Re-elect Randy Jones for Gainesville City Council Ward 3

First Term Initiatives

Sometimes it just takes a "new set of eyes" to see what should be obvious.
 

In my first term as your "Full Time" City Council representative, I have studied and worked diligently to understand the inner workings of our local city government. I came at my new tasks with a determination to understand why we do things the way we do. I'm sorry, but "That's the way we've always done it", is not an acceptable answer.
 

Make no mistake... Representing my fellow citizens on our City Council IS my full time job and I take it very seriously.
 

First term initiatives...
 

We began clean-up, maintenance and improvements at the Fairview Cemetery. I brokered an agreement between the city and the Fairview Cemetery Association for the restoration of the historic chapel (built in 1938). Even though the Chapel is city property, the restoration will be paid for with private funds, not tax dollars. I also designed and began the process to build a cost effective and long overdue maintenance building for the city's cemetery staff.
 

At my request, the "Council Communication" page (a simple plain English explanation of each agenda item) is now being published along with each City Council agenda. We also added the new "Friday Report to Council" which is published weekly on the city website.
 

My fellow council members and I requested the creation of a new "Planning Department" so that Gainesville can hire it's first "City Engineer" and our first "City Planner". Having these experts on staff will be an extremely valuable resource and actually save the city money.
 

I requested, and council agreed to, a full review and update of our City Charter for the first time in 30 years.

After asking repeatedly and finally insisting, our meetings are now live streamed (like they should have been for the last five years).
 

By unanimous vote of the City Council, I was appointed to the Board of Directors of the Gainesville Economic Development Corporation. I was then elected as the secretary of that board, also by unanimous vote.
 

I then requested a full review and update of the GEDC by laws for the first time since its inception (1997) which has now been completed.
 

I have attended two annual conferences of the Texas Municipal League for continuing education and research.
 

I have conducted extensive study on alternative methods for street repair and facilitated a local demonstration of the "Asphalt Zipper" for street base recycling. http://www.nomorepotholes.com Through that process, a city block of Leach Street was repaired and resurfaced in two days at a total cost of only $24,300.