State of the City Address 2007

18 Jan 2007

The Chamber's State of the CIty Address event held annually in January is a one of a kind event to mark the beginning of a New Year and set the tone for both the Mayor and the Council as they set out to tackle the important issues that face our municipality.

This year's breakfast event, held on January 18th at the Hilton Hotel and generously sponsored by Deloitte, was attended by over 860 civic and business leaders. See pictures from this event.

Below is the text of Mayor Anne Marie DeCicco-Best 2007 address.

Introduction

Good morning ladies and gentlemen and Happy New Year. It's always great to begin a fresh new year and it's particularly special to begin this new four-year mandate as your Mayor. May I also take this opportunity to offer warm congratulations to the Chamber on its 150th anniversary.

Today, in the annual State of the City address, I'd like to reflect on our city's many accomplishments of 2006 and talk about why I feel so confident going forward to 2007 and beyond. At the start of each new year, it's important to redefine our shared vision for this city. And, that includes asking ourselves a number of questions:

• What are our aspirations for London?
• What are our goals and do we have the capacity to achieve them?
• What are our strengths?
• Where must we work harder?

We are at an exciting point in the history of the City of London, Ontario. Our economy is getting stronger. Our investments are reaping results. Our community grows more vibrant each year.

By all reports, London is an economically strong, safe, healthy and caring place, where people are proud to live, work and play. Yet, our community is much more than a collection of neighbourhoods and businesses. It's a community of engaged citizens.

Today, more and more people are working together to build and sustain the economic, social and environmental pillars necessary to achieve a vision of London as a great, global community.

Today, people from around the world are taking notice of London. They may come to visit, but then discover our city is a great place to take root - a place where their personal, professional, and family dreams can flourish and grow. When I became Mayor more than six years ago,

I knew Londoners took great pride in our city's achievements. I did too. But, we believed it was equally important to focus on our city's future. So, we had to ask some very basic questions:

• Did we make the right investments in our infrastructure?
• Did we establish benchmarks to measure our progress?
• Did we have the right financial plan to take us forward?
• Did we have a clear vision to prepare us for a shifting and increasingly global economy?

These were important questions then and prompted the transformation currently underway in our city.

London's Proud History

As we learned during our sesquicentennial, London has a proud heritage and we owe much to previous city leaders. There is an old adage that says: ‘There are two bequests we hope to leave our children - one is roots to grow, the other, wings to fly'. Our roots are strong - as strong as the oldest tree in The Forest City. And, it's that strength, that rootedness, which supports the belief we can truly take flight and soar into the future - into the 21st Century and across the globe.

So, how will we continue to grow and soar, and achieve our goals? Every year, on behalf of City Council, I share a firm commitment to work together, with you, to achieve our mutual goals, to realize our vision for London. As such, let me outline what I believe to be the essential building blocks for the future.

They are:

• A strong and diversified economy
• A sustainable infrastructure
• A community rich in arts, culture and diversity
• Environmental stewardship
• Leadership

A Strong and Diversified Economy

Today's economy is stronger and more diversified than ever before. In fact, through the efforts of many, London has become a dynamic city where everyone has the chance to contribute to and share in our community's prosperity. Thanks to the work of the London Economic Development Corporation, over the past six years we have attracted 26 new companies to London, with 175 businesses expanding to create more than 7,000 new jobs.

And, what is even more exciting, are the results of two recent independent reports. The Conference Board of Canada predicts continued benefits from our strong economy in 2007, and Service Canada ranks London second highest in job growth in Southern Ontario over the last five years. Much of this growth is in full-time employment. Now that's worth celebrating. Kitchener ranked first, largely because of its proximity to Toronto and the numbers show we are narrowing the gap.

New construction continues to defy economic indicators within our region and across North America. Housing starts and real estate sales have seen their best numbers in London's history, and the city has recorded another record-breaking year in construction. For the 29th consecutive year, Moody's awarded London its Aaa credit rating - citing a prudent fiscal plan and a steadily expanding assessment base, as factors.

