In case you missed it: Town Hall Meeting

To a crowd of about 40 people, Mayor Lioneld Jordan kicked off his town hall meeting by recapping some of his pet projects, including the year-round food drive. In the first few weeks of the We Can Campaign, 400 pounds of food had been collected, Jordan said.

The mayor also reiterated his goal to have every household in Fayetteville using energy efficient lights. He said the city began this initiative by changing the light bulbs in Hillcrest Towers, a housing project in downtown Fayetteville. The switch will save $13,000 a year, the mayor said.

Then, Mayor Jordan allowed various city departments to give reports, starting with the finance department.

The city’s general fund could be down $2 to $2.5 million this year because of a drop in sales tax revenue, investments and building permits, said Paul Becker, the city’s finance director.

In April, the city’s sales tax revenue, which is the largest revenue generator for the general fund, was down 4.7 percent compared to last year, Becker said.

“This is something that’s here, and this is something that we’re going to have to face,” he said.

After staff reports, which included briefings on the 2010 census and the city’s sustainability projects, the mayor opened the forum up to public comment. Don Marr, the mayor’s chief of staff, got the ball rolling, by asking what was happening with the construction on Township.

Terry Gulley, transportation services director, fielded the question and said it was a joint effort between the transportation department and the water and sewer division. The objective is to renovate the infrastructure on Township, including replacing the water line and building a sidewalk for the south side of the road.

They are shooting to have the project completed by the end of August, Gulley said.

“We’re pushing as hard as we can get to have as much of it done as possible prior to school starting again,” he said.