A Message from Mayor Stimpson - November 20
Nov 20th, 2020
Good evening,
It is 8:30 p.m. on Friday Nov. 20, and I am writing to give you an update from the City of Mobile.
Today, the Mobile County Health Department reports 19,195 COVID-19 cases, which is an increase of 136 cases. To review the most recent detailed reports from MCHD, click here.
This morning I had the opportunity to ride through several areas of the city to get a first-hand look at the collection of debris and trash. Our crews are continuing to make progress collecting debris left by hurricanes Sally and Zeta, and I am confident they will be able to shift their focus to the remaining storm damaged trees and stumps in public rights-of-way very soon.
On the way back to the office, I also stopped to speak with the crews working to rebuild Little Flower Avenue. This resurfacing project the city launched over the summer is already making a big impact on this small stretch of road in Midtown. I have always found it important to get out of the office, go into the city to see our projects in action. That's something I regularly encourage our team members to do as well.
Earlier this evening I had the pleasure of Lighting the Christmas Tree in Mardi Gras Park, which has become one of my favorite holiday traditions over the last few years. While things had to be a little different this time, I do want to thank our Parks and Recreation Department for finding a way for our city to ring in the Christmas season while still following public health guidelines.
If you made it downtown for the Tree Lighting, you may have noticed several restaurants had patrons eating outside. This was due to our recurring "Streets Alive" event, which originated as we tried to help restaurants and businesses utilize more space to serve customers while still safely social distancing.
As we head into the weekend, I would also like to remind you that our final Market in the Park event will take place this Saturday, November 21. Make sure to mask up and come out to shop bright and early. This certified farmers' market event will be from 7:30 a.m. to Noon in Cathedral Square downtown.
One of my morning devotionals today focused on Psalm 18, but a particular footnote stood out to me. It said: "God promises to give us strength to meet challenges, but he doesn't promise to eliminate them. If he gave us no rough roads to walk, no mountains to climb, and no battles to fight, we would not grow."
This is always a good thing to keep in mind as we walk the rough roads in our own lives...whatever those may be. These are challenging times but facing them gives us an opportunity to grow.
Sleep tight.