These successes are impressive and they form a great foundation on which to grow. Still, we know the economy is changing. While it is great news manufacturing continues to be a stronghold for us, it is the knowledge-based economy that holds the key to new and accelerated growth.

London's next economy will grow from a solid base built on four pivotal organizations in our city collaborating to achieve shared goals of increasing job opportunities and strengthening the economy. The LEDC, TechAlliance, the Stiller Centre and the Small Business Centre will each retain their independence, while working together to develop one cohesive Economic Development Strategy for London.

Shortly, the Strategy will come forward for approval by Council and will include benchmarks to ensure we meet the future needs of our economy. This requires a great deal of work and I thank the many volunteers who have invested their time, talent and energy getting us to this point. It is so heartening to have such talent in our community. We are indeed blessed with our share of visionaries.

A Sustainable City

Of course, constantly improving and growing our city's economy is a priority, and so is building and maintaining the city itself. We must focus very clearly on how we invest in our infrastructure and design and plan our neighbourhoods.

To this end, Council has finalized its 20-year Sewer Master Plan giving us the ability to protect the environment, while meeting our sewer and water needs. We also enjoyed a major infusion of provincial funding for road widening and maintenance projects last year, and Airport Road was officially renamed Veterans Memorial Parkway.

Looking ahead, 2007 is a key year to revisit our Official Plan, with six primary areas identified for review:

• growth forecasts and land needs;
• commercial policies;
• residential infill and intensification;
• affordable housing;
• urban design and Creative City Task Force recommendations;
• transportation policies.

We will engage all sectors of the community to determine how we will grow; how fast we will grow; and what that growth will look like from an urban planning perspective over the next five years.

Last month, Larry Beasley, retired Director of Planning for Vancouver, made a stop in London. Beasley spoke with clarity about the critical factors he believes are necessary to building a great city, when he observed:

”A courageous city government, armed with strong planning and urban design principles could make London the envy of all Ontario.”

Indeed, we have the architectural history, the scale, and the Thames River, which are all assets allowing us to recreate our city - to make it more vibrant than ever before. So, Council will work very hard, in partnership with community leaders, to make this happen.

When we talk about London's renewal, we include the obvious - our Downtown and East London. We are proud of our many successes, including the John Labatt Centre, the new Covent Garden Market, and the many new restaurants and residential units. But, we must not lose sight of the strategic importance of the revitalization of Dundas Street.

We want to create a thriving, bustling and attractive streetscape. To do that, we are considering a number of initiatives. One idea is the establishment of an enterprise zone, to attract businesses back downtown. And, to be successful in the core, we'll need an aggressive recruitment program; recognition of heritage buildings; public transit enhancements; and adequate parking.

We must also polish the gem that is East London. Our cultural history lives there - in places like the Aeolian Hall and the Palace Theatre. The proprietors of these wonderful heritage buildings are working fervently to find various ways to attract visitors and users - and they need our support. For instance, the Old East Village Association has undertaken a Creative Industry Study.

Early findings indicate the Village is a tapestry of actors, classical and popular musicians, painters, poets and writers who live and work in the area. It's up to us - the community - to create a distinctive, attractive and well-maintained main street, and working together, we can revitalize East London.

Still, building a community takes more than bricks and mortar; more than attractive streetscapes. That's why we‘re continuing our efforts as a creative city and it shows. Our Creative City Task Force has put together an action plan to strengthen London's arts and culture.

A Creative City

As such, over the past year, we established a Culture Office at City Hall and launched the London Arts Portal on our City website, to give Londoners and visitors information on arts and entertainment locations, events and other activities. And, to ensure these important cultural aspects within our community remain strong and sustainable, we are considering a new policy that would see an arts-related component included with every new City capital-building project we undertake.

Meantime, new facilities such as the JLC, the Central Library and its branch network, new and enhanced community centres and recreational spaces are all making a tremendous difference in the quality of life for the people of London.

