Admit it, your newsletter sounds like this:
Dear Friends and Neighbors,
It has been a busy and productive few weeks serving our community. I was honored to join local leaders, business owners, and residents at several important events throughout the district. From ribbon cuttings to groundbreaking ceremonies, it is always inspiring to see the progress we are making together to strengthen our local economy and improve the quality of life for all.
Efficiency and Sustainability at the Wastewater Treatment Facility
Earlier this month, I had the opportunity to tour the Regional Wastewater Treatment Facility to learn more about ongoing upgrades that will ensure sustainability and efficiency for generations to come. I want to thank the dedicated staff who work tirelessly to protect our environment and maintain critical infrastructure that often goes unseen but is essential to our community’s wellbeing.
Proclamation for Small Business Week
I was also pleased to present a proclamation recognizing Small Business Week and to honor the entrepreneurs who make our neighborhoods vibrant and dynamic. Their hard work and innovation drive our local economy, and I remain committed to policies that help small businesses thrive.
In addition, our office continues to focus on constituent services. Whether it’s helping residents navigate state programs, addressing local concerns, or connecting people with resources, my team is here to assist you. Please don’t hesitate to reach out if we can be of help.
As always, I am grateful for the opportunity to serve you. Together, we are building a stronger, more resilient community.
Warm regards,
Newsletter with human voice — mine
Hi Everyone--
Welcome back to my monthly newsletter. I thought I would try something new in this one, and include a couple of constituent issues that came up. Who doesn't like to hear about someone else's problems?
You killed my tree!
Someone emailed my office a few weeks ago because the City killed the big tree in front of her house. We replaced the sidewalk, which was being uprooted (literally) by the tree, and in doing so, we (I mean the City, not me personally) damaged the roots of the tree to the point where it was pretty unstable. It probably wasn't going to fall over and crush a car, but it could have.
So we removed the tree, or most of it. They (we) left a pretty big sized stump. But anyway, I felt bad that we had killed an old tree, but the reality is that type of tree (a hackberry tree), shouldn't have been planted there to begin with. The roots do a lot of damage to sidewalks, in what a USDA report on this issue calls "tree-sidewalk conflict."You can read the article here: https://www.fs.usda.gov/psw/topics/urban_forestry/products/cufr_115.pdf
Someone stole my cell phone!
We also got a message from someone because her cell phone got stolen while she was in Mexico, and her cell phone company, who will remain unnamed here, but its initials are AT&T, insisted on sending her a code to her stolen phone, so they could verify her identity before they would talk to her.
You can see why that wasn't working out. It sounded like the cell phone company expected her to be able to go in person to a store to handle this, but evidently the stores in Mexico can't communicate with the stores in the US.
We emailed the FCC (Federal Communications Commission) and someone from the Office of the President at the cell phone company got back to us pretty quickly. Evidently when the FCC contacts a cell phone provider, they need to respond within 3 days. They took care of the issue, and I was happy we could help out here.
Other business; meetings with intense arguments
Those were probably the two most interesting constituent issues recently. I also went to several commission meetings (Peace and Justice, Zero Waste, and Youth). Sometimes there are pretty intense arguments that happen at these meetings, but there wasn't anything like that this time. I'll try to remember to tell you when there are.
That's pretty much it for this newsletter. In the next issue, I'll talk more about "slow streets", a project that the city tested during Covid lockdown that has proved to be very popular in some neighborhoods and despised in others.
As always, if my office can help in any way with a bureaucratic issue or a city issue, please let us know. It sounds like a cliche, but we really are here to help.