WTOL.com - Toledo's News Leader | Mayor Ford's State of the City Address
Member Center:
Mayor Jack Ford’s
State of the City Address
Valentine Theatre
Toledo, Ohio
February 17, 2004
Good evening. Thank you, Judge Bowman, for that introduction.
Before I begin my remarks tonight I must recall the terrible tragedy our community experienced yesterday when a crane fell at the construction site of the I-280 bridge, killing three iron workers and injuring five others. May God bring comfort to their families and friends at this difficult time. We are stirred so strongly because we know how brave the men and women are working on this project, regardless of the weather or any other elements. I am reminded of President Ronald Reagan’s comments following the Challenger disaster. “The future doesn’t belong to the faint hearted: it belongs to the brave.”
I would ask that at this time we have a moment of silence in honor of those who lost their lives and those who were injured.
As I begin my remarks tonight, let me acknowledge my wife, Cynthia, and our family, Ryan, Jessica, and Jacqueline. Cynthia has taken a strong role in raising funds for programs that help women. She also carries a message to the very young on the dangers of substance abuse. We are very proud of her work. Please join me in thanking her for her outstanding work and dedication to our community.
Members of Toledo City Council, Mayor Brown, County Commissioners, General Assembly Members, Judges, distinguished guests, and citizens:
We come together this evening to discuss the state of our city. Let me say clearly--the state of our city is strong. Although we have challenges, we are meeting them head-on. I pledged that my administration would be one of ethics, partnerships, and responsibility. Tonight, I stand before you to say that we are reaching these goals. We created the city's first written policy on ethics. Every director, commissioner, and manager is, or will be, trained on this policy.
At the heart of any great city, is the partnership and collaboration with its community organizations and institutions. Toledo is fortunate to have great educational pillars in our midst. The University of Toledo, under the leadership of Dr. Dan Johnson, partners with the city in a number of areas including the new Center for Families and the Center for Capacity Building. Bowling Green State University, led by Dr. Sidney Ribeau, is unparalleled in its partnerships with Toledo based community agencies. We welcome Dr. Lloyd Jacobs, the new President of The Medical College Of Ohio. MCO has collaborated with the City on the new accessible park at Walbridge. Owens Community College, with Dr. Christa Adams at the helm, houses our Police and Fire Training Center and a beautiful new Center for Performing Arts. And I am proud to serve as a Trustee at Lourdes College, and welcome the new leadership of Dr. Robert Helmer, to the beautiful campus that offers outstanding academic programs for all ages. Let's give them a round of applause.
This is a serious time for city government. And I watch your tax dollars closely.
Tonight, I want to talk to you about four items:
¨ how we have managed your government,
¨ what we have accomplished with your help,
¨ what we envision for the coming year,
¨ and the future of Toledo and Northwest Ohio.
After I took the oath of office, I discovered a city bureaucracy ready for change. The previous administration had a budget process that was awkward and contentious. We had numerous inefficiencies. And we had communication problems--both inside and outside of City Hall. We have changed that. We gladly partner with City Council. And everyone gets an opportunity to help pull the wagon uphill.
But times have been difficult everywhere. The national economy is slow. We are in the midst of a jobless recovery. And national policy has hurt Toledo's economy. Here at home, we've faced a large deficit for the past two years. Next year could be even bigger. But we rolled up our sleeves and got the job done. Thanks to City Council's support, we passed a balanced budget for the third straight year. Let's give them a round of applause for their leadership.
While other cities such as Cleveland and Pittsburgh have laid off hundreds of employees, Toledo had very few. I am proud that Toledo will add 50 new police officers to the streets over the next year. We designed our budget with an eye to the future. We're committed to keeping our bond rating strong. We negotiated and settled eight labor agreements that preserved vital city services. Let's salute our labor unions, the City's labor attorney Jim Burkhardt, and our Human Resource director, Joyce Chapple for their effort and cooperation in the bargaining process.
