As I look back at 2014, it was a very good year for the city of Jackson. We celebrated our bicentennial with a wide variety of activities. We started with a reception in January with officials reading proclamations about the history leading to our 200th birthday, people in historic costumes, a beard fashion show, burying of the razor and unveiling a time capsule for storing items collected during the year...

Wow! October is going to be really busy in Jackson. The second annual Oktoberfest, sponsored by the Uptown Jackson Revitalization Organization, will be at 10 a.m. Saturday. The all-day event will feature many vendors with authentic German food, craft and Bavarian beer dispensed from two bier stations, costumed pet parade, children's fun activities, a variety of craft vendors, and three live music bands. It will be a fun day -- and evening!...

Cities really need to plan ahead! Our comprehensive plan is a guideline for 20 years in the future, and the water system facility plan is for 15 to 20 years. When we have these long-range plans, we often divide them into phases so that we can do a phase at a time as the funding becomes available...

As everyone is surely aware, Jackson is celebrating its bicentennial year. We have had some type of bicentennial event each month, with two in July -- Independence Day and Homecomers. With all this emphasis on Jackson's history, I have had the opportunity to do a lot of research and have thoroughly enjoyed it...

Happy Independence Day! As we celebrate the occasion, take a moment to remember our forefathers who sacrificed so much to make us an independent nation some 238 years ago. Also remember those people who through the years have made sacrifices to keep us free...

June is always such a nice month, and it will be even nicer this year. We will be having our usual special musical events during the month. In addition, we will be having two special bicentennial events. Our Jackson Municipal Band always kicks off the season with a patriotic concert at the Memorial Day program hosted by the Jackson American Legion. ...

The city of Jackson was established in 1814 as a "seat of justice" for the newly formed Cape Girardeau County. That makes our city 200 years old, and we are really celebrating our bicentennial. We started in January with a reading of proclamations from the county commission, state Sen. Wayne Wallingford, state Rep. Donna Lichtenegger and me...

April will be another busy month in the city of Jackson. The spring/summer schedule for the recycling center starts on Saturday. It will now be open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. each Saturday. This Saturday schedule will remain in effect through the month of October. Remember to recycle!...

At a recent visit with state Rep. Donna Lichtenegger during the Missouri Municipal League's (MML) recent Legislative Conference, she mentioned that the Republican Party stood for local control. This is a good platform since it is certainly true that local governments are closest to the people. ...

Last month's column had information about the accomplishments of several of our city departments. This month, I will continue with other departmental information highlighting their accomplishments. I am always amazed by the amount of training our employees complete each year. In addition to their regular duties, our fire department employees had 7,350 contact hours of training last year. They received a FEMA grant for $11,500 to host a 32-hour Aerial Operator Class...

After celebrating a wonderful Christmas with my family and friends, this is a good time for reflection. When our family gets together, we always revisit many tales of Christmases past. While the meals we share are fantastic, the family visiting is my favorite part of Christmas...

I hope you had a blessed Thanksgiving and a bountiful feast that included sharing with family and friends. In the rush to get to the Christmas season, we sometimes forget how thankful we should be to live in America -- and especially the heartland...

October was a busy month filled with a variety of activities, including Oktoberfest, Customer Appreciation Day at the Recycling Center, and many "pink up" activities for National Breast Cancer Awareness month. As a fitting conclusion to our activities, the Pink Moon Run/Walk for breast cancer research was around the Courthouse Square on Oct. 26. The pink is now put away for this year, and we are ready to move on to many November activities...

I must admit to a bit of trepidation when I read the article in the Southeast Missourian that the end of some program might slow Jackson's growth. Rest assured, we're still plugging along with continued building growth. At the end of August, we issued 49 building permits with a total construction value of $17,132,082.82, which included the new elementary school. ...

When school starts, my thoughts always drift back to my summer memories. This was a good summer. I was able to make many of the muny band concerts and the Rock in the Rock Garden performances in June. It's so nice to be able to pull the lawn chair out of the car and choose a spot to listen to the music. These are wonderful opportunities to meet and visit with friends on pleasant summer evenings...

