Public invited to Candidates Forum April 1

With the Rolla Municipal Election just around the corner on April 7, I’d like to extend an invitation to everyone in the community to attend the Rolla Municipal Candidates Forum on Wednesday, April 1 from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. in the Council Chambers at Rolla City Hall (901 N. Elm Street).

All seven candidates who are running in the Rolla Municipal Election on April 7 for the six open City Council seats have been invited to attend the forum, which will be moderated by Lee Buhr, Sports/Newscaster for Results Radio.

The forum, which will be hosted by the City and Rolla Channel 6, will include brief introductions by each candidate, followed by questions from the audience, and then an opportunity for closing remarks. Only questions given directly from those attending the forum will be included in the discussions. For more information regarding this event, please visit www.rollacity.org or call City Administration at 426-6948.

I would also like to encourage and remind everyone to vote during the Rolla Municipal Election on Tuesday, April 7. Polls will open at 6 a.m. and close at 7 p.m. One Council representative from each of the City’s six wards will be elected to serve a two-year term. The City Council positions up for election are Terry Ruck (Ward 1), Don Barklage (Ward 2), Gary Hicks (Ward 3), Louis Magdits (Ward 4), Richard Morris (Ward 5), and Mark Walburg (Ward 6).

For more information regarding polling locations and ward maps, please visit www.rollacity.org/wards/voter. You may also contact Carol Daniels in the City Clerk’s office at Rolla City Hall, 901 North Elm Street, at (573) 426-6942 or online at cdaniels@rollacity.org.

Looking ahead to next weekend, the Environmental Services Department will be hosting the annual City-wide Spring Clean-up on Saturday, April 4. If you wish to participate in this event, be sure to put your items out to the curb by 6 a.m.

Examples of items that will be accepted include: furniture, microwaves, televisions, old clothes, and household trash. Items that will not be accepted include: appliances, water heaters, yard waste, tires, or construction debris such as sheet rock, shingles, concrete or rock. Loose items should be placed in boxes or bags and small pieces of lumber should be bundled.

We ask that you do not place your roll-out container to the curb, because during this special spring clean-up it will not be emptied. If you have any questions, please call the Environmental Services Department at (573) 364-6693.

The Environmental Services Department, formerly named the Solid Waste Department, continues to live up to its new billing with an emphasis on “Going Green”. And speaking of the environment, the Environmental Services Department will once again be participating in the annual Rolla Earth Day Celebration on Wednesday, April 22. I’m told that exhibitors are encouraged to participate in this popular and well attended event, which will be held from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Havener Center on the Missouri University of Science and Technology campus.

For more information or to reserve a spot, please contact Julie Wilson at (573) 341-4262 or at wilsonjulie@mst.edu.Rolla Earth Day is a free event that includes children’s activities, educational exhibits, live music, plenty of give-aways, door prizes, and more.

St. Pat's Parade was "Best Ever"

If you didn’t have the opportunity to attend the highly touted and well attended St. Pat’s Parade last Saturday in Rolla, you may have missed one of the best St. Pat’s parades in recent years.

Every year it seems like the St. Pat’s Board that organizes the event adds something new to improve upon the year before, but this year – the 101st Anniversary - was truly something special. And I echo the remarks made by City Councilman Don Morris at last Monday’s City Council meeting when he expressed his thanks and appreciation for how well the parade was organized, coordinated and celebrated by the entire community.

I’d like to especially thank the St. Pat’s Board, Missouri S&T Professor, Dr. Lance Haynes, Advisor to the St. Pat’s Board, St. Patrick and his Court, and Missouri S&T Chancellor Dr. Jack Carney for working together with the City (Rolla PD, Public Works, Streets, and Environmental Services). This event, which is a combined community effort, reflects not only the Town and Gown relationship between Missouri S&T and the City, but the entire Rolla community. Kudos to all who made this festive celebration as enjoyable and successful as it was.

Speaking of great events, Friday, March 20 marked the first official day of spring. And along with spring, comes many events you will want to also mark on your calendar. In anticipation of the April 7 Rolla Municipal Election (polls open at 6 a.m. and close at 7 p.m.), the City of Rolla and Rolla Channel 6 will host a Candidates Forum on Wednesday, April 1 from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. in the Council Chambers at City Hall (901 N. Elm Street).

All seven candidates who are running in the Rolla Municipal Election on April 7 for the six open City Council ward seats have been invited to attend the forum, which will be moderated by Lee Buhr, Sports/Newscaster for Results Radio.

The format of the forum will include brief introductions by each candidate, followed by questions from the audience, and then an opportunity for closing remarks. Only questions given directly from those attending the forum will be included in the discussions. For more information, please call City Administration at 426-6948.

