From Bob Schwartz, City Manager
→ Tree Board work day SATURDAY – The tree board is having a work day Saturday.
Here are the details from an email from Connie Head.
We will meet tomorrow morning, Saturday, March 23, at George Street Park at 9:00 a.m. for a
morning of pruning and mulching. Hopefully the rain will hold off until the afternoon and it
won't be too cold, but please dress warmly and bring a rain jacket in case we have a little light
rain. Gloves are also a good idea.
Jody will have mulch at the park. I'll bring 1 wheelbarrow and pick up another at City Hall, where
Jody will place a wheelbarrow, shovels, and rakes. I'll also bring a rake and a shovel. I'll also
bring 4 sets of pruning tools (shears and saws) and my loppers. Don't forget to bring a buddy or two!
I'll start out with a brief lesson on tree pruning and mulching, and then we'll get it done!
Looking forward to seeing everyone tomorrow.
Connie
Connie Head
Consulting Urban Forester
→ Paying Off Loans – Lauran and I have taken the first step toward paying off our loans.
We went to United Bank on Highway 278 to cash in the first expiring Certificate of Deposit.
So, for about ten seconds we were $386,213.83 richer. Actually, we never saw the money.
The CD was with United Bank and that’s where the capital projects fund is so all we did was
sign the paperwork to approve the transfer. We have two more CDs that expire in April and
then we will pay off the three loans
→ Customer Service Training - Amanda and Dawn completed an online webinar Thursday, March 14th
Phrasing for Successful Conclusions offered by Electric Cities of Georgia. This course teaches
how communicating with customers in a positive way can be difficult – especially in situations
where the customer service representative can’t tell the customer exactly what it is they want
to hear. The course makes the participants aware of the power behind their words and the way they
use them. It will help us communicate with our customers better.
→ Filming at Old Church – The TV pilot that is filming in Covington next week is going to be filming
at the Old Church this coming Monday (March 25). The production company will set up for catering
and park in the city hall parking lot and the farmers market lot. We’re charging them $500 a day
for setting up their tent and parking. They will be setting up Sunday afternoon. It’s a TV pilot so
it’s unlikely any of the actors are famous yet.
→ Automatic Meter Reading – On Thursday, Terry Smith, Jody Reid, Anthony Chirillo (our Oxford College
student helper this semester) and I visited the General Electric showroom in Atlanta for the smart
meter project. They certainly have some whiz bang technology and some if it might work well in Oxford.
They are completing an installation in Norcross so we have something to look at on the ground in addition
to a very fancy showroom. We’ll keep looking.
→ ECG Annual Meeting and Economic Development Forum – Terry Smith and I will attend the ECG annual meeting
Sunday – Wednesday at Callaway Gardens. Terry is our voting member and will vote in the election for ECG
board members. Most of the rest of the meeting is devoted to economic development. I’ll be back in the
office late Wednesday.
→The Bishops and Streets of Oxford – Anthony Chirillo, a student at Oxford College who has been working with
me as part of the Bonner program, has completed a short report on the origin of many of our street names. I’ve
attached a copy, click the link below to read it. It’s pretty interesting. And beneath the link is a suggestion
from the UGA design studio for how we can recognize the Bishops on the street signs.
Significant Persons in the Founding of Oxford
