City of Johnson City Juvenile Court announces elected Court Clerk to appear on the Aug. 6, 2020 ballot
Qualifying petitions for the elected Juvenile Court Clerk position with the Johnson City Juvenile Court will be available for pick-up at the Washington County Election Commission beginning Monday, Feb. 3, 2020. This position is part-time and supports the City Juvenile Court with clerical and administrative duties as outlined by Tennessee Code. The compensation for the position is $12,000.00 annually. No other benefits are offered. The position will appear on the Thursday, Aug. 6, 2020 ballot during the state/federal primary and county general elections. The successful candidate will take office on Sept. 1, 2020 and serve a four-year term.
MPCC to host My Little Valentine Daddy Daughter Dance
The very popular My Little Valentine Daddy Daughter Dance is coming to Memorial Park Community Center, 510 Bert St., on Feb. 8 from 6-8 p.m.
Tickets are now on sale for those who want to get dressed up and dance the night away. The Daddy Daughter Dance is open to dads, grandads, guardians and daughters of all ages who will enjoy an evening of DJ music, crafts, light refreshments and a special guest.
Tickets are $10 per person through Jan. 25, and $20 per person from Jan. 26-Feb. 7. Children under 3 get in free. Tickets can be purchased online at myjcparks.org, or in person at MPCC. Tickets purchased online must be picked up before the day of the dance. Tickets will NOT be available for purchase the day of the dance.
Photo packages can be purchased for $15 online, or in person the day of the dance. The package includes four to five digital images that will be emailed to you for personal use.
For more information, call 423-434-5749.
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Johnson City to open hiring process for Police and Fire departments Tuesday
The City of Johnson City will begin the process of hiring new police officers and firefighters on Tuesday (Jan 21). Qualified applicants should demonstrate integrity, good judgement, and the willingness to make a difference in our community.
The first step in the hiring process is the Police Officer Examination or Firefighter Examination. Registrations for the upcoming test dates will be accepted Jan. 21-Feb. 28.
The Johnson City Police Department currently has multiple openings. New officers receive nine weeks of paid training at the police academy, followed by 16 weeks of on-the-job training under the guidance of experienced field training officers. New officers will start on one of five patrol units, working 12-hour shifts with an uninterrupted seven-day break each month. Starting trainee pay for police officers is $35,415.46 and moves to $37,198.14 after completion of the probationary period.
Johnson City Police officers have the opportunity to serve on numerous specialty units such as the K-9 Unit, Criminal Investigations Division, Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) Team, Explosive Ordnance Disposal/Bomb Squad, and the School Resource Officer Program. The department also has officers who work with federal programs in the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Successful police applicants will be eligible for the following incentives:
Tennessee POST Certification $2,100 incentive
Other state POST Certification (requires transition school) $1,000 incentive
Firefighter trainees receive 12 weeks of paid training through the Northeast Regional Fire Training School. New firefighters will be assigned to one of three shifts where they are on duty for 24 hours at a time, every other day, for five days after which they will be off for four days before the schedule repeats. Firefighters work an average of nine or 10 days per month. Starting trainee pay for firefighters is $33,751.66 and moves to $35,415.46 after completion of the probationary period.
Successful firefighter applicants will be eligible for the following incentives:
Tennessee Certified Firefighter I $1,200 incentive
Tennessee EMT (Basic) $1,350 incentive
Tennessee EMT (Advanced) $1,350 incentive
Examination registration information and requirements are available on the City website, www.johnsoncitytn.org/hr. Registration must be completed in person at the Human Resources Department, 601 E. Main St., Johnson City, TN 37601. A $25 non-refundable examination fee is due at the time of registration.
For more information, please call 423.434.6020.
EEO/AA
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Students and old cell phones sought for Langston Centre mobile programming course
Adam Dickson, Langston Centre supervisor, and Dr. Audrey Depelteau, ETSU Innovation Lab director, have announced that Innovation Lab affiliate member John Cannon will be presenting a free course on developing mobile apps between Feb. 4 and March 31 at the Langston Centre. The course teaches high school students how to create mobile apps using technology developed by Glide, a San Francisco-based company.