For all the sports-minded people in our community, there will be a managers meeting for the Rolla adult softball leagues on Wednesday, March 25 at 6:30 p.m. in Meeting Room “B” at The Centre (1200 North Holloway Street). Managers must attend this rules meeting as changes for the 2009 season will be discussed. This is the only managers meeting scheduled prior to the start of the season. For more information, please contact Kristy Bullock at the Rolla Parks and Recreation Department at 341-2386 or via e-mail at parks@rollacity.org.

Another upcoming event you will want to mark on your calendar is the annual city-wide “Spring Clean-up” on Saturday, April 4. If you wish to participate, please place all items near the curb by 6 a.m.

Examples of items that will be accepted include: furniture, microwaves, televisions, old clothes, and household trash. Items that will not be accepted include: appliances, water heaters, yard waste, tires, or construction debris such as sheet rock, shingles, concrete or rock. Loose items should be placed in boxes or bags and small pieces of lumber should be bundled.

We ask that you do not place your roll-out container to the curb, because during this special spring clean-up it will not be emptied. If you have any questions, please call the Environmental Services Department at (573) 364-6693.

St. Pat’s celebration culminates with Parade on Pine

If you haven’t already dug out a piece of green clothing, hat, jewelry, or something green there’s still time to find something for today’s St. Pat’s parade at 11 a.m. on Pine Street, (which is already painted green), in downtown Rolla.

During the week-long festivities preceding the St. Pat’s Parade, I had the pleasure of welcoming, together with Dr. Jack Carney, Chancellor of Missouri University of Science and Technology, St. Pat and his court at the bandshell on Wednesday in the City’s Downtown Festival Park. If you didn’t have a chance to attend the arrival of St. Pat that day, don’t despair, as St. Pat and his court, will be making another grand entrance at the St. Pat’s Parade this morning.

Participating in the St. Pat’s festivities is an opportunity for the entire Rolla community to show their support for one of Rolla’s most celebrated events. But actually being at the parade where just about everything that moves is one shade of green or another, is the best way to experience the enthusiasm and Madi Gras type atmosphere that only the Rolla St. Pat’s Parade can evoke. Let’s hope the weather holds out as predicted and that everyone exercises caution along the sidewalks and downtown area while watching and attending this festive event.

If you happen to have missed my column a couple of weeks ago I think it bears repeating that Rolla Municipal Court has been relocated to Rolla City Hall (901 N. Elm Street). The Municipal Court administrative offices are located on the 2nd floor, and the Municipal Court Courtroom is located on the first floor where the City Council meetings are held in the Council Chambers. Rolla Municipal Court was formerly located in the old Phelps County Courthouse located at 305 West 3rd Street. The need to find another location for Rolla Municipal Court was both a cost-saving measure, and an effort to provide ADA accessible facilities that did not exist at the old Phelps County Courthouse. Rolla City Hall, which was completely renovated in March 2006, is ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) accessible, and equipped to accommodate Municipal Court and the administrative staff.

Municipal Court Sessions will continue to be held every Tuesday at 5:30 p.m. and the first Friday of each month at 8:30 a.m. in the Municipal Court Courtroom, first floor, Rolla City Hall, 901 North Elm Street. If you have any questions regarding Municipal Court, please contact Rita Duvall, Municipal Court Clerk, at (573) 364-8590 or (573) 364-7190, or stop by the second floor of Rolla City Hall between the hours of 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday.

In closing I’d like to remind everyone, as spring approaches, and the weather gets warmer, that the City will be asking everyone in the community to help beautify their yards, businesses and landscaped areas for the upcoming Tour of Missouri International Cycling Race, which will be coming through Rolla (from Farmington) on Wednesday, Sept. 9. Our downtown looked immaculate last year when the City of Rolla hosted the Stage 4 Finish of the Tour of Missouri on Sept. 11. I’m confident, that with everyone pitching in, and doing their part, we will once again shine as one of the most attractive and welcoming Tour of Missouri host cities. You’ll be hearing more from me and I’m sure the Rolla Area Chamber of Commerce and Tour of Missouri Local Organizing Committee in the weeks and months to come about planned beautification efforts for this international event that will showcase our City to countries around the globe.

Please remember to pencil in your calendars on Wednesday, Sept. 9 for the Tour of Missouri Stage 3 Finish in Rolla and Thursday, Sept. 10 for the Stage 4 Start in the City of St. James, located just 8 miles east of Rolla off Interstate 44.

Tryon’s laid ground work for Rolla’s recycling movement

Going green, recycling and preserving the Rolla environment were all part of the long-range vision that Chuck Tryon and his wife, Sharon had over 30-plus years ago when they established one of the first recycling centers in Rolla.

During the 1970s when the words recycling, preservation and conservation weren’t nearly as popular and in vogue as they are today, they operated a non-profit business called “CURE” (Citizens United to Restore the Environment) in a vacated building that housed the old Kroger grocery store then located on Kingshighway. Mr. Tryon recalls that the founding fathers of CURE were four students who attended the University of Missouri-Rolla (now Missouri University of Science and Technology). The students were Dave Wright, Al Visintainer, Mike Court and Randy Necessary.

