OUR COUNTY

D. GARY DAVIS

COUNTY MAYOR

A good working relationship between the County Mayor and the Bradley County Commission is an integral part of a progressive county. Since I was first elected eight years ago it has been my goal to keep the lines of communication open and to develop strong relationships with the commissioners.

Retreats give us the opportunity to plan for the upcoming year and to have an open exchange of ideas. Setting goals and prioritizing those goals has been an annual event at the fall retreats

The goals and priorities set at the retreats serve as a guide as I prepare my budget proposal for the County Commission each year. As money becomes available, these priorities are funded at a level necessary to accomplish the goals and, thus, improve county services.

For example, a priority for calendar year 2006 was education. Schools received a one million dollar increase in local funding and a four million increase overall in the 2006-07 budget. The Road Department was also a priority and received a 2006-07 budget increase of almost one million dollars.

The County Commission set short term priorities for the remainder of the 2006-2007 budget and long term priorities to begin in the 2007-2008 budget. Completing the renovations at Ocoee Middle School was the number one short term priority for the commission. Continuing to meet the needs of the Fire/Rescue Department was second. The third short term goal was to continue to improve county roads.

The long term priorities were to develop a comprehensive plan to fund education, continue meeting fire department needs (which was also a short term goal), implementing the Transportation Plan developed in 2003 and supporting the location of a Veterans Nursing Home in Bradley County.

Last year the County Commission funded Phase I of renovations at Ocoee Middle School at a cost of $9 million. The County Commission Education Committee is beginning the process of discussing additional needs at OMS with the School Board. The School Board has requested funding of $7.5 million to complete renovations.

The Bradley County Fire/Rescue Department currently consists of seven volunteer stations and one full-time Fire Department/Rescue Service located on Inman Street. A second full-time station is needed to better serve citizens on the north end of the county. Short term plans include hiring and training an additional three firefighters and locating property for a second station in the spring of 2007. A new station is planned to be operational in the fall of 2008.

Although the commission allocated additional funds for the road department in the 2006-07 budget, safe roads continue to rank high in importance for both the County Commission and Pike Road Superintendent Tom Collins.

I always point out at budget time that it is difficult to try and prioritize the requests from different departments, all of which are important to our county. Unfortunately, because of budget restraints, all requests cannot be met and tough decisions have to be made. This is the reason it is important for the County Commission to take time to discuss and prioritize county needs.

Regularly setting goals and priorities has allowed Bradley County to accomplish many things to benefit our citizens and to increase the quality of life without requiring tax increases. I will continue to work with the County Commission in striving to make Bradley County, which is a great place to live, even better.