Wow. July was an exceptionally busy month. We had a record-breaking July Fourth Independence Day celebration in the city park. This was a cooperative effort of the Independence Day Committee, many of the city's departments, members of many organizations such as the Capaha Car Club, Elks, Jackson High School girls volleyball team, muny band and many additional volunteers. We appreciate all their time and effort, and we appreciate all those who came to help us celebrate...

I would like to publicly recognize and thank Craig Raney and the volunteers from Jackson's Rubbermaid Home Products for providing the equipment and the labor to clean the tombstones in our old city cemetery. They were able to participate in this community service project as part of Newell-Rubbermaid Corporation's sponsorship of a Global Day of Service...

Jackson's slogan is the "City of Beautiful Homes, Parks, Schools, and Churches." Things are happening in each of those areas. We have had a great deal of activity in home sales. During the month of April, there were 22 new homeowner accounts who signed up for utilities in the city. In addition, we had 35 new renters. (Records for the month of May have not yet been completed.) Building permit values so far this year total $9.5 million...

May is another busy month in the city of Jackson. The farmers market is starting its season today. It will be open from 3 to 6 p.m. every Tuesday in the City Park by the band shell. There will be approximately 12 vendors selling craft items and produce...

Could it be that spring has finally arrived? I sure hope so because there are many outdoor activities scheduled in April in the city of Jackson. All our school sports and the youth sports leagues are in full swing. The Jackson Elks are sponsoring a skateboard contest at the Jackson skateboard park on Saturday. It is an open competition and there is no preregistration. Be there at 9 a.m. to enter the competition...

Even though it was a short month, February was very busy. Besides routine meetings and day-to-day tasks, there were quite a few special events. The month started with a retirement ceremony and reception on Feb. 1 at city hall for our longtime library director Sally Pierce...

The city of Jackson recently completed the Annual Accomplishments Report. The first report came out in 2001 and was initiated by Jim Roach in his first year as city administrator. His idea was that by putting a document in print, each department would take time to evaluate seriously the work accomplished in the previous year. The departments also were asked to state their goals for the upcoming year...

As we reflect on 2012 and look forward to 2013, these have been good times in Jackson, city of beautiful homes, parks, schools and churches. In the "homes" area, the city has issued permits for more than 60 new single-family residences this past year. This is the largest number of new single-family home starts in the last eight years. In addition, there are 28 proposed town-house units by Ashwood LLC. The first building is under construction now...

Wow! Christmas activities have already begun. Both Cape Girardeau and Jackson have already had their Christmas parades. This week we will have a flurry of other Christmas activities in Jackson. On Thursday, we would like to have you join us in the Jackson City Park around 6 p.m. ...

October is probably my favorite month of the year, and this October has been beautiful. We were all worried that the summer drought would mean less color on the tress, but I thought the trees were as pretty as ever. October has also been a very busy month. We started with many activities to celebrate and support Breast Cancer Awareness Month. We closed the month with the Pink Moon Run/Walk on Oct. 28 to support breast cancer research...

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. During this month, you will see a lot of pink in our area. Both Cape Girardeau and Jackson are participating in the Pink Up campaign benefiting the Dig for Life program originally started by coach Cindy Gannon and the women's volleyball team from Southeast Missouri State University. With the help of Saint Francis Medical Center the program has grown tremendously...

In July I gave you information about the Southeast Missouri Medical Center wanting to provide a new community center for the citizens of Jackson. The medical center is a not-for-profit organization formed by Jackson residents back in the late '60s for the purpose of improving health care for the citizens of Jackson and the surrounding area by offering incentives to recruit doctors. At the time Jackson was served by Drs. J.N. Jaeger and E.F. McDonald, who were both nearing retirement...

In the city of Jackson, when the Homecomers week of celebration is over, we all get in the back-to-school mode. I hope the weather cooperates and gives us some nice crisp fall weather. As an old teacher, I always get excited about the start of school. It was always fun meeting new students and getting to visit again with co-workers you haven't seen for a few months...

As we all prepare to celebrate our Independence Day, we want everyone to have an enjoyable -- but safe -- Fourth of July. Please remember the city of Jackson ordinance that states that "no person under the age of 17 shall possess, discharge, ignite, or explode any article of fireworks unless under the direct supervision of a parent or guardian." Because of the extremely dry conditions, we strongly recommend that people have quick access to water before setting off any fireworks...

