HomeMy WebLinkAboutUntitled2003 State of the City Address
Delivered by Mayor James Brainard
To the Carmel Clay Chamber of Commerce
Wednesday, November 12, 20~)3
Madame President, members of the Chamber, my fellow elected officials, and fellow
citizens of our city, thank you for this opportunity to discuss with you the current status
of our city and to share with you some of what you will be seeing in our city in the
months ahead.
The State of the City of Cannel is exceeding alt expectations.
The next four years will be, I believe, the most productive and innovative since our city
was founded.
We have a team of hard working, dedicated city employees.
The voters have elected an outstanding group of city council members whose focus on a
positive agenda for Cannel will be a fresh and welcome approach.
As I have said repeatedly this year, I want our future to be teamwork at its finest. A
Mayor, a City Council, dedicated, qualified city employees and the people of Carmel
working together to make this city the very best place to call home.
American's today are actively interested in the issues that affect their quality of life.
People are concerned and engaged over issues such as crime rates, taxation levels,
environmental quality, neighborhood standards, recreation and parks, educational quality,
and cultural venues as they evaluate their communities.
As people and businesses considering relocation evaluate their options, comparisons of
these criteria are often used to evaluate cities. We all can take great pride in the fact that
Carmel ranks at the top of many comparative lists. Families want to settle here because of
the high quality of education their children will receive, the safe environment in wbich
they wiil.live and the many op'portunities for ~'amily recreation. We continue to increase
the number of 0Ptions for cultural opportunities as well.
All of these criteria are measurements of compigtitiveness betxveen cities. My g6al ~,s
mayor is to work toward creating a highly competitive community that allows us to
control our growth selectively and continue to improve.our quality of life.
Our quality and standards of design in our public'buildings are an example. Our sign
policies, the quality and design of our sidewalk renovations, the use of visually appealing
street lighting, the careful application of greenspace are all parts of our plg. ns ~'or a
competitive ci'ty.
As the econom3/continues to re~:over, our city is poised to undertake several projects that
will address five significant objectives directly related to protecting and preserving our
quality of life and making us a more competitive city.
First, we ar? working to manage our growth and to make sure that our infrastructure is in
place ahead of new dev. elopment whenever possible.
Second, we are focused on creating a city filled with recreational opportunities. The
completion of the Monon Trail, the creation ora network of trails citywide focusing on
connectir~g all of our n~ighborhoods to our trail network, particularly the ability to safely
.cross Keystone and US 31 to access the Monon and other trails, and the upcoming '
construction of Cent?al Park are all parts bf this objective.
Third, we have set a new standard in our city for mgdem urban planning and leveraging
these pringiples to establish a more clearly defined ima:~e for our city. Creating a sense of
'place has been one of my highest priorities since first becoming mayor. The CaiTnel City
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Center project is xvell underxvay and Old Toxvn is now a major: redevelopmer!t area. These
projects are re-branding our city and creating a premier destination for the arts.
Fourth, we remain focused on economic development and the creation of new high
paying jobs in our community through expansion of existing businesses and the attraction
- of new enterprises.
Fifth, we are commiited to innovative approaches to government and sound fiscal
planning that keeps an eye on the cost of running, maintainifig and improving our city.
Let me address each of these objectives in more detail.
We have moved to correct long standing street improvement ;leeds over the past ydar.
This is the first year for the Gray Road Roundabout at 106th Street to be in use and it has
greatly relieved the congestion at that busy intersection. We now have statistics that
show that roundabouts are SAFER and less ~xpensive.
We also completed the infrastructore improvement in the southwest quadrant of Old
Town.
The city has moved aggressively in completing the widening and improvement of 116th
street. Our decision to completely close One section of the street west of Keystone
proved correct as we were able to reopen the street four weeks after the closing rather
than keep the proj'ect open with flagmen for what was anticipated to be a 25 week project.
The city is working to complete the modernization and improvements on West Cam~el
Drive. These improvements wiI1 allow traffic t6 move safely through the areh with the
addition ora pedestrian overpass at the Morion Trail.
In addition, tile Street Department itself will be in a new home soonl They h~pd outgr.own
their current facility located in Old Town and had to store vehicles and equipment in
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various locations. Now, they will be lo~:ating ih a larger facility or~ 131st Street between
Towne and Shelbourne Roads.
