Nixa News | December 2018 Edition
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In this month's edition you can read about...
- Why Nixa Utilities will need to cut back on discount it has been providing
- April election: You can run for City Council
- How to get text alerts from the City of Nixa
- See the 2018 State of the Community video
- Helping from the Heart: How city staff give back during the holidays
- Thanking DARE Officer Brent Forgey for 25 years of service
- A letter from the Mayor
- And more!
As always, you can find much more information at Nixa.com and engage with us on our official social media pages on Facebook, Twitter, and Nextdoor.
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The holidays are a great time to reflect on the year behind us and to be thankful.
I'm very thankful for Nixa. On a personal level, this community has given so much to my family and I. It is an incredible home. I am thankful to the schools for teaching my children, and to the friends and neighbors here who make it warm and friendly.
As Mayor, I have been able to gain such a deeper appreciation for the people who make our community so wonderful.
I am thankful for city staff who work hard to ensure roads are maintained, public safety and peace are maintained while justice is served, and fun recreational opportunities are provided. I'm thankful the electrical system works (and when there is an outage, the lights get turned back on), the water is safe to drink, and the dirty water goes away and gets cleaned before going back to the rivers and streams. Also, I'm thankful that our budget is balanced again for 2019. I'm thankful for the efforts of city staff across departments as we've innovated, improved our customer service, and won awards in various departments for what we do.
I'm thankful to the Nixa Chamber of Commerce, and Show Me Christian County for the work they do towards economic development. I believe that 2019 will be a banner year for Nixa thanks to their efforts. I'm thankful to Nixa businesses which provide great places of work, and sell high quality products and services to the people of the Ozarks and beyond. I'm also thankful for the community engagement organizations and non-profits which serve people every day, bettering the lives of people around us who are struggling.
I'm thankful to the Nixa Fire Protection District for improving our insurance rating this year and to all our first responders for their service in the face of danger. And I'm thankful for the folks in state and county government who are working to benefit our community as well.
Please take some time to
watch the State of the Community video
to understand all the hard work that goes into your local government. A lot of work goes on behind the scenes to make this community be great, and in hearing the state of the community addresses from the various local government agencies, you'll get a glimpse into some of that work. At a time when it's easy to be frustrated by national politics, I think it's refreshing to see that our local government is working well together to serve the community we call home.
Sincerely,
Mayor Steele
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This perplexing puzzle will keep you bewildered, befuddled, and bemused.
Q: What does a snowman like to eat for breakfast?
The answer to The Baffler is at the bottom of the newsletter.
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NEW! Subscribe to "Nixa City News" text alerts
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Want important info to find you so you don't have to search for it?
While the city sends email notifications, a monthly newsletter, and lots of social media updates, sometimes you don't check your email, and if you do use social media, you may not check it every day for urgent info that might pop up.
You expect urgent info you NEED to know to buzz your phone and grab your attention.
Well now, the City of Nixa is able to send text alerts directly to your phone so you'll be the first to know when big news is happening in Nixa. It's FREE, but you have to subscribe to get it.
Christian County has already offered categories of alerts such as "Tornado Warnings" or "Traffic Alerts" through the Swift 911 app, but now you can subscribe to a new category of alerts called "Nixa City News."
Just download the Swift 911 Public app (blue app badge) and when you select the categories you want to subscribe to, be sure to include "Nixa City News".
If you already have the Swift 911 app, you'll need to open the app and add "Nixa City News" to your list of subscriptions.
We'll let you know when there is a public safety situation involving Nixa Police, and provide updates regarding electric outages, street closures, and other important info. We'll also remind you when big city events are coming up like Sucker Days and the Christmas Parade.
This text alert system ensures you know important information as fast as possible. In a crisis, it may even provide you with life saving information when seconds count.
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The next municipal election will be held on April 2, 2019.
The following positions will be up for election:
- District 2 City Council seat
- District 3 City Council seat
- Municipal Judge
Council members serve 3-year terms, and the municipal judge serves 2-year terms.
To run for city council or municipal judge, you must apply in person at Nixa City Hall between December 11 and January 15 in order to have your name placed on the ballot.
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City Council Qualifications:
- A Council Member shall be a citizen of the United States and a resident of the City for one (1) year at the time of filing for office. A person must be a resident of the District for which the person is seeking office at the time of filing for office and must be registered to vote in that District and must remain a resident of the District during the time of service as an elected official of the City.
- A council member must not violate any prohibition of the City Charter or be convicted of a crime involving moral turpitude.
- A council member must not default in taxes to the City.
Municipal Judge Qualifications:
- A municipal judge shall be a licensed member of the Missouri Bar, shall have been in active practice of law in the State of Missouri for at least three years immediately preceding his or her election.
- A municipal judge must not be convicted of a crime involving moral turpitude.
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The 2018 State of the Community banquet was held on Thursday, Nov. 1 at Nixa Junior High.
What is the state of the Nixa community? What did we accomplish in 2018? What's ahead for us in 2019?