We are also fixing the inefficiencies in our government. As Mayor, I have challenged our employees to find better ways of doing business. And we began with a review of best practices. In 2002, we announced Toledo Stat, a statistical reporting method designed to benchmark our progress. Today this program provides critical data that we use to improve our operations.
For the first time in 30 years, we have challenged the "culture" of sick leave "abuse" by a few employees by developing a tougher policy. To date, we have seen a 30% reduction in sick leave with a corresponding increase of over $1.2 million in additional staff productivity. I thank Chief of Staff, Jay Black, the unions, and especially our employees for their efforts on this cultural change.
With a little prodding from the Blade, we refined our city vehicle use policy. Gone are the days when nearly all city vehicles were taken home after work. We now have strict guidelines on who drives a vehicle and where they are going. And, we will downsize the City's fleet even further. We reduced the number of cell phones and pagers by 33% and saved thousands of dollars by doing so. We are reviewing overtime expenditures and plan to reduce it this year. No government, no business, and no citizen can afford unnecessary expenses and we will continue to work to eliminate them.
As Mayor, I get good advice from citizens about how to improve our operations. Every citizen has an opportunity to speak to me in person through Meet the Mayor Nights. Twice a month, I visit local libraries and community centers to meet with citizens one-on-one. No one is turned away. No issue is too big or too small. These meetings give me a vital connection to the community. I invite you to attend one of these sessions.
One of the most common questions that I hear is: what are you doing for revitalization? There are challenges still before us. Southwyck, Westgate, Promenade Park, the Steam Plant and The Erie Street Market.
On Southwyck, John Loftus is working full time on the redevelopment of this South Toledo mall. It is an important anchor to the entire Reynolds Road corridor. In May, John and I will attend the International Council of Shopping Centers conference to market Southwyck to the world. And we will continue our efforts to bring it back to life.
Last month, I met with Todd Valentine, the owner of Westgate, and the City is committed to working with him to revitalize this shopping district. And we continue our efforts to turn Northtowne Mall into a productive community asset through mixed use rezoning.
On Promenade Park, we turned the former Federal Building site into a green space. This year we will unveil our plans for the park from Summit Street to the river, to be done in 2005. On the Steam Plant, we will put out a Request for Proposal next week for its development. A previous deal fell through due to the untimely death of a developer. We will pursue every opportunity to get it back in use.
I know there is a lot of concern about the Erie Street Market. Past administrations ignored expert advice on how to design and operate a successful market. As a result the market has always struggled. A few years ago, the market was nearly full of merchants. Unfortunately many of those merchants were not paying their rents. The City cannot and should not subsidize merchant rents. That is an irresponsible use of your tax dollars. We've gone back to the experts to propose options for the market. By April they will release their recommendations. At that time, we as a community will have some tough decisions to make, as it could cost millions.
And we have not forgotten about the old Brenda's downtown. We're pleased that the owner is finally rehabilitating this structure. These challenges cannot wait and we are committed to meeting them. But let me be clear: we have accomplished many great things in Toledo.
We went back 15 years and looked at our old loans. And guess what! And we tightened up the rules. We found and demanded repayment of tens of thousands of dollars that had been left uncollected. That money can now be reinvested in future economic development projects.
Toledo has created or retained over 5,000 jobs in our community through a mix of incentives, grants and loans. And yes, we lost some jobs. But we assisted our small, medium, and large businesses with nearly $2 million in loans and grants. Thanks to the voters of Monclova Township, a Joint Economic Development Zone was approved. This will bring many opportunities for revenue growth in the near future. The Marina District project is moving ahead. We selected the Dillin Development Corporation as our chief developer, and just last week announced that Cherokee Investment Partners will spearhead the multi-million dollar, 18-month long environmental clean up process. Lawyer Steve Best is the lead city staffer on the project. Make no mistake: this project will be a true mixed-use neighborhood with retail, entertainment, and public amenities.
