Announcements
State of the City
Mayor Randy Watts
State of the City Address
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
I would first like to begin my remarks by thanking the Council, the administration and our city employees for their perseverance and help in staying balanced during this past fiscal year.
Economic woes continue to trouble the entire nation, and while Logan has not been totally immune, we have weathered this passing storm with tremendous strength. I credit the hard work of our employees, the sound decision making of the city council and the prudence of our department heads and executive staff for steering us in the right direction.
We have accomplished incredible things in 2010, all while minding the dollars and cents:
- We have chip sealed 19 miles of roads and completed 2,600 feet of sidewalk.
- We placed into service three new ambulances.
- We established a disaster recovery site and a full backup network of the city’s vital records.
- We continue to provide voluntary green waste services as well as recycling services; and the number of households serviced continues to increase.
- We completed the design of a new fire station in southwest Logan and remodeled Station 70.
- Our police and fire departments are staying current in their training and certifications and we remain one of the safest Metropolitan areas in the country.
- The Parks and Recreation department received Best of State status for 2010.
- We even had time to clean 78 miles of sewer mains – now that’s a dirty job!
And the list goes on and on… I have included a full index of citywide accomplishments in my written report and submit it to the Council with great pride and satisfaction.
When so many municipalities nation-wide are struggling to provide basic services in the face of staggering budget shortfalls and sweeping layoffs, our city maintains an 18 percent emergency reserve in the General Fund and we end 2010 with a balanced budget.
Besides the bulleted list of tangible, measurable goals that we have achieved in 2010, there are numerous, uncounted acts of service every day that keep our city clean, safe and responsive. I am amazed at the number of letters that I receive from citizens thanking our employees for a job well done – they use words like… professionalism, courtesy, helpfulness and hard-working. I say to our employees, well done, and to our citizens, thank you, hearing these words make my job a lot easier.
Logan is not without its problems; we need even more sidewalks, a connecting trail system, cleaner air, improved streets, storm water maintenance, light and power upgrades and risk management improvements. We also, like the rest of the country, need to decrease our unemployment.
In with 2011, with your help, we will continue to work hard to improve in these areas and accomplish a new list of goals; a list of which I have enumerated in my written report.
As I watch and evaluate the day to day operations of our departments, I am very proud to see the streets being plowed, solid wasted being collected, water leaks being fixed, accidents being carefully handled and electrical problems being safely dealt with. These are the things that we all take for granted, but which keep Logan’s commerce, community and quality of life solid and progressing.
The state of the city is strong and we truly are, as our logo states; a City United in Service.
Thank you.
