"Omaha is a beautiful city. Let's all work together to make it the best." - Jim Suttle, Mayor of Omaha.
Mayor Suttle has read to over 300 students over the past few weeks, taking part in Read Across America events at twelve schools throughout Omaha.
“I enjoy the opportunity to visit schools and read to our community’s young people,” Mayor Suttle said. “I had a great time at all the schools as part of Read Across America and look forward to continuing to visit local schools.”
Mayor Suttle reads to students at Harvey Oaks Elementary School.
Today, Mayor Suttle awarded certificates of service to a group of high school seniors who have served the past two years as members of the Mayor’s Youth Commission (MYC). The Commission has two members from each Omaha high school, including one representative of the junior class and one representative of the senior class. The MYC meets every other month at City Hall.
The purpose of the MYC is to provide the Mayor with:
1) Outreach opportunities to young people throughout the Omaha community;
2) Suggestions for improving community relations between city departments and youth; and
3) Ways to incorporate the ideas of young people into long-term city planning.
Mayor Jim Suttle today announced that the City will take a hiatus on privatizing City golf courses. The privatization of the courses has been pursued as a potential remedy for the $760,000 deficit in the Golf Enterprise Fund. However, a golf study conducted recently concluded that the City may not be able to achieve profitability through privatization. The study did suggest that modernization of the existing golf courses could bring greater revenue.
Melinda Pearson, the City’s new Parks Director, will begin implementing several of the recommendations outlined in the study. Those changes will include the elimination of PGA professionals at the City’s 9 hole courses, improvements to the quality of the golf course buildings and cart paths and the possible addition of an online tee time booking system.
”I’ve listened to the many ideas brought forth by our City’s golfers and want to incorporate these ideas into the recommendations of the golf study,” said Mayor Suttle. “Providing the best possible experience for golfers in the most cost effective way has always been my goal for our City’s golf courses.”
The Mayor’s Office announced today that Public Works crews are continuing their aggressive efforts at pothole patching. These operations are continuing 24 hours a day, six days a week. Crews are using a hot asphalt mix, which is more effective than cold asphalt. Patching is being done on the more badly damaged road surfaces.
“I ask that motorists please be aware that crews will be out working on our streets,” Mayor Suttle said . “Please use extra caution when driving in the vicinity of workers as they work diligently to repair the blizzard of potholes that are a result of this record winter.”
To report a pothole, call Street Maintenance at 444-4919 or the Mayor’s Hotline at 444-5555. You can also report a pothole online here.
In mid-May and as the weather allows, the Public Works Department will use $3 million of stimulus funding to begin a range of street resurfacing projects.
Click on MORE to see where crews will begin resurfacing in May.
Mayor Suttle has teamed up with twelve local areas mayors, three utility companies and three non-profit organizations to host the 3rd Annual Heartland Walk for Warmth on Friday, February 26, 2010 at 6 p.m. The one-mile walk at Heartland of America Park is an effort to raise funds and awareness of important energy assistance programs in the Omaha metropolitan area. Over the past two years combined, the Walk has raised $75,000 dollars for energy assistance programs.
”Each year, countless individuals and families struggle to heat and cool their homes,” Mayor Suttle said. “With the bitterly cold temperatures we’ve experienced this winter season, we are reminded of the need to raise funds to help those across the greater Omaha area who are unable to afford their heating bills.”
All the details about the Walk can be found by visiting the event’s website.
Mayor Jim Suttle today delivered his first State of the City Address at the Hot Shops Art Center. The mayor chose the Hot Shops as the venue for his speech to highlight the important role arts and culture play in making Omaha a destination City.
The full text of Mayor Suttle’s State of the City Address is below:
Good morning. Thank you Dana for that introduction and those terrific words. Thank you Tim for hosting us this morning. This is truly a beautiful location and you have created a phenomenal artist colony here at the Hot Shops.
I’d also like to thank everyone for joining me this morning, including members of the City Council, other elected officials, cabinet members, staff and interested citizens. Take a look at these walls and the art all around us and you will see examples of the depth and breadth of talent that exists in our community. Omaha is a community rich in talent, knowledge and creativity and is blessed by cultural facilities that make us the gem of America’s Midwest.