The movie industry was also front and centre with the homecoming of former Londoner writer/director Paul Haggis last September. As many of you know, Paul became the first person in the history of the Academy Awards to write two back-to-back Best Picture Winners - Crash and Million Dollar Baby.

The City worked together with the Thames Valley District School Board, the London District Catholic School Board and Fanshawe College to stage the event. And it was an inspirational experience for Paul and the many students at Catholic Central, H.B. Beal, and the College, who shared in this special visit.

Meantime, sports tourism continued to reap benefits and attention for London. In the last two years alone, London played host to at least six exciting national and international sporting events, including the Memorial Cup, the Scott Tournament of Hearts, the World Transplant Games, and the LPGA Golf Championship.

My thanks go out to the thousands of dedicated volunteers who stepped up to show participants and fans the time of their lives at these events. We also look forward to hosting the World Synchronized Skating Championships this March, and bidding for the 2008 Memorial Cup.

A Community of Environmental Stewardship

Sustaining the health of our physical environment is an important principle to uphold in all our endeavours - from infrastructure improvements and economic development, to the revitalization of a tired streetscape. With this in mind, over the past year, we developed policies to ensure clean air, clean water and the protection of our wood lots and green spaces.

We also established a Tree Committee to tend our urban forest. In addition, the City is reducing greenhouse gas emissions to its landfill, developing an Energy Master Plan for the Corporation, and using fuel-efficient hybrid cars and Smart Cars.

As our city continues to grow, we must do all we can to divert as much material as possible from our landfill site. This will require the efforts of all of us to recycle and re-use. Certainly, the failure of some communities to step up to their waste management responsibilities is clear, as we see Toronto's garbage trucks pass through and by our city each and every day.

We will continue to press for a Province-wide Waste Management Strategy, in conjunction with other neighbouring cities, to deal with the looming landfill crisis in Ontario. Every bottle saved; every container reused; and upholding critical and sometimes challenging actions, including our rotating garbage pick-up schedule, all matter. The extra efforts we make today will pay off for generations to come. And, I congratulate Londoners for taking a leadership role in waste reduction. Together, we are diverting over 25,000 tons from our landfill every year. That's a very good start.

A Diverse Community

A healthy community is defined by the action it takes to steward its culture, its economy, its growth, and its future. But most importantly, a community is defined by its people. London is indeed becoming a diverse community, made up of individuals and families representing the many and varied cultures found throughout the world. It's these new Canadians, these new Londoners, who are defining our city, our community, our future.

A great city welcomes newcomers and understands what it means for people to be strangers in a strange land. That's why London hosted the first-ever Cultural Diversity Conference last fall. For the event, we brought hundreds of leaders together, including Ontario's Lieutenant Governor James Bartleman to help us see how our city has changed, to promote ideas of social inclusion and to look at how workplaces can be proactive in their recruitment efforts.

Such events are complementary to projects like the Immigration Portal and the Immigrants Work Project.

Now, the London region has a tremendous pool of well-educated, highly-experienced and motivated workers, who are recent immigrants, just waiting to put their skills to work. When we help to connect these individuals to businesses in London, we not only address the skilled trade shortage, we support businesses in their efforts to remain competitive, productive and successful. A City of Leaders

Every day, we witness the vitality of our city, as home to an internationally renowned University and a first rate College, both alive with innovation and expansion. We also have a health care, teaching and research system enjoying the most significant transformation in this Province.

This year, Fanshawe College celebrates its 40th anniversary, as it continues to grow and expand. Purchasing the former Small Business Centre, adjacent to the campus on Oxford Street, the College will use the space for programming in the skilled trades and technology. Fanshawe is also opening its second Job Connect program downtown in collaboration with the London Public Library. For the 5th consecutive year, a survey by the Globe and Mail says the University of Western Ontario is the best university in the country.