Mr. Tryon recalled with a touch of nostalgia in his voice that CURE was open seven days a week and open to the public. Newspaper, corrugated cardboard, cans, and glass were all accepted free of charge. Over a seven year period 2,800 tons of recycled materials were collected by CURE.

A plaque paying tribute to Chuck and his belated wife, Sharon, who served two terms on the Rolla City Council in the late 1970s, is mounted on the front of the Rolla Recycling Center located at 2141 St. James Road. If you have never seen the plaque, it is located just below the plaque commemorating the completion of the Rolla Recycling Center in April 1993.

The City’s Environmental Services Department, which oversees the operation of the Rolla Recycling Center, got word recently that Mr. Tryon is relocating to Visalia, Calif. so he can spend more time with his daughter, Holly, who grew up in Rolla and now resides in Visalia. During a recent visit to the Recycling Center Mr. Tryon and his daughter dropped off several items at the new Household Hazardous Waste Facility located behind the Recycling Center off McCutchen Drive. They also took a brief tour of the Recycling Center with Brady Wilson, Director of the Environmental Services Department, and had a chance to talk about the history of recycling in Rolla. Mr. Tryon recalled how he was once told by certain members of the community over 30-plus years ago that recycling was a waste of his time. That of course, was just after the first national Earth Day celebration was held in 1970, and a time when preservation, conservation and recycling weren’t the household words they are today.

The Rolla community certainly owes a debt of gratitude to Chuck and Sharon Tryon and the founding members of CURE for their unflagging efforts to bring the recycling movement to the forefront in Rolla Missouri. We wish Mr. Tryon a safe journey to his new home in California and extend our appreciation to him for the contributions he made to the health and welfare of our community.

In closing, I’d like to remind everyone to wear your ‘green’ next Saturday, March 14 (11 a.m.) for the 101st St. Patrick Day’s parade. Considered one of the largest St. Pat’s parade in the state, it is an iconic Rolla experience that thousands look forward to attending. A list of St. Pat’s events planned that week is available on the City’s Website calendar of events at www.rollacity.org/events.

Rolla Municipal Court Relocates to City Hall

After months of debating and discussing where the most feasible and economical location would be for the location of Rolla Municipal Court, Rolla City Council recently voted to approve the relocation of the Municipal Court Courtroom and administrative offices to Rolla City Hall.

The Municipal Court Courtroom and administrative offices were formerly located in the old Phelps County Courthouse located at 305 West 3rd Street. The Court’s administrative offices are now located on the second floor of City Hall, and the Courtroom will be held in the City Council Chambers on the first floor of City Hall.

The need to find another location for Rolla Municipal Court was both a cost-cutting measure, and an effort to provide ADA accessible facilities that did not exist at the old Phelps County Courthouse. Rolla City Hall, which was completely renovated in March 2006, is ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) accessible, and equipped to accommodate Municipal Court and the administrative staff.

Prior to being located in the Old Phelps County Courthouse, Municipal Court had previously been located on the fourth floor of City Hall. So the move back to City Hall after the renovations were completed is something the City had explored, discussed and considered for some time.

Municipal Court Sessions will continue to be held every Tuesday at 5:30 p.m. and the first Friday of each month at 8:30 a.m. in the Municipal Court Courtroom, first floor, Rolla City Hall, 901 North Elm Street.

If you have any questions regarding Municipal Court, please contact Rita Duvall, Municipal Court Clerk, at (573) 364-8590 or (573) 364-7190, or stop by the second floor of Rolla City Hall between the hours of 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. Ample free parking is available in the City’s municipal parking lots next to City Hall off 9th Street in downtown Rolla.

Updated information regarding the relocation of Municipal Court is also available on the City’s Website at www.rollacity.org/muncourt.

In closing I’d like to remind everyone that the City of Rolla Public Works Department is partnering with the Phelps County Master Gardener/Master Naturalist and the Missouri University Extension to bring an environmental education program to the Rolla community.

The Healthy Yards for Clear Streams program is an effort to help landowners and businesses become more environmentally responsible with lawn and landscape practices. The goal is to promote lawn care practices that create beautiful lawns and gardens while reducing unnecessary use of pesticides and fertilizers that may run off and contaminate local streams.

The following workshops are free and will be held at The Centre (1200 North Holloway St.), from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. on the following days:
Monday, March 2: Why Connect Yards & Healthy Lawn Care
Monday, March 9: Right Plant, Right Place & Using Native Plants and Rain Gardens
Monday, March 16: Soils & Integrated Pest Management and Effective Use of Garden Chemicals

The program is sponsored by MU Extension through the Master Gardener and Master Naturalist programs with support from the City of Rolla and partial funding from a Missouri Department of Natural Resources Mini Grant.

For more information or to register, please call Phelps County Extension at (573) 458-6260.

Mayor Bill Jenks, III