September 2009 City Council Meeting

Last week's city council meeting was rather uneventful by some standards, but interesting and necessary nonetheless.

• Some Joshua residents and business owners got the re-plats and zoning they needed to continue with plans for improving life and business
  
• A couple residents were re-appointed to serve on our economic development boards and we're very thankful for their service.
  
• We adopted our tax rate for our next fiscal year which is lower than the current year, but will bring in more revenue to the city because of increases in appraised property values set forth by the appraisal district.
• We adopted the proposed budget for next fiscal year to keep our fair city going another year with a few enhancements here and there.

The item with the most discussion was the new health plan for our 28 or so city employees. Health care plans are always mind-numbing and frustrating to shop for and compare so my hat is off to our city manager and staff for getting it done and putting forth what appears to be a good option moving forward.

I've been on the council for a few months now and I've enjoyed it very much. I take even the most mundane votes seriously and I'm humbled by the big decisions. I felt that way about the health plan vote. We the council don't have the time to attend every meeting with our insurance brokers and review every plan option so we depend on a competent staff to bring us good information. Such was the case this time. It wasn't just a mindless decision on spending some money on just another budget item though, there are nearly 30 people and families attached to it. I pray for wisdom in all decisions.