STATE OF THE CITY

As the newly elected Mayor of the City of Waycross, I am proud to deliver to you the state of the city and to reflect on the past while presenting our hope for the future of this great place we call home.

There has been a valiant effort placed on progress in the past couple of years and I am expecting that trend to continue with even more zest and interest within the next four years under the leadership of this commission.  Together, we will battle through the tough economic times but this is what we have planned for by paying off past debt and creating a fund balance which gives the city the security that many governments do not have today.  We will remain efficient, effective and continue to act as a responsible government for our citizens.

These efforts have been successful and at the end of fiscal 2007, the City had a general fund balance of $1,018,304. The financial health of the City continues to improve and for the second year in a row the City has not found it necessary to enter into short-term borrowing arrangements to finance operations until property taxes are collected.

As the City recovered from its past deficit, it was necessary to address staffing levels for critical needs. Our area continues to expand as a regional retail area for the surrounding areas. In fiscal 2007, over $7,000,000 million dollars worth of building permits were issued with the majority of these being new commercial establishments.

Although the population of Waycross is just over 15,000 individuals, during working hours the population expands to over 45,000. The City of Waycross provides services to the ever growing number of “temporary citizens”. As a result and over the past two fiscal years, staff has been added at the street level in the tune of 10 police officers, 6 fire fighters and 4 public works employees. All of the above and more have been accomplished without raising taxes or fees even though operating costs have increased. Increases in the property tax base from inflationary growth and new commercial properties and increased sales taxes have funded these increased costs at a relatively flat rate of only 2 percent

To capture all the accomplishments that were reached this past year would not be possible due to the time constraints, however, let me share with you some of the highlights of each department that serve you on a daily basis.

Fire Department

·       Operated within set budget

·       Purchased two new fire trucks to replace 25 year old models

·       Completed significant renovations of Fire Station #2

·       Further met critical ISO (Insurance Rating) requirements

·       Worked with Ware County and other agencies that successfully handled the largest wildfire in Georgia history

Police Department – Chief Tony Tanner

·       Operated within set budget

·       Achieved meritorious Federal Reaccreditation for the department (15 year mark)

·       Applied and received a total of $297,635 in grants

·       Served a record number of search warrants combined with undercover stings to make over 400 drug and vice arrests

·       Assigned officers to permanent sides of town allowing them to be alert and aware of concerns of the neighborhoods

Community Improvement – Jonathan Lynn

·       Operated within set budget

·       Awarded $500,000 CDBG Hazard Hill Grant for revitalization efforts fueled through a partnership with the RDC.

·       Logged over 650 code violation cases, worked 34 unsafe building violations and conducted 2,960 building inspections

Finance Department – Larry Gattis

·       Operated within set budget

·       Recipient of the Distinguished Budget Award for the 2^nd year in a row

·       Relocated utility billing operations to the 1^st floor of city hall for increased service capabilities

Engineering Department – Frank Baugh

·       Operated within set budget

·       Successfully concluded negotiations and executed joint agreement with CSX and the county for the $23 million dollar rail relocation project

·       Booked over $300,000 in operational savings and contract cost avoidance through ESG Operations

·       Fully implemented GIS and mapping automation technology

Public Works – Wilton Deloach

·       Operated within set General Fund Budget

·       Trash crews collected 2,236 tons (4,472,000 million pounds) of yard trash material for the year

·       Held two community clean ups hauling away 18 tons (36,000 pounds) of junk

·       Opened the first staffed recycle center with the use of grant funds

·       Formulated future plans for Oakland Cemetery and the available 10 acres for interment spaces

Human Resources – Marilyn Moss

·       Operated within set budget

·       Improved the Health and Wellness Program for city employees with no new cost increases in the last three years

·       Developed monthly informational employee newsletter

·       Established monthly training for employees in the areas of customer service, workman’s comp, diversity and sexual harassment

As you can tell, the future is bright for the City of Waycross.  Considering the future, in 2008 you will witness the removal of the 4^th most dangerous rail crossing in the U.S. which happens to be in downtown Waycross.  You will witness the first residential subdivision inside the City of Waycross to be constructed in 25 years.  Other growth will occur on other tracks of land and development will continue to happen inside the city.

This stimulus led to over 500 new jobs in our area this year along with the increase in business expansions – this is a good sign and a trend we want to promote.

Relations with the county leadership continue to be exceptional and we will support each other in our endeavors and for the betterment of our community.  As individual residents and elected officials we will remain focused on progress, work together, and jointly succeed for you, the residents.

In closing, I hope the majority of the voting community looked positive upon recent and past achievements and voted for SPLOST favorably.  We must protect this city and county from entering into a stalemate and realize the consequences if we attempt to live in the past.