At the beginning of last year, we were in danger of losing several important Toledo businesses. I am proud to report that we kept Owens Corning world headquarters and its 1,000 jobs, downtown where they belong. We helped Libbey Glass to get stronger. Pilkington will stay in Toledo, thanks in part to our Downtown Employee Incentive Program. And that program helped us keep the Hylant Group downtown as well. Thank you, Councilman Wade Kapszukiewicz, for your leadership on this. Just last week we welcomed a new Pilkington Glass processing plant to one of Toledo's older neighborhoods. This means new good paying jobs for Toledoans.
In December, we received the great news that Jeep will invest $2 billion in their new facility and in Toledo's economy. This will result in the full recall of 85 Jeep employees. Let's thank the UAW and DaimlerChrysler for their faith in our community.
We expanded our Enterprise Zone to give our businesses an incentive to invest and grow in our city. We continue our commitment to Toledo's small business community through programs like the SBA / Toledo Initiative which provides capital for existing or start-up businesses. To date, the City has provided $220 thousand that leveraged $2.8 million of additional investment. Combined, these funds will create 119 jobs over the next three years at companies like Protrade Steel and Bryson/Tucker Electric.
The City of Toledo's goal is to provide exceptional customer service and cut through the red tape. That remains our pledge.
Our economic development specialists work to identify ways in which the City can be more responsive to the needs of our businesses. Their job demands that they have personal contact with our businessmen and women. And that is just what they have done. In 2002, we visited 500 businesses. In 2003, as promised, we visited over 1000. And we will visit another 1000 this year!
We accomplished another major initiative this year: the One Stop Shop. This project has been underway for many years and under my administration, we got the job done. Contractors now can secure simple permits online 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. This will save them time and money. Thank you Councilwoman Betty Shultz for staying the course.
During the last two years, we held 7 technology summits to highlight the advances being made in our region. Last year, the City supported technology by contributing $100 thousand to the Regional Growth Partnership's In-4 Fund. This fund assists technology companies that need access to capital in the early stages of their business.
UT, MCO and BGSU have garnered millions in research and business grants from the Taft administration and the federal government.
Also, I believe that the arts are an engine for economic development. For Toledo to become a vibrant urban center, we must implement our plans that focus on arts and culture. Isn't it true that we think more about arts and elegance now than we did just 2 years ago? My administration elevated arts to cabinet-level status. We released the strategic plan for arts and culture. And we launched the first comprehensive website for arts and entertainment called toledoarts.org. We introduced ArtWorks, a fine arts show downtown. Dr. Richard Florida ignited a new community-wide interest in the Arts as economic development. In 2004, we are partnering with the Toledo Jazz Society to elevate the Art Tatum Jazz Heritage Festival to new heights. Toledo has a wealth of arts and cultural offerings. We cannot let them whither on the vine. We cannot let COSI, Toledo Botanical Garden, the Opera, the Rep, the Symphony, and others continue to struggle. Let's come together to find the solution to funding a vibrant arts community! Coupled with a dedication to technology, arts, and a vibrant urban experience, I believe we will redefine Toledo.
In short, a reenergized Toledo will attract and keep new citizens. A reenergized Toledo needs quality housing and we are strongly moving in that direction.
In 2003 we issued the highest number of new residential construction building permits since 1996, resulting in over $37 million worth of new construction. Over the last two years we provided over $4.7 million to leverage the creation of 664 new housing units in our neighborhoods. But we are doing it right. The previous administration signed bad housing deals that could waste $20 million of your tax dollars. This is real. This is a debt that you will pay for over the next generation.
It has also been a top priority to redevelop our city's Brownfields, such as the former Pilkington site on Miami Street. These Brownfields are being developed thanks in part to $3.6 million in grant money... more than any other city in Ohio. Let's thank Commissioner Ford Weber for his outstanding work. And I compliment Mike Badik for snaring a $2.9 million lead abatement grant.
