Friday Recap for January 17, 2024
I hope everyone is doing well. It was a busy week and there is a lot to report on. I am experimenting with AI to help me with my recap. I was able to use it for the County Commission meeting and the School Board Work Session. It does a great job of summarizing meetings. All I have to do is plug in a video/audio and it does the rest. Let me know what you think.
I want to start a series on what County Commissioners do. We have two main functions. First, we approve all expenditures that the county makes and second, we set the property tax rate. You can read what our responsibilities are here.
There are 12 voting districts in Williamson County and each district has two commissioners. All 24 commissioners are elected every four years. Our next election in in 2026. To find out more about what district you are in and who are your commissioners, go to the county website here and click on members and to find your district go here. You can also check out Williamson County Citizens in my Community Resources below and click on address lookup tool.
Next week, I will talk about the structure of the commission.
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Williamson County School District
The School Board met for their monthly work session on Thursday. Agenda Video
It lasted almost four hours. Much of it was about special ed. You can read the AI summary of the meeting below
The special ed presentation starts at 6:26 in the video and you can access the presentation by clicking on the agenda above and scrolling down to 3.a.
Next week is the monthly board meeting on Tuesday the 21st. at 6:30 PM in the Auditorium at the Williamson County Administrative Building located on the first floor at 1320 West Main Street, Franklin, Agenda Video (video is available at 6:30 pm on Tuesday, scroll down to school board livestream).
If you’d like to speak during public comment, please send your name, complete mailing address, topic of comments and any organization you represent to publiccomment@wcs.edu. You may sign up for public comment for the next meeting between Thursday, January 16, 2025 at 12 p.m. through Monday, January 20, 2025 at 12 p.m.
Williamson County Commission
The County Commission met on Monday. Agenda Video
One highlight I would like to point out is resolution 1-25-9 which is a request to hire nine new positions for the Sheriff's office. We started with $1,582,155.18 to add these nine positions plus vehicles, equipment etc. for six months. We took off the cost of the vehicles which was $796,500 and pushed that cost into fiscal year 2025-25. You can see the resolution with all of its accompanying information in the agenda packet above. The discussion starts at 42:22.
Below is the AI summary of the entire meeting:
Coming next week:
Rules Committee meets on Wednesday a 4:30 pm in the executive conference at the county building at 1320 W. Main St. to discuss the resolutions t be discussed below:
The Property Committee meets on Wednesday at 5:30 pm in the executive conference at the county building at 1320 W. Main St. to discuss the resolutions below:
Board of Zoning and Appeals meets on Thursday at 6:00 pm in the executive conference at the county building at 1320 W. Main St. Agenda
Board of Mayor and Aldermen
The Historic Zoning Commission met on Monday Agenda Video
The Beer Board met on Tuesday Agenda Video
The BOMA work session met on Tuesday Agenda Video
The BOMA board met on Tuesday Agenda Video
I want to concentrate on the work session Agenda/packets video
There were a lot of people at the meeting to comment on the Mayes Creek project and it got a little heated. Several residents contacted me earlier in the week with concerns about the impact this development will have if it goes through.
I think we are all concerned about the growth in Franklin. It's not that we are opposed to growth per se, but we would like to maintain the rural feel as much as possible and be able to drive on roads that aren't bumper to bumper. Columbia Ave and the interchange at I-65 and Hwy 96 are to examples.
Mayes Creek was on the work session agenda but not on the BOMA Meeting agenda. It will be on the BOMA agenda on February 11th. Please take note, the BOMA meetings will be held at the County Building starting on February 11th and continue until the new City Hall is completed.
The discussion of Mayes Creek starts at 55:06 of the video. I encourage you to watch it so that you can see how our alderman/mayor interact with their constituents. I never support any type of rudeness on either side as it does not further debate in any meaningful way. I understand that emotions are high on this issue, but we need have logic and facts and not merely emotions to win hearts and minds.
Here is the letter I wrote to the concerned citizens:
Next week, there are five meetings scheduled:
Design Review Committee on Tuesday at 4:00pm agenda
Storm Water Appeals Tuesday at 5:30 pm no agenda
Capitol Investment Committee Thursday at 3:30 pm agenda
BOMA & FMPC Joint Conceptual Workshop Thursday at 5:30 pm agenda
Franklin Municipal Planning Commission Thursday 7:00 pm agenda
Williamson County Election Commission
There were no meetings this week and non are scheduled for next week.
If not me, who?
If not now, when?
“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen (Heb. 11:1)
“We work hard with our own hands. When we are vilified, we bless; when we are persecuted, we endure it; when we are slandered, we answer gently.” (1st Corinthians 4:12-13)
Blessings,
Bill
Community resources
If you like Friday Recap, check out these other grassroots conservative projects!
- Williamson County Citizens is a volunteer network of local voters that elect grassroots conservatives to public office.
- TruthWire News covers a broad spectrum of political and governmental issues, from the actions of your local school board and county commissioners to the machinations of city councils and state government officials.
- Tennessee Voters for Election Integrity is helping restore confidence in Tennessee Elections.
- Williamson County Republican Party is one of the most active parties in the state and captures the conservative heart of Tennessee.
- Mom's For Liberty Williamson County is dedicated to fighting for the American family by unifying, educating and empowering parents to defend their parental rights at all levels of government.
- Tennessee Stands produces video media, podcasts, and live events, and provides social commentary on relevant issues in our state.
- M4LU is a new site developed by the national Mom's for Liberty but generated right here in Williamson County. The mission of M4LU is to to inform, equip, and empower parents with knowledge, understanding and practical tools.
Help educate citizens of Williamson County
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