30290-I-0115
City of Lakeland’s Monthly Newsletter
August 2012
Lakeland Electric Names New GM
Check Out Lakeland Electric’s New Outage Tracker
Meet The Kirby Sisters: It’s a Family Thing!
Public Works Department National Recognized
228 S. Massachusetts Ave Lakeland, FL 33801 863.834.6000 www.lakelandgov.net
SCH BUS OO L AFE TY
IN THIS ISSUE
Each year Florida driver’s illegally pass school buses nearly 2 million times. Each illegal pass by could result in a tragic injury or fatality of a student. The inconvenience of an extra few seconds spent waiting for a stopped school bus is insignificant compared to the loss of a child’s life. When you are driving it is important to pay attention to your surroundings. It’s always a good idea to stay a safe distance behind any vehicle especially our school buses. Flashing yellow lights indicate that the school bus is preparing to stop. When a bus comes to a stop the red lights begin flashing and the stop arms are extended. Florida law requires that the vehicles behind the bus must come to a complete stop regardless of which lane they are in. Sometimes there is confusion about the law when you approach a stopped school bus going the opposite direction in an oncoming lane. The easiest to recognize is a two lane road. On a two lane road all vehicles must come to a stop when a school bus is stopped. Vehicles traveling in both directions on a multi lane road or a highway must stop even if the lanes are separated by a turn lane. The only time traffic approaching an oncoming school bus does not need to stop is if there is a raised barrier such as a concrete divider or at least 5 feet of unpaved space separating the lanes of traffic. When there is a median motorists still need to exercise caution as the children may not be aware of the traffic around them. While this law may be confusing to some, simply put, Florida Law requires that motorists stop when approaching any school bus that displays its flashing red lights and stop arms extended. Passing a stopped school bus in Florida not only endangers our most precious resource, our children, but it can also empty your wallet. Penalties could include up to a $500 fine, 4 points on your driver’s license and could lead to a suspension of your driving privilege. School buses are extremely safe. Safety features include steel reinforced frames, flashing lights and stop sign arms. Most school bus injuries take place outside the bus when children are getting on and off. School buses are safest when drivers obey all of our laws. Drive carefully, your safety is important to us.
Monthly Comparison of Residential Electric Rates
Source: FMEA Monthly Utility Bill Comparison • MAY 2012
www.lakelandelectric.com LAKELAND ELECTRIC NAMES NEW GENERAL MANAGER Joel Ivy is the new General Manager of Lakeland Electric. He has experience with various utility models including public power, investor owned and renewable energy organizations. Ivy most recently oversaw the Energy Department for Imperial Irrigation District, a public electric utility located in El Centro, California. Imperial Irrigation District’s Energy Department serves 145,000 customers in southern California. Ivy led the Energy Department where he managed utility operations and 500 employees. “I am very excited to join a top performing organization in Lakeland Electric. The utility is committed to a high degree of service to its consumers and that is evident with all services ranging from customer call performance to generation to the transportation of energy to the customers,” said Ivy. “My wife and I were given tours of Lakeland and we are fascinated by the progressive improvements to the City facilities and parks, the availability of quality healthcare and the general curb appeal of Lakeland itself. It is very obvious that the community is passionate about the quality of life for its residents and we truly want to be part of that passion.” Ivy has an extensive professional career in the power industry that began almost 30 years ago when he started as a lineman in 1983. He has had a steady career path that includes climbing utility poles to managing multi-hundred million dollar operations with start-ups, investor owned and publicly owned utilities. Past experience includes his tenure as Chief Operating Officer at Visible Light Solar Technologies and Vice President of New Mexico Operations for Public Service Company of New Mexico, an investor owned utility with almost 500,000 customers. Ivy has a solid track record of developing and fostering excellent communication programs including internal employee engagement, governing board briefings, customer outreach and community involvement in various boards and non-profit groups. Ivy graduated from the University of Texas at Arlington with a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering. He is married to his wife Penny for 30 years. They have two adult sons who live in Texas. Ivy’s hobbies include fishing, boating, cooking and travelling.