2003 was also a year of reevaluation and restructuring. We reformed the Community Development Block Grant funding process by insisting on mergers, partnerships, and collaborations for our Community Development Corporations. Through this effort, we brought about much-needed cost savings and efficiency measures. This was a tough issue and I thank Councilman Michael Ashford, LISC and the CDC’s for their hard work and cooperation on this.
Our efforts on housing, from each project to each idea, culminate in the principle that Toledo's neighborhoods must be strong. It is that basic. And it's vital to the quality of life of our citizens. Last year, we were presented with a golden opportunity to enhance our neighborhoods: the beginning of the renovation and construction of 63 schools. This building project will lead to a rebirth of Toledo. I announce my full support of the "New Schools, New Neighborhoods Coalition," a group of public, community, and business leaders who have come together to ensure that new schools are built in revitalized neighborhoods. This gives us the opportunity to reinvent Toledo’s neighborhoods. I ask for your support and help in this exciting initiative.
As we move forward, my administration will keep an emphasis on the basics. This fall, thanks to equipment purchases, improved planning, and the hard work of our employees, we picked up leaves faster, battled the snow in record time, and are filling potholes everyday. We launched a neighborhood beautification effort. City directors and neighborhood leaders partnered to fight litter and blight.
We held three citywide clean ups and will have four this year. We created the alley cleaning strike team, instituted tougher penalties for illegal dumpers, and passed a strict nuisance abatement law, complete with a $75 dollar ticket for those who trash their neighborhoods. My administration will be unyielding on this issue. We maintained an aggressive housing demolition program this year, even though we were cut by over a half million dollars in block grant funds. We still tore down 260 vacant or abandoned units, including many that surrounded the Stewart Academy for Girls. Despite all the City's resources to make Toledo beautiful, we will only succeed if our citizens participate. We need your continued help. This is your city. Help us keep your neighborhoods clean. Report illegal dumping. Organize neighborhood clean-ups. Together, we'll get the job done.
Our neighborhoods can only be strong if people are safe in their homes. Our police and fire departments make that possible. As Mayor, I pledge to keep them both strong. For the first time in over a decade we appointed a full time safety director. We are pleased that Joe Walter has taken on that role. And, for the first time in our history, Toledo became the largest city in Ohio to have both its police and fire departments attain accreditation. Please join with me in recognizing Police Chief Mike Navarre and Fire Chief Mike Bell. And I thank them for the sensitivity that they showed in securing and retrieving the victims off site at the I-280 tragedy.
Crime decreased in Toledo for the second year in a row. This decrease is due to the vigilant action of our safety forces as well as the citizen volunteers in organizations like Block Watch. Tonight I call on all citizens to join Block Watch. Please call 936-2020 to volunteer in starting a block watch in your neighborhood. Under the direction of Sergeant Sharon Cook and our new Block Watch leader Michael Dearth, there are 120 Block Watch groups. This is a 100% increase since I took office. But I expect 200 block watch groups by December 2005.
We have done much to enhance our police service over the last year. We strengthened our response to domestic violence by pursuing victimless prosecutions and changing departmental policy. We provided additional training to officers and obtained grant funds for 47 digital cameras to document evidence. We are now more victim-friendly and efficient.
We plan to buy Taser stun guns for each officer in operations. We are investing $50,000 to assist small businesses with security cameras. We held a gun buy-back program in which over 400 firearms were taken off the street. We stepped up our under-age alcohol sweeps in bars and carryouts. We increased the number of officers assigned to drug enforcement by adding a Bike Unit to patrol in high crime areas, especially those known for gang and drug activity. This year, I am directing Chief Navarre to devote even more resources to anti-drug activities. Much of the violent crime in Toledo is driven by drugs. The stench of drug dealing hangs over dog fighting, prostitution, arson, domestic violence, and, of course, murder.
The number of murders in our city decreased in 2003. Though we solve most homicides quickly, some remain unsolved. We know that reward money can bring closure to these cases. Therefore tonight I am announcing a ten thousand dollar reward for information that leads to the arrest and conviction of any old unsolved murders in Toledo. Protecting lives is our highest goal.
