~our first 100 days~

I would like to share with you at this time a few of my thoughts about our first 100 days of 2006 governmental progress in Johnstown. I am pleased to say that we are off to a very productive start and have already completed many projects and set many others in motion that will span the next four years.

We are well on our way with recapturing the beautification and cleanup momentum established by Mayor Pollak. The street sweeper has been out regularly, the parks are undergoing volunteer and staff spring cleaning, code enforcement is proceeding aggressively with residential debris and junk car removal, the rail trail has been completely swept, dawn to dusk drop off for leaves and brush has been established and leaf pickup has been consistent and effective.

As the construction season progresses, we will be proceeding ahead in a timely fashion with a plan, in coordination with the County Landfill Department, to demolish four dilapidated buildings. We are initiating work to finish the city's portion of the rail trail, to rebuild the Washington Street Bridge and to replace the library entrance steps.

We have completely refurbished six city hall offices and have relocated the City Mayor's Office to the first floor. new mailboxes for city officials and council members are almost complete and will feature a high level of security and accessibility. All of this work has been done by our own DPW staff and thus at minimal cost to city taxpayers. This project was enhanced by a $20,000 grant we received from Senator Hugh Farley.

We have completed the property foreclosures for the years 2001 and 2002 and are in the process of preparing the various properties for marketing. We will, in the near future, advertise, establish a bidding process and sell as many pieces as possible with the end result of placing them back on the tax roll. It is my belief that the City should own as few properties as possible.

We have recently been the site of an extremely sad tragedy and would like to take this opportunity to applaud the Police Department for their professional work in handling the situation. They were patiently attentive to detail, extremely sensitive to the needs of the various family members involved and served the public well.

Life at the Senior Center is bustling with an abundance of daily activities and out-of-city trips and adventures.

Our HUD Office continues to seek appropriate grants and funding for the various properties located in the City and the Assessor's Office has completed the STAR program enrollment and is securing estimates for the work that needs to be done for data collection of commercial properties within the City.

Work has begun to update our ordinances and we are in the process of forming a Zoning Commission.

I am engaged with ongoing talks with County Supervisors and members of the Water Board in order to enhance intermunicipal communications and cooperation.

I would also like to offer a special thanks to our City Clerk for helping me to get organized and for her willingness to work efficiently with the general public, city officials and council members.

I would like to thank the council members for their willingness to work closely on important projects and for assuming roles of great responsibility as liaisons to the various departments and boards throughout the city.

Presently I am maintaining morning hours at City Hall and welcome visits from the general public. Please come and share your ideas with me and view the various pieces of art created by Johnstown artists.