At the Bay Area Chamber of Commerce luncheon were, from left, James McCloskey, aide to State Sen. Mike Green; Chamber President Mike Seward; Chair Pat O'Brien; Paul Wasek, twps; Mayor Chris Shannon; Supt. John Mertz, schools; Ernie Krygier, county. UPTOWN ON TRACK! Mayor Shannon Cites City Progress Moves at Chamber
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The good news: Uptown is rising, crime is falling.
Mayor Chris Shannon touted five positive city developments at the jam-packed Bay Area Chamber of Commerce "State of the Community" luncheon at the Bay Valley Resort Hotel on Wednesday.
The first SSP Associates buildings at Uptown at RiversEdge, a 40 acre former I-B/American Hoist site, are slated for completion in 2014, said Mr. Shannon. Anchor tenants are Dow Corning, McLaren Health Care and Chemical Bank.
A "Las Vegas style" event is planned for the demolition of the 46 kilovolt unsightly aerial towers carrying powerlines across the Saginaw River at the site, he said.
Artist's rendition of proposed
"Mill End Lofts" at Center and Water
in Downtown Bay City.
Mill-End Lofts, a $7.5 million three-story mixed upscale residential-retail building at Water and Center, was another pending project on the mayor's list of positives.
A new public safety department combining police and fire functions is slated to begin after the first 12 patrol officers graduate from fire academy in May and is projected to save $1.8 million by 2018, the mayor said.
A state Blight Elimination grant of $269,000 will help demolish 22 structures and help neighborhood revitalization, said Mr. Shannon. He noted that the city has cut property taxes 2.25 mills in the past 10 years.
Meanwhile, armed robberies have seen a 16 percent drop and crime case closings are up to 76 percent, he said, tipping his hat to new Public Safety Director Mike Cecchini.
The event welcome was by Chamber Chair Patrick O'Brien, of EMCOR, Inc., high technology manufacturing firm.
Other presentations:
County Commission Chair Ernie Krygier cited the county's solid finances, AA bond rating, record of no layoffs of employees and the agreement with Saginaw-Midland for water service that took over 50 years to achieve.
Schools have saved more than $300,000 through collaboration, said Supt. John Mertz of Essexville-Hampton, representing the four school districts in the county.
Representing the 14 townships in the county, Williams Township Supervisor Paul Wasek urged governments to find funds for repair of roads that he said "are all falling apart."
Supt. Mertz gave the most comprehensive report, a PowerPoint presentation detailing school actions against bullying, collaboration with Delta College and Saginaw Valley State University, substitute teacher placement, a school message system, data warehousing, technology and career education.
He also noted a partnership with the Boys and Girls Club on after-school programs and with the Bay City Public Schools on bus maintenance, a business-education partnership with the Chamber, Youth Leadership Bay County visioning and a Reading is Bay County program that involves 3,800 K-5 pupils.
Repair work on City Hall is going slower than expected, said Mayor Shannon, and there is no date projected for re-opening; city offices remain at scattered sites.
"What is most important is that this work is done right," said Shannon, calling City Hall "an icon for civic pride" and noting that the ornate plaster decorative wall elements are being remolded and wiring for technology and heating-ventilating systems are being upgraded.
He urged the state legislature to reopen the Act 51 gas tax sharing program to provide funds for road repairs; the city street fund now goes almost solely to maintenance of bridges.
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