We know that the injuries and deaths caused by fires can be virtually eliminated by the use of smoke detectors. I directed the Fire Department to conduct a door-to-door evaluation of all residential properties to make sure they have working detectors. With funds received from a $70,000 federal grant, we will issue 11,000 smoke detectors to those who need them.
By necessity, we continue to focus on homeland security. And we continue to invest in securing our critical life-supporting assets.
Just as Toledo needs clean neighborhoods and strong safety forces, it needs a sound infrastructure. My administration focused on fixing the technology infrastructure within City Hall. For the first time ever, we created the Department of Information Services and hired a top notch director, Dr. Patsy Scott, to lead it into the future. We are moving from the 1980's to 21st century technology by investing in state-of-the-art systems. Let me thank the business task force who helped spearhead the change.
We focused on major repairs and serious need in the city's physical infrastructure. We resurfaced nearly 30 miles of roads, including key projects on Alexis Road, Detroit Avenue and Miami Street. We repaired major bridges, like the South Avenue Bridge, and began renovation of the historic Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Bridge thanks to $13 million from the State of Ohio and $10 million from Congresswoman Kaptur.
Our 15-year $450 million sewer-rebuilding project commenced and we have met every consent decree milestone. We are upgrading and expanding our wastewater treatment plant. And this year, we will make Toledo's waterways cleaner and safer. I thank Bob Williams for his leadership on this.
Our public utilities department is on the cutting edge. Men's Health Magazine recently gave Toledo's water an "A" rating, one of only 12 in the nation and the only city in Ohio to achieve this highest rating possible. Again, we exceeded environmental standards for pure and healthy water. Let's give the entire department a round of applause.
From now until the year 2007, we will rebuild nearly two thousand sidewalk ramps so that every citizen will be able to navigate our streets. Our neighborhoods and city infrastructure are important to the quality of life.
And quality of life extends to our parks and the recreational activities that they provide. This past June, thanks to an unprecedented leveraging of city and private donations, the Walbridge Destination Park officially opened. With its accessible play equipment and central location, all kids will be able to play together without any restrictions. As promised, we opened a state of the art skateboard facility at Highland Park and our first water play area at Savage Park. I am also pleased that Toledo will open its fourth destination park, a new BMX facility. Although we've had tough budget cuts this year, we will continue to keep our parks the cleanest in Ohio. They make our neighborhoods a better place to live for everyone, especially our children.
I have dedicated much of my time to children, and that investment will bring rewards for our community in the future. A brand new initiative is our Youth Forum, similar to Meet the Mayor Night. These forums provide young people an opportunity to give me direct input on city youth programs. Who better to take advice from than young people themselves? In April, we will unveil our findings to the community.
In 2003, we launched the Tim Energy Youth Grants Program. Two of the grantees painted the huge mural at the Sophia Quintero Center.
Also, I am proud to announce that we instituted a Fire Cadet program, as promised last year, for young people interested in serving with the fire department.
We continue to monitor the progress of Toledo Public Schools. In 2004, Dr. Sanders, President Welch and I will meet monthly. I will hold TPS accountable and will demand success. And we will pitch in and help where we can. The community must help. Parents and leaders must engage, and be permitted to engage, with our schools.
My administration has also focused on the health issues facing our community. CareNet, which serves over two thousand Lucas County residents, provides health care to those who previously were uninsured. As chairman of the CareNet Board, I know these services are needed now more than ever. The number of citizens being enrolled increases every day. And, we plan to enroll two thousand more this year. I believe that CareNet has already saved lives. We partnered with our major health systems, clinics, and public agencies to create CareNet. Let's thank our executive Director Jan Ruma and all of the board members for their hard work. Let’s not forget that it was the partnership of Alan Brass and Steve Mickus that made it happen.
