Mayor AJ Hashmi
Dr. A.J. Hashmi was invited as a guest speaker to the Paris Rotary Club on Monday, speaking in his capacity as the mayor of our city.
Appointed to the position of mayor by the City Council, Hashmi displayed a great enthusiasm for Paris and a high respect for those on our pro-active council.
Hashmi reviewed some of the successes of the council over the past year-and-a-half. While there are many, new capital fire equipment, the growth of the Paris/Lamar County Health Department, hiring a new city manager, and the procurement of their new building, are amongst some of the positive steps the Council has taken.
Hashmi and the Council have also taken major steps toward the beautification of our city, which includes the trees around the loop, the removal of dilapidated buildings, and the selling of these said properties to return them to the city’s tax rolls.
The highlight of the guest presentation came when Rotarians had the chance to question Mayor Hashmi about the current bond issue to replace the water and sewer lines of our city, which according to the mayor, is a very necessary project.
With the topic of taxes on everyone’s mind with this big budget item, Rotarians asked Mayor Hashmi if the city could afford this water and sewer line replacement without raising rates or taxes, to which the mayor replied, yes. He also answered ‘yes’ when they asked if the replacement would be accomplished in a professional and cost effective manner.
“Dr. Hashmi’s passion and compassion for our city and its residents was very evident in his presentation,” Rotarian Vicki Ballard told the eParis Extra!.