lakelandgov.net lakelandgov.net lakelandgov.net 30290-I-0140
City of Lakeland’s Monthly Newsletter
January 2014
➢
MEET
➢ 228 S. Massachusetts Ave. Lakeland, FL 33801 863.834.6000 www.lakelandgov.net
EDIE YATES, SOUTHEAST
PHILIP WALKER, NORTHWEST
• VALUES
Social Responsibility Leadership • Integrity Commitment to Excellence Empowered Workforce Diversity
JUSTIN TROLLER, AT-LARGE
A community working together to achieve an exceptional quality of life.
DON SELVAGE, SOUTHWEST
• MISSION
CITY COMMISSIONERS KEITH MERRITT, NORTHEAST
–a vibrant, innovative, culturally-inclusive, world-class community.
YOUR JIM MALLESS, AT-LARGE
LAKELAND
HOWARD WIGGS, MAYOR
VISION
The City of Lakeland operates under a Commission-Manager form of government. City Commissioners are elected by residents and in turn, they hire a City Manager to oversee the daily operations of the municipality. The City Commission makes policy decisions, passes ordinances and resolutions, sets tax rates and approves the City’s budget among other matters required by state or federal law. The City Commission accommodates to the needs of its citizens by enacting local legislation based on the necessities of the citizens. The City Commission consists of seven (7) electors: the mayor, four district commissioners and two at-large commissioners. Each member serves a four-year term. The City of Lakeland has a new City Commissioner that will begin his new term this month after participating in the November 2013 City-wide election and a run-off election December 3, 2013. Please welcome Jim Malless as Lakeland’s newest City Commissioner. Lakeland also has a new Mayor starting this month with Howard Wiggs being elected during the November 2013 City-wide election. Howard has served as a member of the Lakeland City Commission for the past 19 years. Please welcome Mayor Howard Wiggs. Lakeland City Commissioners encourage residents to continue to play an active role by staying informed and engaged in local government. City Commission meetings allow citizens to see their government at work and to participate in the process. Regular meetings are generally held at Lakeland City Hall on the 1st and 3rd Monday of each month at 9:00 a.m. An agenda study meeting is held on the Friday before a regular meeting in the Commission conference room at 8:30 a.m. Meeting agendas are available online at www.lakelandgov.net. All regular meetings are broadcast live on LGN channel 615 (Bright House Networks) and channel 43 (Verizon FiOS). A live web stream is also available at lgn.lakelandgov.net. The City also invites citizens to stay engaged through social media. The City maintains a Facebook page that can be easily found by searching City of Lakeland, FL and we have a very strong Twitter presence for those that want to receive information in 140 characters or less. You can find our Twitter feed by searching @lakelandgov. The City hopes that all residents have a very happy and prosperous New Year!