Showing Shawn our Support

Special thanks to everyone who helped put on last night's "welcome home" celebration for Shawn Johnson. The City was proud be part of the festivities. Take a look at the long list of entities that came together to put this event on with just a few days' planning: Hy-Vee, Adidas, Coca Cola, Global Spectrum, Iowa Events Center, Valley High School students, faculty, and staff, West Des Moines Community Schools, Kids West, the WDM Chamber, the Greater DSM Partnership, the Convention and Visitor's Bureau, the Nadas, the Governor's Office, the Polk County Supervisors, Chow's Gymnastics, WHO-TV 13, Keith Murphy, the Des Moines Register, and our own police department, who provided security for Shawn. It is really not surprising that there are so many people and organizations interested in making sure we give Shawn our support and recognition.

Below is a proclamation the West Des Moines City Council passed Monday in honor of Shawn:

Proclamation

WHEREAS, Shawn Johnson represented the best in American athletes through her performance at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games; and

WHEREAS, Shawn Johnson won Olympic gold with an exceptional performance on the balance beam and won three Olympic silver medals in equally outstanding performances during the team exercise, floor exercise, and individual all-around competition; and

WHEREAS, Shawn Johnson is one of the most decorated United States gymnasts in Olympic History; and

WHEREAS, Shawn Johnson displayed sportsmanship, maturity, compassion, and poise under pressure far beyond her sixteen years throughout the 2008 Olympic proceedings; and

WHEREAS, Shawn Johnson captured the hearts and minds of Iowans, Americans, and people worldwide, cementing her status as a role model and an incredible representative of our country; and

WHEREAS, Shawn Johnson’s tremendous athletic accomplishment and endearing grace during competition generated remarkable pride and respect from the residents of her hometown, her classmates, and the officials of West Des Moines;

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF WEST DES MOINES, IOWA, THAT SHAWN JOHNSON HONORED HER CITY, HER SCHOOL, HER STATE, HER COUNTRY, HER FAMILY, HER COACHES, AND MOST IMPORTANTLY—HERSELF—THROUGH A STUNNING OLYMPIC PERFORMANCE AND UNWAVERING POSITIVE ATTITUDE TOWARD HER TEAMMATES, THE COMPETITION, AND THE OLYMPIC EXPERIENCE.

Honoring Loretta

West Des Moines Councilwoman Loretta Sieman was honored this month as a Woman of Influence by the Business Record. During my ten years in West Des Moines, Loretta has been a constant presence. Whether at City Hall, community events, or other local meetings, Loretta's advice, support, and enthusiasm have been sought out time and time again. Her goal is always to help. Check out the Business Record's article to read the long list of organizations that have benefited from her dedication.

Our Olympic Ties

Although there are numerous amazing athletes and exciting events taking place every day of the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, there are a few that I --and undoubtedly many in West Des Moines -- are watching especially closely.

As anyone who has met Shawn Johnson would expect, the young gymnast has made West Des Moines, Iowa, and our entire country proud. Not only is she a consistent contender and extremely talented performer, she has represented the United States with the poise and grace of someone far older. Shawn's terrific, wholesome personality has clearly captured the hearts and minds of Olympic-watchers everywhere, if you pay attention to commercials, announcers, web ads -- or any form of media in existence! We have been watching you, Shawn, and we are thrilled to call you one of our own. Shawn's coach, Chow, the coach of the Olympic team, has also received a little of the spotlight during these games, and he deserves every bit of it.

Another event of particular interest to many residents of West Des Moines and the Metro area is the triathlon taking place in a few days. The last two members of the 6-person US team qualified right here in West Des Moines on the Valley Southwoods school campus. 55 men and 55 women will compete on the 1.5k swim, 40k bike, and 10k run course. The course will feature the Ming Tombs Reservoir, said to be an awe-inspiring place.

The U.S. is one of just five countries to field a full team of six for the Olympics. Hunter Kemper, who qualified in West Des Moines, is competing in his third Olympics. Sarah Haskins, a former teacher who was the top American finisher in our triathlon, is competing there for the first time.

The team has spent the first week of the Olympics after Opening Ceremonies at a training camp in South Korea to get acclimated to the heat, humidity and time zone change, and to relax.

The women's triathlon will air live on NBC at 9 pm on August 17 (see more information on the event here). That's also the first night of the individual events competition for women's gymnastics. Our hopes are high and our cheers are loud (even if they are directed at a television).

Battling Bugs

The mosquitoes are still out and on the attack, especially in the early evening hours, but we're doing our best to counter them.

In the past few weeks, the City's Public Works Department has implemented more aggressive measures to deal with the abnormally high mosquito population triggered by large amounts of standing water in and near our community. Public Works staff and contractors have been applying larvacide pellets with helicopter and ground crew applications in an attempt to kill pre-hatch mosquitoes. Crews have also been spraying various areas of the City where high populations have been encountered.

While the City cannot eliminate the mosquito population, I think we are successful in minimizing their impact. The Center for Disease Control recommends using mosquito spray when individuals are outside and are susceptible to biting insects-especially during early evening hours!

Special Achievement in GIS

City representatives were honored this week at the at the ESRI User Conference for Special Achievements in GIS (SAG). GIS stands for Geographic Information Systems and uses computer hardware, software, and data to create a tool for managing and displaying geographic information. GIS links information to geographic locations and is typically associated with a map. The City's Interactive GIS map, which can be found off the www.wdm-ia.com homepage or here, provides zoning, land use, development, parks, and demographic information, as well as utility locations, street and lane closures, and construction information.

The ESRI website provides the following description of SAG award winners: "By embracing GIS technology, these organizations have made extraordinary contributions to our global society and set new precedents throughout the GIS community." Recipients of the Special Achievement in GIS award are submitted by thousands of organizations worldwide.

The press release from ESRI, which can be viewed here, states:

"The City of West Des Moines has become the beacon of GIS in the Des Moines metropolitan area. The City merges data from four counties into their GIS, enhances the exchange of disparate data between internal departments, manages a three-city 911 call center, and hosts, organizes, and provides content for CIAO (Central Iowa ArcGIS Organization) meetings. From traffic modeling and crime analysis to land use and building inspections, the City is successfully leveraging GIS to better serve its citizens and plans to expand its GIS Web sites to deliver more information to the public. West Des Moines is a place of major growth in Iowa, and it is a great example of how GIS can help create transparency in city management and operations."

Congratulations to the City's GIS Steering Committee, which worked hard to develop a credible and valuable tool that our residents and businesses can utilize for geographic information. I encourage you to try it out! As an end user, you can create maps for your own purposes as well.