Hear answers to these questions from the leaders of our various community organizations, from the state level down to the county and city level.
0:00-4:42 State Rep. Jered Taylor
4:43-6:50 State Senator Jay Wasson
6:51-9:42 Christian County Presiding Commissioner Ray Weter
9:43-11:19 Christian County Sheriff Brad Cole
11:20-16:08 Nixa Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Chris Russell
16:09-20:13 Nixa Fire Protection District Chief Jon Trent
20:14-22:21 Nixa Mayor Brian Steele
22:22-26:32 Nixa City Administrator Jimmy Liles
26:33-33:35 Nixa Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Gearl Loden
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Nixa Electric has been giving customers a discount it can't afford to give any longer
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Nixa City Council has tried to prevent stark rate increases to customers over the last decade as the price of energy has gone up.
“We’ve essentially been giving a discount as if power was cheaper than it actually is,” says Doug Colvin, Director of Nixa Utilities.
But now, the utility’s money reserves are running low and it can’t afford to keep giving the same discount. Each customer’s bill is a little different, but an average residential customer will likely have their discount drop from around 12% to around 7% at the start of 2019, when the utility changes its billing formula.
To understand this situation, it helps to understand three things.
- How electric rates are formulated.
- The impact of Nixa Utilities not charging its customers the full cost of increasing energy prices from suppliers.
- The effect of the Fuel Cost Adjustment from City Utilities of Springfield.
City Council will discuss what to do about this situation during upcoming council meetings. The details of any changes have yet to be determined.
“Our goal is to keep electric bills from increasing more than 5%, and ideally, when we renegotiate our energy purchase contracts, there will be enough savings to prevent any further increases for several years,” says Colvin. “Keeping rates low is a top priority.”
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Helping from the Heart: How Nixa City staff give back
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During the holiday season, Nixa City staff adopt 6 families through Least of These food pantry. Staff donate their own money and we collect food donations so we can provide these families with meals for Thanksgiving, Christmas and some extra food to stock their pantries. We also help Santa be sure the children of those families get the Christmas gifts on their lists.
You can help by donating non-perishable food items at the Nixa Dollar General stores. They have big blue barrels labelled "Helping from the Heart" where you can drop off items for donation.
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James Owens is the substation technician for Nixa Utilities electric department. James has been with the City since 2000, and he transferred to the electric department in 2007.
James has completed large projects including the upgrades and expansions of all four Nixa electric substations. He is instrumental in our SCADA System which gives the city the ability to electronically monitor our grid remotely. The city continues to invest in that system so we can improve reliability and respond more quickly to outages and other issues which may arise.
James was the lead employee on the project to replace the Espy Substation Transformer after it failed in 2017. James led our team in moving an old transformer from the Downtown Substation to the Espy Substation and retro-fitted it so it could help get the city through the hot summer months of 2017 until the city could take delivery of the new, bigger Espy transformer which was delivered in early 2018. James put in a lot of overtime on these projects to keep the lights on for Nixa residents and businesses. He cares about the electric department and Nixa Utilities customers, and we thank him for all his hard work.
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Thanks for 25 years of service
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Thanks to Nixa DARE Officer Brent Forgey for 25 years of service as our community DARE Officer. At the Nixa State of the Community Dinner held at Nixa Junior High on November 1, Officer Forgey was recognized for his decades of service to Nixa students by educating them about peer-pressure, self-esteem, safety, and saying "no" to drug use. City Administrator Jimmy Liles presented Officer Forgey with a plaque commemorating his quarter century of dedication to this noble work.
This year, Officer Forgey also earned the lifetime achievement award from the Missouri DARE Officers Association, and was named as one of the Springfield Business Journal's Men of the Year. Congratulations and thanks for all you've done and continue to do for our community!
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Nixa's 64th Christmas Parade
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On Sunday, December 2nd, Nixa will hold its annual 64th Christmas Parade! This year’s theme is ‘A Charlie Brown Christmas’. The parade will start at 2:00 pm.
Leaving from The X Center, the parade will travel west on North St., turn right on to Main (north) to Aven and turn left (west), take Aven to Fort St. (south), south on Fort St. to Wasson (west), west on Wasson to McCroskey (north), north on McCroskey to Lorene (East), east on Lorene to Main St. (north), north on Main St. to Short St. (east), East on Short St., to Frank (south), South on Frank to Kyle (East), East on Kyle to the back driveway of the Nixa Jr. High.
Parade participants: registration will end on Friday, November 30th.
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Mayor's Tree Lighting Ceremony and Caroling at the Crossroads
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The Mayor's Tree Lighting Ceremony will be held in conjunction with Caroling at the Crossroads, an event organized by the Downtown Revitalization Committee. This will be at 6pm on Saturday, December 1st, at the intersection of Main Street and Hwy 14. There will be caroling and lots more Christmas fun!