The Durham Museum is one of the greatest examples of art deco in the world. There is also the Joslyn, the charm of the Old Market and the newly developing NoDo. There is an ever increasing variety of performing arts at both small and large venues including the Qwest Center, the Holland Performing Arts Center, Film Streams and the Kaneko. We have witnessed the transformational development of our Riverfront, highlighted by the Bob Kerrey Pedestrian Bridge; and we have made significant improvements to our parks, lakes and recreational trails system.
On both sides of the River, you can see dirt being moved and cranes lifting progress upward in our skyline. Omaha is on the move and we are building a city that is a great place to live and work and a great place to visit and invest.
This is the message that must be delivered outside of these walls and outside of this city. The time is now to tell the full story of Omaha.
As part of an effort to increase communication with citizens through the web, Mayor Suttle has re-designed the Mayor’s Office website. The new design incorporates many features of the previous website while adding several new interactive features.
Citizens may still access the Mayor’s Hotline, provide feedback to the mayor, obtain information about Boards and Commissions, and find information about City and County services.
New features include:
The new site was designed by the Omaha-based company SecretPenguin, working with the Douglas-Omaha Technology Commission (DOTComm). The mayor extends his thanks to those who worked on the site, including: Dave Nelson, Matt Helt, Cody Peterson, and Jason Sawyer from SecretPenguin, and Carrie Guinn, Deanna Hughes, Erin Cox, and Shey Joon Teoh from DotComm.
Mayor Suttle plans to continue to enhance the City’s e-government initiatives, make more services available online, and improve communication between the mayor’s office and the citizens.
Please provide feedback about the new site here: http://www.cityofomaha.org/mayor/contact-us.
Mayor Suttle has made $80,000 available for Neighborhood Grants in two categories:
Neighborhood associations need to complete each of the following application documents that are below. A grant application is considered incomplete if it does not include all three documents. Only neighborhood associations that are registered with the City of Omaha are eligible to receive grant funding.
When accessing the above documents, remember to “Save As” the documents onto your computer in order to edit and save them.
Download a 2010 Mayor’s Neighborhood Grant Program Fact Sheet
All application materials are due by 4 p.m. on Friday, March 19, 2010. Neighborhood associations are encouraged to submit applications by e-mail to neighborhoodgrants@ci.omaha.ne.us.Hand delivered or mailed applications are still accepted in the Mayor’s Office but must be in by 4 p.m. on March 19th. If you have questions, contact Alec Gorynski at 444-5211 or Laura Wilson at 444-7918.
The Annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration
Keynote Speaker Dr. Mary Frances Berry
Monday, January 18th, 7 p.m.
Holland Performing Arts Center, 1200 Douglas Street
Today, Mayor Suttle announced an agreement with Free Green Can Nebraska to provide combination recycling/trash receptacles as part of a pilot program in downtown Omaha.
Free Green Can Nebraska sells advertising space on the side of the receptacles, which covers the cost of the bins and the material collection. This new public-private partnership provides an opportunity for residents and visitors downtown to recycle, at no extra cost to the taxpayers. Free Green Can launched in Omaha with partnerships from the following businesses/organizations: CBSHome, Atchley Ford, Union Pacific, ConAgra Foods, DLR Group and the Downtown Improvement District.
“This project is another example of the City’s commitment to sustainable resource management,” Mayor Suttle said. “We will evaluate the success of the pilot program through 2010 and be prepared to expand into other parts of the city next year if the pilot program proves as successful as I am confident it will.”
The receptacles will collect plastic, aluminum and paper products.
Free Green Can’s mission is to provide the public with a recycling opportunity wherever there is a trash receptacle. By providing recycling bins in combination with trash containers, individuals are encouraged to recycle instead of channeling waste to the City’s landfill. For more information about Free Green Can, http://freegreencan.com/.
The cans displayed in the Mayor’s press room. They weigh about 100 lbs each.
The cans are dual receptacles, so trash goes in one side and recyclables go in the other.