Summer is a busy time in Jackson. Activity in the park picks up a great deal with baseball and softball league games going on. With two grandchildren participating in those leagues, I am one of those spending extra time in the park in the summer. The swimming pool opened May 26. It is a popular spot in the summer. For questions about the swimming pool or for swim lesson information, call 243-8343...

The Missouri Municipal League, an organization composed of most of the cities in Missouri, has declared the week of April 30 to May 4 as Local Government Week. During this week, each community can highlight the various services delivered to the citizens of that community. Because it is so vital to keep citizens informed about what is happening, I am serious about my responsibility for writing this article and my weekly column in the Cash-Book Journal...

To keep citizens up to date on the city's progress in 2011, here is a summary taken from the annual accomplishments report that was just completed. This report encourages each city department to look at what was accomplished during the previous year. The city has been compiling this report for the last 10 years, and it is a very informative document...

Since so much of Cape Girardeau County is considered rural, most of us surely are aware of the importance of our agricultural economy. Farmers and ranchers make up only 2 percent of the U.S. population. In Cape Girardeau County we have approximately 1,500 farms, up 20 percent from 2002...

In order to give you the history surrounding the friendly annexation of approximately 238 acres of property owned by Heartland Materials and the Hoffmeister family into the city of Jackson, I have to go back to the city's previous comprehensive plan from December 1998...

While many areas of the country are suffering real declines in construction and a loss of jobs, our region has been faring quite well. We congratulate the city of Cape Girardeau on an outstanding project with the Isle of Capri. The activity associated with the construction of the project is certainly good for the economy in our region. However, the creation of about 400 jobs when the casino is completed will have a more long-lasting effect in the region...

Like every other municipality, the city of Jackson is always searching for any grant possibilities that might save money for our city. As a small, fiscally conservative city, we do not have a person on our staff whose principal responsibility is to write grants. Basically, each department seeks out and writes the grants appropriate for that particular department. Since getting very competitive grants requires accurate, tedious work, we are always pleased when we receive one...

Jackson and Cape Girardeau are big rivals when it comes to football -- or any other sport or school competition. However, our cities also participate in many cooperative events. We have one of those events going on the entire month of October. During Breast Cancer Awareness Month, you'll be seeing a lot of pink alongside our Jackson red and Cape Girardeau orange...

When I was campaigning for my first term as mayor, I stressed the need for a satellite fire station. I am happy to say that we have completed all the preparation for this project and the goal is near. Tonight at 6:30 we are breaking ground on Fire Station No. 2 on the site at South Old Orchard Road at the base of the water tower. We expect to occupy the new station by March of next year...

Homecomers week is over. A good time was had by all. My three youngest grandchildren had a good time trying all the rides. I had a good time waving to them as they were riding. Entertainment director Linda Penzel did a great job providing this year's entertainment. ...

The city of Jackson is still moving forward on the expansion of Nordenia in our north industrial park on U.S. 61. We are very excited about the project as it will include 50 additional manufacturing jobs, a large investment in equipment and a 175,000 plus square foot building and the possibility of a Community Development Block Grant for the building of infrastructure on the property...

The city of Jackson has been selected as one of Missouri's DREAM communities. In 2006 several state agencies discussed way to assist small to mid-sized communities in economic development, with an emphasis on revitalizing downtown districts. The city of Cape Girardeau was selected in the first group of 10 cities in 2006. ...

When campaigning for my first term, there were two projects that I considered high priority. These were the extension of a 34.5 kV electric transmission line and the addition of a satellite fire station. The electric transmission line was high priority because our big transmission line along East Jackson Boulevard was getting close to capacity during periods of extreme heat or extreme cold. ...

Editor's note: Today starts a weekly column by Cape Girardeau, Jackson and Scott City mayors. Since this is the first column I have written for the Southeast Missourian, you might want to know a little more about who I am. I am a retired schoolteacher, having taught 28 years at the Cape Girardeau Vocational School (now the Cape Girardeau Career and Technology Center). ...