Toledo took the lead and passed a Clean Indoor Air Ordinance. I thank the businesses that are following the law. And I thank City Council, Dr. David Grossman, and the community advocates for their courage in supporting the health of our citizens. This law is one of the toughest in the country and it is the right thing to do, period!
Another health initiative was completed by the Mayor's Coalition on Prostate Cancer Awareness and Education. I thank Ted Wright for his leadership on this. This large group of dedicated volunteers produced a calendar that features 12 courageous men who shared their stories of overcoming this disease. It is my hope that lives will be saved as result of the nearly 10,000 copies of this calendar that were distributed. Copies of the calendar are available in the lobby. Some of the gentlemen featured in the calendar have joined us tonight. Let's thank them for their courage.
Clearly, we have made some good things happen for our city. But these are tough economic times. And when we have tough economic times, we have to go back to the basics. The three R's. But this time it is a different set of R's. Responsiveness, the River, and Regionalism. The responsiveness of City Hall will be ratcheted up to new levels. We will trim more trees than ever before and cut down on our backlog. This has not been done in years and we will act now to get the job done. We will resurface Reynolds Road, continue our efforts on Dorr Street, and begin the first phase of a three-year $15 million-dollar rebuilding of Byrne Road. We will also replace three key bridges and rehabilitate ten others throughout the city.
And of critical importance, we will partner with the safety forces of Lucas County to equip them with a state of the art radio system, a homeland security necessity.
With respect to the river, our downtown development, the Marina District, and the rise of market-rate housing will remain a top priority. We will focus heavily on producing tangible results with visible outcomes.
And finally in 2004, we will focus on regionalism. Northwest Ohio has a total personal income exceeding $26 billion and a total economic output of over $61 billion We have nearly one million citizens. We have a premier location that provides easy access to major markets by land, water, and air. We are the crossroads of America.
Yes, together, we seem to have it all. But what we don't have is a shared vision or plan for the future. One of the greatest challenges facing us today is urban sprawl. And for the Midwest, with a large amount of available and relatively inexpensive land, the challenge is especially difficult. For the betterment of our region and our city, we will work together to ensure that our growth is responsible while at the same time meeting the water needs of the area.
There has been much talk about the issue of water and why Toledo should or should not provide water to those in the outlying portions of Lucas County.Let me be crystal clear: the City of Toledo is willing and has made offers to provide water to those who need it. But this must be linked to sound community planning. We have had productive meetings with Berkey Mayor Barb Huff and Richfield Township Trustee Bill Buckenmeyer. Based on their responsible land use plan, we have agreed to provide water to them. Tonight I am also announcing that we have reached an agreement to provide water to an area of Sylvania Township. And, we are actively discussing providing water to Spencer Township. Our use of Smart Growth principles and water policy will strengthen the entire region while keeping our central core vital.
But we can do more to improve our region by working together. The City, County, Port Authority and RGP will soon release a study that recommends a comprehensive plan for a streamlined economic development system. This study has resulted in unprecedented collaboration and commitment to change. I stand ready to put turf issues aside, and do what is best for the City, County and region.
Tonight, I again call for elected leaders within Lucas County to consider studying a regional approach to government. Our goals should be to reduce costs, duplication, fragmentation and competition. We will hold a meeting at TMACOG's headquarters on February 25th to discuss the possibilities. And I encourage public and elected officials to attend. Cities like Indianapolis and Louisville have gone this way. And even our neighbor, Cleveland, is looking at regionalism. Why Cleveland and not Toledo? Why Louisville and not Toledo? Why Indianapolis and not Toledo? Think of the possibilities that our region can achieve if we work together. Let's work together to turn these possibilities into realities.
Last year I ended my speech by asking citizens to pray for Toledo. I do so again because prayer is all-powerful. Prayer changes things. We need it. And I thank the many of you who have done so on behalf of the city, on behalf of my family, and most especially on behalf of the children of Toledo.
Thank you and may God bless you and your families.