Combined with increasing enrolment and infrastructure expansion with the three Affiliated Colleges, Huron, Brescia and King's, our campus will dominate in the creation of the best student experience and increase efforts in research and scientific discovery.

London Health Sciences Centre and St. Joseph's Health Care continue to showcase as centres of excellence. Among a number of recruitments, world-renowned physician-scientist Dr. Richard Kim relocated his lab and entire research team from Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee to LHSC to continue groundbreaking work in personalized medicine.

St. Joseph's and the Lawson Health Research Institute scored big, receiving over $26-million in funding to support leading edge research in hybrid imaging. This new technology is cutting-edge and will improve patient diagnosis and treatment. In addition, Robarts Research Institute received a new Tesla MRI scanner, the first of its kind in Canada, and one of only nine worldwide. The scanner is accelerating the study of illnesses from stroke to Alzheimer's disease.

A Healthy Community

When we were growing up, having a family doctor was a given, but sadly that's no longer the case. Still, I'm heartened by the continued success of the Mayor's Task Force of community volunteers, Business Laureates and City Recruitment Specialist to bring more family doctors to our community. And, I'm pleased to announce two new family physicians for London. Dr. Amanda Wiebe has set up practice at the Bradley Medical Centre and Dr. Ketan Patel will be setting up his practice in North London.

On a related front, the City is a proud partner in the development of a collaborative, multi-disciplinary, community-based response to the need for an immediate and sustainable supply of family physicians. Under the leadership of Dr. Tom Freeman, the Thames Valley Family Health Team Steering Committee and a variety of partners are working to create a Centre for Excellence in Family Medicine. The Centre's two-pronged objective is to provide families with primary health care, and at the same time, give newly graduated doctors the opportunity to learn the art of family medicine. The vision is to restore to its rightful place the role of the family doctor, appealing to aspiring physicians to make family medicine their career choice.

I am also proud that community leaders recently joined forces as part of the Mayor's Task Force to End Woman Abuse. Among its objectives, the Task Force will raise awareness of the issue and its devastating impact on our children and our community.

The group is also preparing tools to outline best practices within the business, government and human service sectors. Violence against women touches us all - friends, family, neighbours, co-workers - and requires our collective effort to end it.

A Safe Community

One of the many obligations a city owes its citizens is the peace of mind that they and their families are safe in the places they live, work and play. That is why safety remains such a priority. Over the past six years, we have added 113 new frontline police officers who are vigilant in fighting crime in our city. Our Police Service is also the first law enforcement agency to use blackberry technology to access information by officers walking the beat, delivering school safety, and on bike patrols.

City Council also hired 20 new firefighters and prevention officers, opened new fire halls, and increased the hours of ambulance service. And, of particular note is the work of the Middlesex-London Health Unit as one of London's greatest forces for illness prevention and healthy living.

Experts warn us another pandemic is a real possibility. Should we see it in our lifetime - we will turn to the Health Unit for leadership. Like their colleagues across the province, Dr. Graham Pollett and his team of professionals are undergoing intense planning and training in order to be prepared.

A Compassionate City

London is a healthy and safe community. It's also a city of generosity and compassion. Our citizens consistently share their time and resources in philanthropic and community programs that improve the lives of our most vulnerable. I thank Londoners for the innumerable ways you give to others and provide a voice to those who cannot advocate for themselves.

With every action to support the United Way, the Food Bank and other worthy causes, community spirit triumphs over homelessness, poverty and isolation. Community compassion was especially evident when we learned of the death of London-born Trooper Mark Wilson who lost his life while serving in Afghanistan. With this news, thousands of Londoners displayed yellow ribbons in memory of this brave young man and in support of his family. In the same way, each Remembrance Day, our community honours our veterans, past and present.

As an old ‘garrison town', London is rich in military history and you may be surprised to learn we have over 800 military and civilian personnel on assignment with Canadian Forces units at Wolseley Barracks and other locations in London, and 26 Londoners currently serving overseas.

We are also home to the Garrison Community Council whose job is to raise community awareness of the role and importance of our nation's military.

