October 30, 2006
EXCEEDING EXPECTATIONS
Twelve City of Midland employees, selected as finalists in this year’s Exceeding Expectations Program, will be honored at an awards banquet on Thursday, November 2, 2006, from 6:30 – 8:30 p.m. at the Petroleum Club, 501 Wall St.
The program, now in its eighth year, provides formal recognition of employees for their positive attitudes, for going above and beyond the call of duty, and for serving the City with P.R.I.D.E. (Productivity, Respect, Initiative, Dedication, Empathy). A random drawing will determine three grand prize winners, each of whom will receive two round trip tickets for two (donated by Southwest Airlines) and $300 cash.
A three-person Executive Awards Committee, comprised of three local business executives, reviewed 28 eligible nominations received for the period October 1, 2005, through September 30, 2006, to determine those whose actions best exemplified the City’s commitment to P.R.I.D.E.
This year’s finalists are Sammy Ray Collins (Vehicle Services), Ester Gomez (Accounting), Ismael Guzman, David Navarro and Javier Ramirez (Solid Waste), Kevin Keith, Alan Kilgore, Brain McGary, Gilbert Carter, Allan Moore, Angelica Olivas (Fire Department), and Dennis Yates (Garage).
The public, as well as City of Midland supervisors, co-workers and peers of City employees, are encouraged to submit an Exceeding Expectations nomination whenever they observe an employee doing something exemplary that relates to one or more of the values reflected in the P.R.I.D.E. acronym. When a nomination is received, it is forwarded to the employee’s department manager, who rates it as a “1”, “2” or “3”. Only those nominations receiving a “3” rating are eligible for consideration by the Executive Awards Committee.
EZ RIDER OFFERS EXTENDED HOURS
The City of Midland is proud to announce new extended hours of service for the EZ Rider bus routes. Buses will now operate two hours later than in the past. Hours of operation will run from 6:15 a.m. – 8:15 p.m. Monday through Friday. Saturday hours will remain the same, 6:15 a.m. – 6:15 p.m. The change will be effective Monday, November 6, 2006.
There are currently six routes in Midland. The City continues to see increased growth in ridership. In Midland, the latest numbers indicate that over 17,000 people catch a ride on EZ Rider each month.
CROSSING ACCIDENT REDUCTION ENFORCEMENT
The Midland Police Department will team up with Union Pacific Railroad to help raise awareness of train safety and reduce the number of accidents. On October 31, 2006, officers with the MPD Traffic Division will ride with Union Pacific Railroad and alert other officers in their vehicles of any motorists not obeying the signs, lights, or crossing gates. The media is invited to ride along too.
Officers will write tickets and issue citations to those disobeying the law. The program is designed to draw attention to the dangers of trying to “beat” a train. MPD officers will ride from Fairgrounds Road, beginning at 7:30 a.m., through the City and back.
Union Pacific reminds drivers that it is hard to tell how fast a train is traveling. In Texas, the main cause of railroad crossing accidents is motorists that choose to disobey warning signs.
There are 11 railroad crossings inside Midland’s city limits. All of the crossings have gates.
AUTOPSY RESULTS
Midland Police have received information regarding the death of a Midland man killed in a one-vehicle accident earlier this month.
Autopsy results indicated the cause of death for 57-year-old Walter McClain as Blunt Force Trauma to the head and neck.
Police were called to the intersection of Wadley and Lamesa at approximately 12:50 a.m. on October 15, 2006, in reference to a single vehicle accident.
McClain was traveling eastbound on Wadley in a 2000 GMC 1500 pickup when he moved to the right and struck a traffic signal pole in the southeast corner of the intersection. He was not wearing a seatbelt.
McClain was pronounced dead at the scene.
Investigators had been unsure if the accident or some other factor caused the death of McClain. The accident is now being classified as a Fatality.
MIDLAND’S ONE OF THE SAFEST CITIES
The City of Midland ranked in the top 35% as one of the safest American cities in which to live. The announcement was made in the newest edition of City Crime Rankings, an annual reference book of crime statistics and rankings. Midland ranked 131 out of 371 cities considered.
The Morgan Quitno Safest City Award is based on a city’s rate for six basic crime categories: murder, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary and motor vehicle theft. All cities of 75,000+ populations that reported crime data to the FBI for the six crime categories were included in the rankings. In this year’s survey, 371 cities were considered for the award. Final 2005 statistics, released by the FBI on September 18, 2006, were used to determine the rankings.
In 2005, Midland’s crime statistics were down 4% for Part I crimes:
Crime |
2005 |
2004 |
Percent increase/decrease |
| Murder & Manslaughter by Negligence |
2 |
4 |
-50% |
| Sexual Assault |
80 |
52 |
+46% |
| Robbery |
50 |
82 |
-34% |
| Aggravated Assault |
277 |
310 |
-11% |
| Burglary |
779 |
997 |
-22% |
| Theft |
2808 |
2784 |
+1% |
| Auto Theft |
178 |
123 |
+45% |
| Total Part I |
4174 |
4352 |
-4% |
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