LINEMAN APPRECIATION August 26th marks the 10 year Anniversary of the loss of Lakeland Electric lineworker Marc Moore. In recognition, the City of Lakeland along with the State of Florida will honor lineworkers for the job they perform each day and the sacrifices that they often make in very hazardous weather conditions. Tracy Moore (Marc’s widow), driven by her passion to ensure that their two boys, McLain and McCoy never forget their father, began her journey to seek recognition for lineworkers on a local, state and national level. The Mayor of Lakeland presented Mrs. Moore with a proclamation last year proclaiming August 26th each year as Lineworker Appreciation Day. Upon completion at the local level, Moore with the support of Barry Moline, Executive Director of the Florida Municipal Electric Association and Representative Seth McKeel presented lineworker appreciation at the state level. On March 2nd, the Moore Family along with lineworkers representing 18 counties and every utility in Florida assembled at the Florida Capitol Building in Tallahassee to hear August 26th declared as Lineworker Appreciation Day within the State of Florida. While Moore could not be more proud of the success at the local and state level, it continues to be her desire and goal to have this recognition at the national level as well. It remains her passion to have the 114,000 lineworkers serving each state and every community across the United States recognized and honored as first responders. She is currently working with state and federal legislators with the hopes that her dream becomes a reality. The City of Lakeland honors all lineworkers while remembering Marc Moore (July 7, 1971 August 26, 2002).This special day of recognition has certainly brought new meaning to August 26th for the entire Moore Family, Lakeland Electric, the City of Lakeland and lineworkers throughout the state of Florida. Please join us in recognizing line workers on this special day for their commitment and unselfish dedication to the communities that they serve.
NEW OUTAGE TRACKER
Lakeland Electric has launched a web tool that allows customers to view a smart map of the utility’s service territory of where power outages are occurring. This real time tool also indicates the number of customers without power at each outage. The map shows the current outages in the Lakeland Electric 258-square-miles service area with a red icon that also indicates the exact number of customers affected by the outage. The map does have an interactive feature so customers can view outage details by clicking on the red icon. The Lakeland Electric Outage Tracker is available under the Residential navigation tab on the Lakeland Electric home page (lakelandelectric.com). The tracker can also be found on the bottom of the City of Lakeland’s homepage (lakelandgov.net) with a highlight button that will link users directly to the tool. The Power Outage Tracker has the Lakeland Electric service territory divided into 11 easy to navigate zones with landmarks and general descriptions so customers can get a very good idea of exactly where the outage is taking place. The map is automatically updated every five minutes in order to give customers the most recent information so customers don’t need to refresh or reload the page. The page also includes a map that shows the current weather conditions using a Doppler Radar service. Customers can view an enlarged Doppler image by simply clicking on the weather map. The Outage Tracker page has information on how to report an outage online as well as by telephone. Customers who would like to report an outage or an electrical emergency such as a downed power line are encouraged to call Lakeland Electric’s dedicated toll-free automated system at 863-834-4248. The system recognizes a customer’s phone number, matching it to the address on file to help locate outages quickly. Customers should call 863-834-9535 to ensure a correct phone number is in the system
NEW ENERGY ACADEMY AT TRAVIS CAREER CENTER Lakeland Electric, in partnership with Polk County Schools, will be expanding its efforts to prepare a skilled workforce for the future, by launching an Energy Career Academy at Traviss Career Center in August, 2012. Transportation will be available to high school students (Grades 9-12) zoned for the following high schools: Fort Meade, Bartow, Mulberry, George Jenkins, Kathleen, Lake Gibson and Auburndale. For more information, contact David Wiggs, Assistant Director of Curriculum for Traviss Career Center, at 863.499.2700, or david. wiggs@polk-fl.net or Betsy Levingston, Director of Training and Workforce Development for Lakeland Electric, at 853.834.6439 or betsy.levingston@ lakelandelectric.com.
G OV E R N M E N T E M P L OY E E S AT WO R K
Meet The Kirby Sisters Meet Laura and Carrie Kirby, two sisters serving as lifeguards this summer at the City of Lakeland’s Gandy Pool.The family name Kirby is well known at the swimming complex. Prior to their arrival two other Kirby sisters also served as lifeguards. Their two older sisters, Marie and Colleen, are former City lifeguards. Colleen Kirby-Riddle started as a lifeguard at age 15 and worked at the pool for four years. Marie Kirby-Davidson, worked as a lifeguard for five years. During her tenure she was a lead lifeguard and served as a supervisor for her last two years at the pool. Laura and Carrie are proud to continue in the footsteps of their sisters. This is Laura’s seventh summer at Gandy Pool and Carrie’s third. Over the years one thing has remained constant, the safety of all guests at the pool is priority number one. As part of their job, they sit atop their stand and monitor their assigned zones of the pool constantly scanning the waters for any signs of trouble. But, their dedication does not stop there; both young ladies also signed up to teach swim lessons. “I love working with kids and teaching them how to swim to help prevent drowning in the future,” says Laura. She says that her role as an instructor is most rewarding because she is able to help people overcome a fear of water. “I’ve taught a lady who was in her sixties,”
Laura recalls. “To watch her conquer that fear was amazing. Anyone can learn how to swim.” Carrie also gets so much joy from teaching swim lessons. “It’s so fun to watch a kid that is super scared of the water or just doesn’t know what to do and watch them develop after taking them through a couple of sessions. Before you know it, they are having so much fun in the water.” The fear of water is something that Carrie Kirby knows all too well. It’s one of the stories their mom loves to tell about her lifeguarding daughters. Colleen, the oldest sister, picked Carrie up and threw her in the pool. Everyone was shocked but it was the spark Colleen felt Carrie needed to conquer her fear of the water and fight to keep herself afloat. To everyone’s surprise it worked. “She knew I could do it,” said Carrie. It’s not a tactic Carrie uses with her beginning swimmers but thanks her sister for the encouragement no matter how extreme it seemed. Laura and Carrie have worked together at Gandy for three summers now. “We have a good relationship, said Carrie. “We know how to work with each other. She does give me orders [as a supervisor] but she knows how to do it nicely.” While they love being out in the sun and in the water, they both say their main focus as lifeguards is making sure they’re always alert and focused. They
have to constantly be on watch, make sure they point out the struggling swimmers and enforce the rules. “I just enjoy the sun, the water and being out here with people everyday,” says Laura.
