Positive Momentum

As the year closes out I believe Columbus has some good positive momentum.  The budget process came to an end from my point of view we ended up  . . OK . . considering this council has to deal with a $793,000  "penalty" mostly caused by the last administration (3 years ago) and in which we have no control over . . at least for another 5 years.  That extra money would be REAL handy at budget time.

But looking forward this year we have 19 homes built and builders from outside of Columbus are clambering to build more.

The Bowling Ally was purchased by a Marshall company and will become Robbins Creek Event & Banquet Center.  We have not only a new pizza place opening the 1st part of next year on James Street but also The Chef's Corner opening next year in the old Firemen's Tap. This will be a 50-70 seat Smokehouse Grill with full bar.   Plus there is one more place in the works on James Street.

A new "Pay as you Go" TIF district will break ground soon with Ottery Brothers Trucking being the first tenant and will employee 8 people. They wash the inside of food grade trucks and this will open up that area for new companies.  This is going to be a good TIF district

Other things from council is a Tourism Commission is in the works.  I'm not real enthused about this but by some new amazingly convoluted State Statute it is needed and Columbus is being proactive.

I'm not AGAINST this but not excited either.  It's a lot of money ($36,000) in the hands if people with no real marketing experience and a yearly turnover so mistakes from the past could be repeated. HOWEVER, it's money that does not come from the citizens of Columbus so it's a "no lose" Commission and it's better then nothing at all so in THAT regard I'm all for it.

HOWEVER(2) - it's awesome that we have $$ to promote the city if done correctly. If we could get the right people who know marketing and ate trained in it (I took marketing in school but we didn't have computers then, we had to use birch bark a lot).
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Columbus Self Storage is expanding to have environmentally controlled units.

What we NEED is another hotel and if we all click our heels together and say "Mr. Hanson, build that hotel".  Or, "Mr. Hanson, build it and they will come" maybe we can him going. I've talked to Curt a few times and like the guy, we got along pretty well.  Enerpac refuses to send people to our other hotel (at least that is what I Was told by a fellow brewer that works at Enerpac) so I hope Curt steps up to the plate to help Columbus. We are nice people.

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Weather - looks like Christmas  will be lower 40s and partly sunny!   Thursday, Friday and Saturday are still looking cool, below average actually but then warming up 10-15 above average.  So far December is 14.4 degrees above average.  WOW!!  Our average high right now is 29 degrees.

I had been predicting a thunderstorm for Christmas for months and I was ALMOST right.  NOW, I think payback for this weather MIGHT be February. Remember last year?  

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The Department of Defense came out with a study saying climate change is now a serious National Security concern with the Syrian conflict was caused by Climate change.  Seems the GOP did not get that memo as they refused to talk about the environment.

Nothing changed in the debate and if I remember correctly from a few days ago no candidate that has led at this point has ever won their parties  . . dude.   Cruz is in 2nd place and is universally hated by their party establishment (the real people that determine who wins).

The Democrats in their inept way will have their debate Saturday in front of maybe 25 Americans who will tune by accident and thus continue to bury Bernie who will get basically zero air play.

I think the lefts strategy is to let the GOP do their thing and continue to shoot themselves in the foot. 

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19 States say it is legal to hit kids in schools who do not behave. Most are in the South. The closest one to Wisconsin is Indiana. Basically it's the RED states. (Not passing judgement, just looking at the map)

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There have been 555 children killed by firearms since Sandy Hook.

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Oil dropped to $36.18 a barrel early this morning.

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242 years ago today was the Boston Tea Party.

204 years ago today the New Madrid fault opened up with a 8.6 magnitude earthquake.

71 years ago today the Germans launched they biggest and last offensive which is now called the Battle of the Bulge.  
   
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OK - does anybody remember this castaway they found after 15 months at sea and was in remarkably good shape?  Seems he is being sued for eating his shipmate.

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I finished the 13 episodes of Jessica Jones - what a freaking fantastic dark adventure. I cannot wait for season 2.

"After a tragic ending to her short-lived Super Hero stint, Jessica Jones is rebuilding her personal life and career as a private detective in Hell's Kitchen. It's time the world knew her name..."

 This is the PG trailer

https://youtu.be/s3UYWK2jeX0



This is more of the psycho thriller trailer

https://youtu.be/g6c3oTYcuhA