The city has looked to' the future in making sure that Clay Township citizens have top
quality public.utilities available at a competitive price. We made the right decision in
September of'2001 when we announced our intent to purchase a part of the Hamilton
Western Utilities. We made the right decision when we entered into an agreement to
purchase the Clay Township portion of the Indianapolis Water Compa~y'utility in 2002,
and-today, we lake pride in our ability to' offer our homeowners, soft water at about half
the rate that ln~tianapolis Water Company customers pay. We are also'proud of the fact
that our Environmental Award winning Wastewater Treatment Plant has rolled back its
r~/tes to 1982 levels.
We take for granted the quality and professionalism of our police and fire departments,
but these agencies of our City have been crucial, to the quality of life and security that we
enjoy here.
Our Police Department is one of the few d&partments in the state that have earned
accreditatio~q through the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies,
headquartered near Washington, DC. Itl addition, the Carmel Police Department SWAT
Team is second t6 none. They won the Gold Medal itl the 2001 World Police & Fire
Games and took first place at the state competition hosted here this year. All of our
officers are highly trained and use the latest technology to further enhance their
effectiveness.
Our fire dedartment continues to set the pace for others in the.state and nation as well.
Carmel was the first in the state to require all new recrnits to also be certified paramedics.
. Two new fire stations on the west side ensure quick response times throughout the
township. New technology allows ot~r fire department to send EKG results ahead to.the
emergency room so that doctors can diagnose early and be ready for action when the
patient arrives at the hospital, which recently saved a life here in Carmel.
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Our second objective, to provide a healthy outlet t'or our citizens through the creation of
a trails network and parks, has made significant gains in the past year.
When [ took office, our city had only 40 acres set aside for parks. Todayl our community
has m0re than 600 acres of parkland and three significant trails, the Monon, the River
Trail, and the Meadowlark Trail. We have added jogging and biking paths to our major'
· street pr6jects and we have encouraged walking by establishing pedestrian'friendly
design standards in our City Center and rede;,,elopment projects. '
This year, the Central Park project will get started, and we will soon be enjoying the
benefits of this multi-use amenity. We will be adding east west connections to'our trail
system including the Cool Creek Trail and the Meadowlark Trail extension, all designed
to allow families and children to access Carmel's trail system safely and conveniently.
Competitiveness is the motivation on wlfich we are building our third objective·
'!Creating Places" is a term used in New Urbanism planning today that recognizes the
need for Edge Cities like Cam~el to create their own identities. We have chosen to create
an identity that.makes our city cornpetilive in economic development. This
competitiveness is onr advantage as we work to attract new businesses, institutions and
improve our quality o?life. We will not settle for second place, nor do we need to, in fact
we are arguably one of the very best places in the United States to live.
The City Center is well on its wa:y to completion, rising from the site of the abandoned
Kroger grocery and strip mall/
With $he help of tl:~e Carmel Redevelopment Commission we have been able to respond
to the vision generated by (~ur community in creating a center in Carmel for business,
retail, entertainment and cultural activities for all residents of Carmeh Current City
Center buildings inclnde the Schwinn Bicycle Shop, Ryland Townhomes, AMLI
apartments, Shapiro's Delicatessen and amenities such as the Morion Trail. Under
construction are PedCor Offices, City Centre Residences and most recently, Flagstar
Bank. The City Center is quickly being transformed from a blighted area to one that is
creating tax revenue for the City of Carmel, and a modern downtown. The City Center
will be the signature of our City. The facilities and amenities of the City Center are
important additions to our competitive positioning and improvement of our quality of
life.
The richness of our quality of life is directly influenced by our involvement in support of
the arts. While our community has a wealth of art organizations such as the Cannel Arts
Council, our local performance organizations, orchestras and visual artists, we have not
been able to successfully capitalize on the talent and depth of our arts organizations. In
fact, when compared with other cities our size or slightly larger, we excel in talent, but do
not have a concert hall, a city museum or a gallery district.
That is about to change.
