The Mayor’s Corner 09/13/2023

Mayor Randy Hibberd

As some of you may know, Cathy has spent much of her time over the past 8 years watching two of our grandchildren while their mother taught. She has thoroughly enjoyed being with them, being involved in their development, and teaching them since Cathy is a retired teacher herself.
So, it was with a little bit of grief, mixed with an equal amount of relief, that the youngest started kindergarten this year. She wasn’t sure what she would do with so much time on her hands, but then she found that the Hospital needed a grant writer. So, Cathy threw herself into using her research and writing skills for a good cause while still having plenty of time for herself.
However, last week Cathy got a call from our daughter. It turns out that the youngest grandson needed some Grandma time. So, on Friday the two of them had the day to themselves doing whatever they wanted to do. They even roped Grandpa into taking them for pizza that evening. I think they both had a great day! And Grandma had a happy heart.
Friday was also the deadline for filing to get one’s name on the City Election ballot for this November. There are three 4-year City Council positions open, a 2-year City Council position, and the Mayor position. At 5:00 on Friday there were six candidates who had filed for the three 4-year positions including incumbent Larry Hogg, Herb Haun, Kerry Nyce, Susan McCoy, Christina Stanley, and Katie von Brethorst. There was one candidate to file for the 2-year position, Margie Chipman. Congratulations Margie!
On the Mayor’s position, it looks like you will be stuck with me for another four years since there were no other candidates to file. I look forward to continuing to serve you to the best of my abilities.
In City matters this week, Pat Malay from the Street Department had Mike Campbell and me meet him at Memorial Park to take a look at the beloved hillside above the football field. The hillside grass is dying due to a weed that is choking out the grass. As the weeds die out in the fall the hillside turns brown. This is the reason the hillside looks much different than the rest of the park.
There are two choices in dealing with this issue. We can either let it stay the same and watch the weeds spread. Or we can kill a section at a time, water the section to make the weeds grow again, kill it again, and replant grass.
To me, in order to have a healthy park, the only choice is to kill and replant. However, this will cause some inconvenience.
We will probably divide it into three sections starting at the north end. This will allow the hillside to be continued to be used for football home games this season. This would also have the hillside ready for the baseball season in the spring. The football section would then probably be replanted in the spring.
However, killing and seeding the norther section this fall might require this area to blocked off for snow sledding this winter. The southern portion above the football field would still be open, but any kid will tell you that the sledding is much better on the steeper north end. We will have to see how strong the grass is and how deep the snow is this fall before a decision can be made.
Also, for those of you who might be interested, the City has an opening for a part-time clerk in the front office. If that is something you might be interested in, please contact Natasha at City Hall, or call 208-414-1965.
Well, that’s it for this week. I hope you are enjoying this great fall weather. Weiser really is a great place to live, work, and play!