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Write to:
Santa Claus
c/o Nixa Parks and Recreation
P.O. Box 395
Nixa, MO 65714
Please include an important event or accomplishment for 2018, a wish list, mailing address, email address, parent first and last name, and phone number. In order to receive your letter from Santa, he must receive yours no later than December 12th, 2018.
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Nixa Recycle Center Christmas Hours
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The Update is a great way to learn more about what's happening in Nixa and have your questions answered while enjoying lunch. Each month, we bring a different guest speaker. These events give senior citizens an opportunity to meet and interact with the city's leadership, voice their concerns, and stay informed!
UPCOMING DATES: November 28, December 27, January 30.
Anyone can enjoy lunch at the Nixa Senior Center. A suggested donation covers the cost of lunch: $3.50 for those 60+ and $6.00 for those under 60. Learn more at the
Nixa Senior Center
website.
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Date: December 21st - January 2nd
Monday - Friday; with the exception of Christmas and New Year’s Day.
Location: The X Center
Open To: Ages 5 years old - 6th grade.
Cost: Members $15, Nixa Residents $20, Non-Residents $25
Registration begins October 30th and ends December 19th.
Please send a sack lunch and two snacks each day.
Register early, space is limited!
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Registration for Winter Recreational Basketball began October 22nd and will end December 5th.
The program is open to boys and girls ages 3 years old (must be 3 by January 5th) to 6th grade.
Games will be played on Saturdays. The season will run from Saturday, January 5th - February 9th.
The fees for the program are as follows: Members $40, Nixa Residents $45, Non-Residents $53. *Late registration from December 6th - December 9th with a $10 additional late fee.
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Spring Recreational Soccer
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Registration for Spring Recreational Soccer begins December 10th and ends February 6th. The program is open to boys and girls ages 3 years old (must be 3 by March 16th) to 8th grade. Games will be played on Saturdays at McCauley Park. The season will run from Saturday, March 16th - April 27th.
The fees for the program are as follows: Members $40, Nixa Residents $45, Non-Residents $53. *Late registration from February 7th - 10th, with a $10 additional late fee.
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Games will be played March 18th/19th - April 15th/16th
(3rd/4th Grade plays Mondays; 5th/6th Grade plays Tuesdays)
Tournament: Saturday, April 27th
Location: The X Center
Cost: Members $40, Residents $45, Non-Residents $53
Open To: Girls in 3rd - 6th Grade
Registration begins December 10th and ends February 13th; *Late registration from February 14th - 17th, with a $10 additional late fee.
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Recreational Flag Football is designed as an introduction to the sport, to build on skills, and to foster an interest in football. Participants will learn the basic skills and concepts of the game.
Games begin Saturday, March 16th with the six-week season ending April 27th. Games will be played at Rotary Park. The program is open to boys and girls 3rd-6th grade.
Registration begins on December 10th and ends on February 13th. The fees for the program are as follows: Members $40, Nixa Residents $45, Non-Residents $53. *Late registration from February 14th - 17th, with a $10 additional late fee.
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Dates:
Tuesdays (Intro to Art): January 15th - February 19th
Thursdays (Studio Art): January 17th - February 21st
Time:
Intro to Art (PK-2nd): 6:15 pm to 7:00 pm
Intro to Art (3rd-6th): 7:15 pm to 8:00 pm
Studio 2D: 6:15 pm to 7:00 pm
Studio 3D: 7:15 pm to 8:00 pm
Location: The X Center
Cost: Members $30, Nixa Residents $35, Non-Residents $40
Registration: Begins December 10th and ends January 11th.
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The Indoor Garage Sale will take place at The X Center on Saturday, February 23rd from 7:00 am to 2:30 pm. Entrance is FREE to the public. Registration for booth spaces begins December 1st. Space is limited—please register early! A 10x10 space is $20 and a 10x15 space is $30. Tables are available for $5 per table. The X Center reserves the right to refuse any item inappropriate for sale in this event. No concession items allowed.
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More Nixa Parks Events, Programs, & Sports Leagues
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FYI: For Your Information
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Sign Up for Text Alerts and
E-Notifications
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Get emergency alerts on your phone by downloading the Swift 911 Public app. Subscribe to the "Nixa City News" alerts category and any other categories you'd like to receive text alerts about.
Sign up here for e-mail notifications from the City of Nixa. You may select which categories of e-notifications you will receive, so you only get emails on the topics you're interested in. From bids, to calendar events, to press releases, you can get an alert as soon as the information is released so you don't have to wait for the monthly newsletter.
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The City of Nixa has job openings for various city departments!
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CITY CONTACT NUMBERS:
City Hall: 725-3785
Police: 725-2510
911 Non-emergency and Animal Control: 582-1030
Nixa Utilities and report an outage: 725-3229
Public Works: 725-2353
Parks: 725-5486
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The solution to your scalp scratchin'.
Q: What does a snowman like to eat for breakfast?
A: Frosted Flakes.
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Nixa City Hall | 417-725-3785 | CityHall@Nixa.com | Nixa.com
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