Lasi week, it was my pleasure to announce the creation ora new arts and des'ign district
designation for the Old Town area. This designation will attract fine arts galleries, design
studios, unique fiirniture aod antique shops, and fine dining establishments that will
feature the talents of local and international artists and designers.
The arts district ;viii return millions of dollars annually in economic benefit to the
community and will attract visitors from a wide regional marketplace. Recent figures
indicate that the Indianapolis arts industry direct economic impact is about $300 million
annually. Imagine what the economic impact that a combination of retail and arts
organizations located in a central geographic area will have for the Old Town area.
Our city has long waited for a performing arts center and our plans to locate a world class
facility in the City Center will be realized next year as we break ground on a new
performing arts center and concert hall opening in 2006. We will build this facility only
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out of the revenues from our economic development district which derives its revenue
only from the business tax payers in the area - the very taxpayers xvho will benefit most
from having this facility located near them. No homeowner property taxes will be used
to build tbe performing arts center whicb ~vill bave a very ppsitive impact on our
community.
Our performing arts center will be unlike any other performance venue in the state. We
will match other l'amous centers throughout the country on acoustics and design. We will
attract the very best orchestras and performances as we provide a facility where our
citizens will meet their neighbors, enjoy the performances, and enrich their lives. This is
one more way that we will make our city competitive and improve the quality of lifel
On our fourth objective - Tile past year has been good for our city from an economic
development perspective. While many commttnities have seen a mass exodus of jobs and
employers, our quality of life advantages have allowed us to attract and win significant
new companies.
Competitive pressure on CammI does not come from the suburbs of Indianapolis or even
Indianapolis, it comes from cities like Naperville, Illinois. and Dublin, Ohio. We are
competing for jobs and economic development in an extremely aggressive enviromnent
that examines each potential cily on an ever increasing number of factors. I believe that
Camlel has done a good job over the past few years in developing the competitive edge
that has made a difference itl a number of our economic development efforts.
As Mayor, my job is to actively sell the city to prospective businesses. In spite of the
often discussed pessimism over the national and state economies, the past year allowed
me to work directly with and to welcome new employers.
Allete Corporation with 800 high paying jobs over the next 10 years
1TT Educational Services bringing 145 jobs with it
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Zotec Solutions, which will retain 40 at~d bring 160 new high-tech jobs t~ the area. In
addition, Flagstar Bank is building their regional headquarters and PEDCOR is building
their national headquarters here in Carmel.
A few weeks ago, I celebrated with the employees and executives of Conseco as they
emerged from Chapter 1 l Reo'rganization. 1 was particularly pleased by the remarks of
Conseco CEO, Bill Shea, that Conseco was staying in Carmel and once again has the
freedom and reso'urces to be an active participant and supporter of our community.
Ovq:r the weeks ahead, we will be making announcements concerning our economic
development effor!s that will result in over $200 million dollars in additional investment
in our communit~ in our technology park, In support of this investment, the corporation
will bl bringing over 300 high paying technolog~ jobs to Carmel.
The fifth and final objective is our commitment to the fiscal health of our city and a
Careful approach to funding smart growth while holding the lint on local property taxes.
Since this is an election year, 1'11 t~.ke the opportunity to repeat once more for the record
that taxes are lower tod~.y than when I took office and our tax rate is the lowes~ of any
city our size or larger in the state·
What is not.necessarily understood, ho~vever, is our commitment to minimizing the'
amount of debt in the form of bonds tied to local property taxes· By financing ou~
programs through non p[operty tax linked sources of rev~enue, we have been able to keep
our debt at a low level for a city of 0ur size. In comparison to other cities, for example,
the per-person debt tied to property taxes is about one thirtieth that of a Fisher"s resident· '
The average debt in Carmel tied to property taxes·is al~out $200 per person. In Fisher's
that same debt is uearly $6,000. When you amortize that debt over the life of the bonds
the per capita debt is less than the cost of this lunt:h.
These are the things that we are doing right now to continue to meet the expectations of
our citizens. '
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But the decisions we make today will impact our city for decades to come. It is
appropriate to look to the future asxve assess the state of our city. -
A demographic view of Carmel from 1970 to 2003 is an impressive story of growth and
development. As a premiere Edge City, Carmel bas Set a standard that other cities ha(,e
followed. Th~ challenges, however, become more difficult as city growth tests natural.
resources as well as econrmic depth in our commercial, corporate and retail community.
