How many people come into Taylor to shop on a given day?
What’s going on with drainage projects around the city?
Why has the soil made it necessary to redo the Splash Pad at Heritage Square?
These were a few of the questions answered by Deputy City Manager Jeff Jenkins Monday, Jan. 16 on the latest edition of “Taylor Talk with Jason Hennington.”
During his visit, Jenkins, a native of Wichita Falls who has been in city management for 17 years, shared why his title, which is the second in the chain-of-command after the City Manager, has the word “deputy” in it.
“I’m not a police officer,” Jenkins said with a laugh. “And I am not a deputy or anything like that, but that’s typically the title for the number 2 person for the day-to-day operations of the city.”
In his position, Jenkins said he oversees six city departments, including parks, the library, finance and more.
During the interview, Jenkins shared that thanks to a retail trade analysis, the city has learned that 41,000 people visit Taylor for shopping each day, and that the sales tax revenues had become “very
robust.” “I think we have some of the strongest numbers in the state of Texas actually in comparison with cities our size,” Jenkins said. Jenkins said the city has been taking in about $1.7 million in sales tax revenue each month, which helps the city lower some of the burden for property taxes and gives the city more money for equipment and new programs.
Other topics discussed included drainage projects, Taylor’s ever changing business climate, the new mural of world champion sprinter Fred Kerley on Main Street, grants the city has applied for, including the drainage work at the Donna Channel, and more.
Taylor Talk is a casual conversation where officials discuss their work, upcoming projects, parts about their life and ways their departments connect to the community.
The interview can be seen live on the second Monday of the month at noon at www.facebook. com/ GoTaylorTx/. All previous episodes are available on the Taylor Press Facebook page as well.
