GOOD NEWS

Fiscally Sound. That is what the Standard & Poor’s AAA bond rating, (its highest) is saying to investors and the citizens of Barnstable.

More good news, right on the heals of the S&P announcement. Moody’s Investment House announced that it has upped Barnstable’s rating by 2 points. This Aa1 rating is their 2^nd highest rating. Only 7 other communities in MA are rated Aa1 by Moody’s.

Precinct 3 Town Councilor Jim Munafo, Jr. had this to say “Wow, just thinking about it brings a smile to my lips: a Standard & Poor’s AAA bond rating. To know of the effort that it has taken, to bring what was thought to be unattainable about. Thanks go out to John Klimm, Mark Milne and the Finance Department, the School Committee and the School Department, and the Town Council; we have worked together to bring this sign of excellence to Barnstable, and I am so pleased that we were able to do this on your behalf, never mind the years of cost savings that goes along with it.”

Barnstable is a good investment! 

Good News. With its biggest commitment in decades, Barnstable is committing the resources required to fix our roads.

The Department of Public Works has undertaken a comprehensive assessment of town roads and is implementing a plan of action based on the results. A marked improvement is being felt Town wide and, as you have seen, is well under way.

More Good News:

In a public / private partnership the Town Council voted September 18^th to commit $1.6 million to repair Private Roads as well.

This is all being done…

Without raising your taxes!

Spearheaded by one Town Councilor, a vision for Hyannis is becoming a reality.

Precinct 3 Town Councilor , Jim Munafo, Jr. saw a need for consistency for Hyannis, starting with the Downtown. With the glare from the new Transportation Center,  the unmatched Harbor lighting, and the Main St. lighting project unfinished; something needed to be done, but what?

While on a trip to Illinois, Jim toured the city of Urbana, and fell in love with the lighting. Seeing that Barnstable could use this touch, Councilor Munafo was introduced to Burtness Engineering.

Barnstable hired the services of Burtness Engineering to do Barnstable’s first lighting study and formed the Hyannis Lighting Study Committee. They have worked together to develop a lighting study that focused on issues like: safety, putting light where we want it, design, light trespass, city glow, and energy efficiency.

Jim believes that improved Downtown lighting is only the beginning of the good news. With continued community support, Jim sees this plan as a blueprint for future town-wide lighting improvements.

Good news!

Barnstable, MA earned the National Civic League’s All-America City award, the oldest and most prestigious civic recognition competition in the United States. Communities from all over the country participated in the two-day event, held in Orange County, CA

The 2007 winners tackled tough community issues such as healthcare, environmental protection, demographic change, economic development, promotion of the arts, innovations in parks and recreation programs, cultural diversity, education, neighborhood revitalization, youth involvement in local decision-making and public safety. Headquartered in Denver, Colorado, NCL is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that accomplishes its mission of strengthening democracy at the local level through technical assistance, publishing, facilitating community-wide strategic planning and awards programs.

Thank you to everyone!