STAY CONNECTED ONLINE www.lakelandgov.net
Lakeland’s Public Works Department Nationally Recognized Among the Best! Although you may never meet some of the talented employees of the City of Lakeland’s Public Works Department, they are there working, predominately behind the scenes, to make Lakeland a world-class community. The Public Works Department oversees the services of Engineering, Construction and Maintenance,Traffic Operations and Parking Services, Lakes and Stormwater, Facilities Maintenance, Fleet Management and Solid Waste. This year the department was recognized nationally for their Fleet Management initiatives and Project Management abilities with the Parker Street Beautification and Edgewood Extension Projects. Fleet Management The City of Lakeland’s Fleet Management was selected as one of the “100 Best Fleets” in North America for the second consecutive year. The competition, conducted annually by Government Fleet Magazine, highlights the accomplishments of the best government fleets across the U.S and Canada. City of Lakeland’s Fleet Management was awarded the #25 ranking for the second consecutive year for its innovations in tire and parts management, fleet downsizing and reduction, pursuing fuel conservation technologies and products, and facilities improvement. Parker Street Beautification Project The Parker Street Beautification project was chosen by the American Public Works Association (APWA) – West Coast Branch as its 2012 Project of the Year in the category of Transportation. The award recognizes the managing agency, the consultant, architect, engineer, and the contractor who, working together, complete projects that include roads, bridges, mass transit, etc. Good construction management techniques and completion of the project on schedule, safety performance, environmental and social awareness, community relations, unusual accomplishments under adverse conditions, exceptional efforts to maintain quality control and innovation were all weighing factors in the APWA’s selection of this project. The Parker Street Beautification project consisted of converting the existing 4-lane Parker Street between North Massachusetts Avenue and North Lake Parker Avenue, into two travel lanes, a middle turn lane with landscaped medians and the creation of new bicycle lanes on either side. The project also included transit stop amenities, pedestrian crossings, traffic signal adjustments, brick crosswalks and ADA compliant sidewalks. Edgewood Extension Project The East-West Connector project, also known locally as the Edgewood Drive Extension project, was chosen by the American Society of Civil Engineers – Ridge Branch as its 2012 Project of the Year. This award recognizes projects that have demonstrated design and/or construction excellence in the area of civil engineering. The Edgewood Drive Extension project demonstrated significant achievement through design and construction concepts, use of new or existing analytical techniques, use of new and existing technology, adaptive re-use of existing features or infra-structure to minimize environmental impacts within the affected region or area. Congratulations to the employees of the Public Works Department and various other city departments who collaborated with them to achieve their success.
IN PERSON City Hall is open 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. Monday-Friday PUBLIC MEETINGS City Commission and Utility Committee meetings occur the first and third Monday of every month. The public is invited to attend or watch live on
Channel 615 (Brighthouse) or Channel 43 (Verizon FiOS) CITY COMMISSION 9:00 a.m. UTILITY COMMITTEE 1:00 p.m. IMPORTANT NUMBERS City Hall 863.834.6000 Lakeland Electric Customer Service 863.834.9535 Power or Water Outages 863.834.4248 Stormwater Hotline 863.834.3300 PAYING YOUR UTILITY BILL ONLINE www.lakelandelectric.com BY PHONE 863-834-9535 IN PERSON Lakeland Electric has partnered with over 50 local businesses including area AMSCOT offices to accept your utility payment.