Chamber hosts ‘State of the City’ breakfast at The Garrison

            Mayor Steve Collier made his annual State of the City address March 9 at The Garrison before more than 250 citizens and leaders. A Lawrence tradition, the State of the City is hosted by the Greater Lawrence Chamber of Commerce each spring. Executive Director Jessica Tower and the Chamber’s ambassadors welcomed the guests early Thursday morning for the breakfast meeting.

“Throughout 2016 we dedicated ourselves to putting processes in place to run the City efficiently and improve access to our fine citizens.  As I outline our first year successes and define our shared vision, I believe you will see that common thread.  Every one of our department heads leads a staff of dedicated individuals who have been given this simple directive:  we must commit ourselves to providing the necessary services to our 47,000 citizens each and every day,” he began.

Mayor Collier outlined initiatives from his first year in office which he believes benefit Lawrence citizens: from fiscal transparency and accurate reporting to road construction projects to new contracts for our public safety officers, he thanked his department heads for their leadership and stewardship of the city’s resources.

He cited a two million dollar “rainy day” fund that represents unencumbered funds for the city’s use in 2017. Mayor Collier thanked Controller Jason Fenwick for his management and new controls for spending and saving tax dollars. He said the Parks Department has new initiatives plus the traditional events that make this city unique, like the Spring Fling event for youngsters at Community Park and the annual Fourth of July festivities. He said 5533 pot holes were filled by the DPW crews and 14 road improvement projects will be completed this spring. He said Scott Salsbery’s leadership at the utility has been valuable and important as rate studies and research is underway for important upgrades to the utility’s infrastructure.

“New in 2017 will be a weekly Farmers Market at the Fort, and in partnership with Monarch Beverage, we’ll be establishing a community garden on the southern edge of the Monarch property,” he said. The Farmers Market will take place every Thursday at 4:30 p.m. at the Village Plaza.

He also thanked Common Council members Bob Jones, Tom Shevlot, Tyrell Giles, and Sherron Freeman for their attendance at the State of the City, in addition to members of this administration.