The 2000 census told n~ that we are the sixth fastest growing county in the U.S. This
growth requires our city to s'[ep up and meet the challenges associated with that growth
by thinking bigger, smarter and with a spirit willing to take on big projects with a
winning attitude.
Consider that in 1970, the city c~ntained slightly more than 6,500 people. Today, Carmel
has over 60,000 people and by the year 2014, based on the growth forecast of the Census
Bt)reau and the planned annexation on our w~stern boundaries, the ciJ, y's population will
exceed 100,000 people.
This rate of groxvth and the continued expectation that this growth will remain constant
for at least ten years will place Carmel among the four largest cities in the state,
outranked only by Indianapolis, Fort Wayne and Evansville.
The character of Carmel will likely be challenggd by its groxvth, but not neOessarily
victimized by the increase in population and demand for services. Growth is goodso
long as we stay ahead of it with our infrastructure, investments and good planning.
Intensive community planning will help guid~ the city as it completes its expansion.
Preservihg and improving on quality of life issues ~vill challenge the city, th~ schools and
the institutions that support the.comnmnity.
Job creation will become more crucial and s~lective in meeting the needs of the
community xvhile preseyving the high' income and education levels of Cannel residents.
Cannel has always exceeded the minimums when it comes to public policy, protection of
the environment,'providing a cultural and educational resource for its citizens and
providing a high 'quality of life for all citizens regardless of age.
The challenges of the next ten years will requirethat Carmel coritinues to excel in
planning, fiscal management, economic development, and protecting and preserving the
environment. Additionally, Carme! must continue to exceed expectations as it preserves
and enhances the cultural life of the communify, fosters a life long learning philosophy
and builds on a diverse and productive retail economy.'
Given the quick growth we must move quickly on many issues. We are making decisions
that will affect the course of our cily for the next decade and beyond, and those decision}
need to be forward thinking and in many cases bold. to meet the competitive pressures of
other cities and urban areas.
The challenges of creating a new urban community with the highest quality of life will.
require a coutinued commitment to innovative thinking and sound fiscal management.
The Carmel of2014 will clmllenge its leaders by a much larger and more diverse
citizenry. That is clear, but additionally, the Carmel of the future ~vill require careful
attention to the principl.es that we have instilled in the m,~nagement of the city over the
past eight years.
Specifically, Carmel will preserve it~ quality of life through:
The expansion of our street system, including the addition ora Hazel Dell style of
boulevard in western Clay Township where Towne Road is today.
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We will also rfiake improvements to bring main roads,'currently under the county's
jurisdiction, up to par. While the subdivisions in onr newly andexed areas are ade~luate,
the main thorough fares need a lot of work.
Meeting the needs of our community through heightened awareness and control over our
environment and green spaces.
The entire Indianapolis region is suffering from one of the worst air quality problems in
the Midwest. If we fail to take corrective action, ~(,e will lose our Federal support of our
transportation networkl We will suffer irreparable damage to our economic development
efforts. Health statistics confirm that personal health of all of us is affected by our air
quaiity. The time has com~ when we can n,o longer wait for changes in public policy on
this issue. It is time for leadership on this issue. I will be recommending thai the city
meets its responsibility to reduce the consumption of fossil fuels'by introd(lcing electric
hybrids as part of our city's fleet of cai's and trucks. We must set the example in our
community. We have the potential to save hundreds of thousands of dollars through
reduced gasoline purchases. We can show other communities how we can lead to
improve air quality, protect the environment, and save money at the same time. This is
an issue that we must get ahead of if we are'to continue to improve our quality of life and
economic development.
As I said at the beginning of my address today, Cannel is exceeding expectations. We
have achieved our status as leaders by seeking excellence in all that we undertake. We as
a city have achieved ou[ competitive position through forward thinlying planning and
seizing opportunities that req~.dre a strong ~CAN DO" spirit.
Not every task we undertake is easy nor will that ever change, but our philosophy of
Teamwork at its finest will makb our city reach new heights as we focus on making
Cam~el the v'ery best place to live, work, learn, and raise a family.
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