Murfreesboro Mayor Shane McFarland told the Murfreesboro Rotary Club at its Tuesday (9/16/2014) luncheon that most of his first 4-months in office has been spent listening and gathering information.
He just turned 40, and knows that he is different from the leaders whom he follows.
Mayor McFarland told the Rotarians meeting at the Stones River Country Club that there are several areas in which he would like to see improvements.
Priorities After the First 4-Months
1. BUDGET: "As an accounting major, I feel this city is in great financial shape. We have a 25% loan to value rate, and that's something about which to really be proud. I served 8-years on the city council, and this is the first year I've seen sales tax revenue almost equal to property tax revenue. That's strong!"
2. PLAN AHEAD: Mayor McFarland is conducting a 25-year Comprehensive Plan for Murfreesboro. He stressed, "This is the community's plan and not the government's plan. It's so important to give you input." The study will take approximately 18-months at an investment of $500,000.
3. EDUCATION and JOBS: He said, "I have three small children. I would love to see them go to college and then have jobs here in Murfreesboro for them after that."
4. HOMELESS: The mayor commented, "It is not going away, and I don't think it's right for us to try and push these people into another city."
He noted that we do have a panhandling problem, and we should not give money to individuals, but rather financially support groups in our city that focus on the different aspects of helping the homeless."
5. ATTRACT TOURIST: "A few weeks ago, 200 soccer teams from many states were in Murfreesboro for a week. The Tennessee Soccer League brought $2.5-million in business to this community. That money went to local restaurants, hotels, gas stations, retail stores--it provided jobs and made our city stronger. And yet, due to the previous rough winter, our soccer fields weren't in the proper shape. We always need to be ready."
6. EMERGENCY TRAINING: The mayor noted we have great emergency people, but our training facility for fire, police and other responders is not adequate. He stated, "We dropped the ball on this one, and need to correct it."
Future Plans
In January, Mayor McFarland will begin a series where different parts of this community come together and share ideas. This will include "one on one" group meetings in city hall. Representatives from churches, charitable organizations, financial businesses, and others need to come together.
Here is his undedited address to the Murfreesboro Rotary Club (noon, Sept. 16, 2014)
