Bookmark & ShareHappy New Year! 2011 was a busy year but it appears 2012 may be even busier, not only in number of projects and events but also in importance. And while the years and projects tend to overlap and blend together the list is long. Just to list the many events is exhaustive; to talk about each might be deadly. A listing:
- Sales tax extension
- Development and Permitting Process
- Mayo Civic Center bonding request
- Elections
- Redistricting
- 318 Commons - UMR and The Loop
- DMC - Destination Medical Community
- Public Works Maintenance and Transit Operations Center
- Highway 63/Broadway turnback
- City bus service contract bidding
- Boards & Committees
- Conferences: BIO, USCM, NLC
- RDA, RNeighbors, Rochesterfest, WinterFest
- Budget
- The Arts & Diversity
- Veterans/Honor Flight
- Police
- Heritage Preservation
- Partnet City/Global Travel
Here we are in 2012, the Chinese New Year, the Year of the Dragon; is there any coincidence that the book and block buster movie is "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo"? But it is a fact that the Chinese New Year is January 23, 2012. It is written that people born under the Dragon are passionate, brave and self-assured…in general they are blessed with good fortune. We will need to be passionate, brave and self-assured, characteristics I believe we possess, which gives me confidence that we will have good fortune in spite of these challenging economic times.
Where do we start? The approval of the .5% extension of the existing local sales tax is of utmost importance. The referendum scheduled for the November 6th general election has projects that are expected to create 8,000 jobs and $1 Billion in private investment in the next 10 years. An independent sales tax committee under the leadership of Jerry Williams, is being formed that will be providing public information regarding the uses for the proposed extension.
Of course when mentioning the general election it will be an interesting year to say the least; President, U.S. Senator, State Senators, U.S. Representatives, and State Representatives, local County Commissioners and Council President and three council members in addition to the already mentioned sales tax extension referendum. The redistricting based on the 2010 Census will impact these elections. To add even more complexity to this year’s elections is a Minnesota constitutional amendment opposing gay marriage. I would strongly urge defeat of this amendment as I believe we should move toward marriage equality and inclusiveness not excluding.
As a city and indeed as a county and state we are grateful for the continued growth of Mayo Clinic. Projects that have already begun and those outlined for the future provide and will provide many thousands of jobs. We know the dollars designated for the Destination Medical Community in our Sales Tax Extension request will stimulate both Mayo Clinic and other private development.
As these various projects take shape we also anticipate an improved development and permit processing process. The Taskforce commissioned by the City Council to address this matter again led by the very competent Jerry Williams, provided a thorough report outlining areas for improvement but also identifying strengths of the current process. The goal is to have Rochester be seen as a destination business community as well as a destination medical community.
While acknowledging the dedicated work of the Development and Permit Processing Taskforce and the Sales Tax Task Force I also thank the many citizen volunteers who apply and fill our various city boards, committees and commissions. As a community we are fortunate to have such interested, dedicated and competent citizens willing to invest their time and talents.
A reminder that we have three cities that we have a "Partner City" relationship with: Moosburg, Germany; Xianyang, China; and Siheung City, South Korea. I have been privileged to have visited all three. Moosburg is our oldest (1982) and most active with student exchanges every other year. We last visited Moosburg in 2005. I am working on another visit later this year. Anyone interested can contact me for more details.
I have been invited to visit our Minnesota National Guard troops in Kuwait in February. Our Fire Department Battalion Chief Eric Kerska is the Colonel in charge of the unit in Kuwait. It will be a privilege to be with the troops in Kuwait as we serve them while their Minnesota families are being served a dinner in St. Paul.
This past summer I was invited to speak at a conference in Hong Kong describing the collaboration of Mayo Clinic, IBM, Hormel Institute, University of Minnesota Rochester and the City. On a personal note my wife of 50 years, Judy and I toured Scandinavian countries in August. The benefits of spreading the good word about Rochester, Minnesota cannot be over-stated, whether it’s traveling globally or within the United States. Conferences with the U.S. Conference of Mayors, the National League of Cities and Bio International all provide opportunities to promote Rochester. As I have said often, it is a real privilege to represent our city locally, nationally and indeed internationally. But through it all, as Dorothy said, "There’s no place like Home".
Of special interest and perhaps a once in a lifetime event is the "turnback" of Highway 63 and Broadway from the State of Minnesota to the City of Rochester and Olmsted County. Highway 63 from 75th Street North to Highway 52 (South Broadway) will be turned back with traffic being re-routed west to Highway 52 around the City. The City will receive $26 million from the State for the portion of Highway 63 within the City. That money will be paid over a 4-year period and be put aside for on-going maintenance. We will then have jurisdiction over the traffic signals, cross-walks and streetscaping.
As a city we continue to evolve into a more exciting community, thanks to an active arts community and greater diversity. We have a minority population of 21% and we enjoy diversity in all facets. The Arts enrich our lives and we want to ensure they receive the support they need. I would like to see if we could create "Artspace" which would support artists, create jobs, spur economic activity and further transform our community.
First Avenue SW also continues to evolve, not only on the highly successful "Thursdays on First" but with new development. Student Housing at 318 Commons with a new restaurant coming and the Metropolitan Market Place project at the former Minnesota Energy site are two projects that are changing and will change the environment. Future development by the University of Minnesota Rochester will bring further dynamic change.
Our police department will be entering the realm of intelligence based policing with the implementation of new crime-fighting software. Data that can provide a picture of potential activity rather than having to re-act to an occurred event will dramatically change how the department does its work making for a more efficient and effective force, greatly benefiting our community.
Due to Federal requirements the City must open the city bus transit contract to a bid process. This will occur in the first quarter of this year with the successful bidder identified in the second quarter with service beginning July 1st. We hope for a smooth process. The branding of the buses will also be changed and buses will be stored in the new Public Works Operation Center and Transit garage which opened late last year in N.W. Rochester.
I am pleased with the progress our Heritage Preservation Committee has made. We will be hearing more from them this year as they’re pursuing an ordinance that would establish a Heritage Preservation Commission that would assure that local historic structures can be protected and provide opportunities for grants and various tax credits. They also coordinated the receipt of Plummer House artifacts from the grandson of Dr. Henry and Daisy Plummer.
Our city budget continues to get squeezed primarily due to State cutbacks to Local Government Aid and Market Value Homestead Credit. I commend our administrative and department head staff for meeting the needs of our growing community while providing services that allow Rochester to frequently be listed by major publications as a "most livable city" in America.
Anniversaries past and coming are:
- Litter Bit Better - 5 years (2011)
- RNeighbors - 10 + years (2011) 44 neighborhoods
- Rochesterfest - 30 years (2012)
- WinterFest - 10 years (2012)
I support the Power of Prayer in our personal lives and for our city. To that end I am proposing a resolution in the first quarter of 2012 that the City Council would approve having various and diverse Rochester spiritual leaders present a prayer at our Council meetings. When passed I would hope we could begin this practice in late April or no later than the first council meeting in May, May 7 which is four days after the National Day of Prayer which has its theme this year "One Nation Under God".
While much more could be said I will close by saying, Thank you, for the opportunity to serve as your Mayor. I thank the city staff who continues to provide great service with more restricted budgets, and to our City Council members for the studious attention to matters of the City. And a special thanks to my associate Donna Bussell, who not only provides support to me but gives great customer service to our citizens.
And, of course I thank my wife Judy, who without her love and support, the joy of being your mayor would be greatly reduced. And, as I said in the beginning 2011 was a busy year: for me 1,388 events.
God Bless you, God Bless Rochester, Minnesota, and God Bless the United States of America.
Ardell F. Brede