News from the Oldsmar City Manager's Office April 2020

Oldsmar City Manager Al Braithwaite As we end the second week of this unprecedented adventure, I wanted to share something good with the public about what we do, and make sure that as many people find out about it, as possible.  COVID-19, or the Coronavirus as we’ve come to know it, is a worldwide pandemic that has affected hundreds of thousands of people, and has brought our economy to a walking pace.

The regulatory arms of government, from the President’s office, to the Governor’s office, to the County Administrator’s office, right down to our very own Mayor, have all been in emergency mode, trying to make people realize how serious this IS, while balancing that need with the hope that we don’t have to shut down the economy entirely, before we can defeat this disease and its spread. Your Mayor and Council are concerned with ONE concept...the Health and Safety of our Community. Know this…your City employees totally understand their role as Emergency Service providers, and they have stood with me since the inception of this pandemic, to do whatever is required for the city to do.  We are in the Emergency Services business, and as most of you know, we come to work when everyone else needs to seek shelter. This is new territory for sure, but the premise is the same for us, and my people are the best there is at it.

Now for some really good news.  A couple of weeks back, I was shown the Spring version of our newly created magazine, which is known as “ Experience Oldsmar .”  We create one of these several times per year, and do it totally in-house, with City employees.  When I saw this product, I told my staff that we need to make sure that this magazine gets to EVERY single household in the City.  It’s that good. So, with my apologies for the odd timing (we planned this several weeks ago), I believe you all now possess a copy of our “ Experience Oldsmar ” magazine.  Complete with the Mayor’s Message on the inside cover, it contains information that I’ll bet very few of you were aware of, ESPECIALLY those with children!!!!!  It has information on the incredible number of programs we put on, events, park locations, AND a couple of feature articles on our residents and businesses.  My wife said to me when she saw it yesterday, “I didn’t know the City did all of this????” That’s EXACTLY why I wanted everyone to have a copy.

The skills of our staff continue to amaze me, and none more so than our Communications and Marketing team, who are responsible for the creation of this treasure.  Mark McGinley and Debb Vitraelli do a fabulous job every day, but have clearly outdone themselves here. Led by the professional guidance of Assistant City Manager Felicia Donnelly, I don’t think you’ll ever find a more professionally done marketing document coming from a municipality anywhere in the world. It is, without a doubt, Coffee Table worthy, and we have been told exactly that.

So, while our timing is a bit off, I want to assure you all that we are taking our responsibilities VERY SERIOUSLY, you should as well, but don’t lose track of this magazine, because those events may have been postponed for awhile, but they will be back, and when we’re back to normal, they will be BETTER THAN EVER.  If you haven’t ever been to one of our special events, just ask ANY KID who has…..that’s all you’ll need to know. Stay safe, stay positive, stay confident…and hug your kids (disinfect them first?)!!!!       Al b

CITY OF OLDSMAR, FLORIDA 100 State Street West, Oldsmar 34677 MyOldsmar.com (813) 749-1100