“I want to develop an ecosystem in the Tri-Cities of young people who can develop mobile applications,” said Cannon, a local engineer and entrepreneur. “Many entrepreneurs are starting companies with an idea that will fit into an app. We need to prepare our students for the future.”
Students will utilize the Langston Centre’s computer center to create the applications but will require the use of cell phones to test their work. The Langston Centre is seeking donations of old cell phones. Both Apple and Android phones will be accepted and all phones will be factory reset to remove any personal information. To donate cell phones, contact the Langston Centre at 423-434-5785.
“Many members of the Innovation Lab have apps as a part of their product offering,” Depelteau said. “We hope individuals in the community will support this effort by donating old phones to enable the students to test their designs,” she said.
The course will conclude with an app expo that will be held at 5:30 p.m. on March 31 at Langston Centre. This event will be open to local businesses and Glide will donate free professional versions of their software for students who solve a real-world problem during this training.
“We are excited to have this course as one of our first program offerings,” Dickson said. “We use smartphones in all aspects of our lives. It will be great to teach our students a skill like this.”
Glide co-founder David Siegel said the company is delighted to support the program and wants to share pictures and stories via its social media channels.
For more about the Langston Centre, call 423-434-5785.
For more about the ETSU Innovation Lab, visit https://etsu.edu/ilab/.
For more about Glide, visit https://www.glideapps.com/.
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Johnson City's Development Services Department announces realignment
The City of Johnson City announced Monday a realignment of its Development Services Department that will strengthen customer service and make the development process smoother and more efficient. The addition and refocusing of several key positions comes as a result of a department assessment, which included numerous meetings with community and industry stakeholders, interviews with employees, and identification of areas for improvement.
“We took an in-depth look at what we were doing well and what we could do better,” said City Manager Pete Peterson. “We listened to the feedback from our stakeholders and determined that speed, consistency, efficiency and customer service were areas for improvement. After carefully assessing the strengths of our staff to determine how we could best utilize their talents and skillsets, we developed a plan that will provide an enhanced level of service moving forward.”
As a direct result of the feedback provided by members of the local building community, Dave McClelland will fill the newly created position of Development Services manager. McClelland, who previously was deputy building official, will serve in the field as an advocate for expedited project development and will oversee both the building and permitting functions to facilitate successful completion of any project from start to finish.
Under McClelland’s leadership is another new position, permitting coordinator, which has been filled by Adrienne Brown. A former permit technician, Brown is responsible for monitoring and improving the permit process and the current utilization of the City’s development software. The existing customer service clerk positions will be elevated to permit technician positions. These employees will participate in additional professional training to obtain International Code Council permit technician certification, which will enable them to perform at a higher level of service.
The City’s chief building official will also fall under the purview of the Development Services manager. Currently vacant, this position will take the lead as chief plans examiner, chief building inspector, and property maintenance inspector. The search is under way for candidates to fill this vacancy.
The Code Enforcement Division (zoning, nuisances, and property maintenance) previously overseen by the chief building official has been relocated under the direction and leadership of Will Righter, who serves as staff liaison to the Board of Zoning Appeals and Board of Dwelling Standards and Review. A development technician position has been added within that team to assist with planning and zoning concerns.
“I remain deeply impressed by the quality and commitment of the employees in this department,” said Development Services Director Preston Mitchell. “Johnson City is on the cusp of a vibrant period of growth and progress marked by increased economic investment and recognition of our city’s quality of place offerings. These changes will allow our staff to function at the highest levels of professional excellence by improving administrative efficiency and placing greater emphasis on meeting the needs of our stakeholders.”
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BOC changes time of Jan. 16 work session
The Johnson City Board of Commissioners will hold a planning session at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 16 at the Municipal and Safety Building, 601 E. Main St., in the Administrative Conference Room. The work session originally scheduled for 1:30 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 16 has been cancelled.
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Johnson City Senior Center Foundation to meet Jan. 9
The Johnson City Senior Center Foundation Board will hold its regularly scheduled meeting at noon on Thursday, Jan. 9 at Memorial Park Community Center, 510 Bert. St.
For more information, contact Deb Fogle at 423-434-6231 or dfogle@johnsoncitytn.org.
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