oath

We will never bring disgrace on this our City by an act of dishonesty or cowardice. We will fight for the ideals and Sacred Things of the City both alone and with many. We will revere and obey the City's laws, and will do our best to incite a like reverence and respect in those above us who are prone to annul them or set them at naught. We will strive increasingly to quicken the public's sense of civic duty. Thus in all these ways we will transmit this City, not only not less, but greater and more beautiful than it was transmitted to us.

(I have heard and read The Athenian Oath since probably I was in the seventh grade. I recently saw it on the National League of Cities website and it has the same power, beauty, and and sense of responsibility as the first time i read it and my first day of my career as a City administrator. I still get a chill down my back when I read it.)

What is a sustainability City/Community?

Sustainability is a word which is frequently used, but what does it mean when it comes to cities? One of the goals identified by the City of Lakeland is to be a "Sustainable City" and Shelby County has a program on "sustainability".

I recently read a definition of Sustainability that I feel communicates the meaning well. (It is from a document by the City of Alexander, Virginia):

"A Sustainability Community is an environmentally, economically, and socially healthy place people can live, work, and play for decades to come.

ECOLOGICAL SUSTAINABILITY: Ensures that all parts of the natural and built environments work together as a single ecological system.

ECONOMIC SUSTAINABILITY: Ensures a healthy economy that supports and sustains people and the environment in which they live over the long term.

SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY: Ensures that a community meets residents' basic needs and has the resiliency to prevent and/or address problems in the future."

Halloween Carnival scheduled for Friday, October 30

The Lakeland Parks and Recreation Department has scheduled a Halloween Carnival and event for Friday, October 30, 2009.

Starting at 6:30 p.m., there will be a Halloween Carnival for children from 3 to 11 years old.

At 9:00 p.m., there will be a movie and treats for children ages 12 to 15 years old.

Watch for additional information. This notice is provided so Lakeland residents can schedule this event in if you have children in these age groups interested in attending!

Board of Commissioners appoint Liaisons to Lakeland Boards/Commissions

The Lakeland Board of Commissioners reorganized at the Regular Meeting on October 1, 2009, as Don Barber and Cecil Tompkins assumed their positions on the Board of Commissioners.

BOC Liaisons are appointed to Lakeland Boards and Commissions for one year terms (in this case from October 1, 2009 to December 31, 2009). The Liaison is a full voting member.

Appointments included:

Board of Appeals: Mark Hartz

Design Review Commission: Cecil Tompkins

Economic Development Commission: Cecil Tompkins

Municipal Planning Commission: Randy Nicholson

Natural Resources Board: Randy Nicholson

Park and Recreation Board: Don Barber

Tompkins, Barbara take Oath of Office, Mayor Carmichael starts new term

Cecil Tompkins and Don Barbara took the Oath of Office to the Board of Commissioners and Mayor Scott Carmichael took the Oath of Office for his third term as Mayor at the Board of Commissioners Regular Meeting on Thursday, October 1, 2009.

Proclamations for Commissioner Gerrit Verschuur and Commissioner Clark Plunk were read and Commissioner Verschuur and Commissioner were thanked for their service. Both had elected not to run again.

Randy Nicholson was elected as Vice-Mayor to a two-year term. The Board of Commissioners elects a Vice-Mayor after every general election to a two-year term. The Vice-Mayor assumes the duties of Mayor in the Mayor’s absence and also assumes some administrative responsibilities.

The Board thanked Mark Hartz for his work as Vice-Mayor, He has been Vice-Mayor for six of his ten years on the Board of Commissioners.