A Fiscally Responsible City

With this strength behind us, we have many reasons to be proud. We will build on our success, measure results and aim even higher. And, we'll be able to do all of this by remaining fiscally responsible. London's Strategic Financial Plan is our guide. Council will continue to reduce the City's debt levels and costs by sustaining a cap on spending.

We will invest strategically in our infrastructure and our social and cultural fabric. We will increase our efforts to pay-as-you-go for important projects. Reserve funds will be adjusted to ensure they are more than adequate to pay for unexpected expenses, and we will continue to review and manage our assets.

The Strategic Financial Plan embodies accountability on the part of all who lead and work for the City. Through last year's ‘Save a Buck' program at City Hall, our employees absorbed more than $4-million in inflationary pressures and saved another $4-million by managing employee vacancies, without forfeiting the important services Londoners need and expect.

Together, we have developed a culture to count every dollar saved, even after the budget has been set, because we know what we save today, we can invest in tomorrow. As you know, we are now in the midst of our 2007 budget process.

We have a very strong starting position and our growing assessment base will also be an important positive factor. Public meetings are underway with the final approval coming on February 20th.

Meantime, our work as a Council to ensure affordable taxes are balanced with effective services will move into a new phase. This is the second year of our defined 4-year operating budget cycle. That cycle will give us a clearer focus on how we pay for the needs of today, and tomorrow.

We will set a 10-year capital budget forecast to ensure long-term thinking on the City's infrastructure needs and continue to track performance measures. Last year, we introduced the Financial Report Card, which established clear comparators for London to other Ontario cities, while showing our progress year over year. In the Financial Report Card for 2006, we have expanded what we track.

And, over the next few months, we'll be releasing a series of Report Cards, showing Londoners how we're doing in meeting the City's Strategic Priorities: 1) Economic Prosperity; 2) Core Infrastructure Sustainability; 3) Community Vitality; 4) Environmental Responsibility; and 5) Enriched Cultural Identity.

During this term of Council, we will also move to implement departmental business plans. So, accompanying every budget request will be a detailed, comprehensive business plan designed to prioritize and justify necessary resources. As a municipality, we will work cooperatively with the Province to review and compare various services and programs currently provided and funded at two levels of government.

Our goal is to eliminate possible duplication, and to enhance efficiency and cost-effectiveness in the delivery of important services to those people we mutually serve. This cooperation is critical to our long-term financial stability and crucial to keeping our taxes at or below the level of inflation, without cutting programs and services.

A Collaborative Community

We are also strengthening our collaboration with our regional neighbours. It takes many minds to remain competitive in an economy where knowledge is the new industry. So, working in partnership with Western last spring, we launched the Southwestern Economic Assembly.

Our first forum held in Stratford was a great success and I am pleased to announce that more than 400 key leaders will reconvene in Windsor this May to continue our work. The next critical steps will be to solidify our regional partnership, develop a region-wide business planning strategy and create a common marketing plan. While helping to build a strong region, we will continue to build a strong London.

So, I am delighted to announce the creation of the Mayor's Round Table Series to complement the work of our Economic Assembly. The four ‘Round Tables' will be comprised of community leaders in search of new ideas and strategic initiatives in four emerging and developing economic sectors: 1) alternative energy; 2) medical health; 3) agrifood; and 4) advanced manufacturing.

Each Round Table will include a dozen participants and involve a key ‘opinion leader', who will offer perspectives on emerging trends associated with developing economic opportunities. The ideas generated will be realized through economic, educational, research and institutional partners, and eventually become part of future strategic actions in London. Collaboration increases opportunities for investment and job creation.

To that end, I'm proud to report my relationship-building extends from coast to coast with my fellow Big City Mayors, reaping benefits for London. Together, we successfully leveraged millions of dollars in sustainable funding for infrastructure improvements. In fact, I have taken on the leadership role of Co-Chairing with the Mayor of Vancouver a Committee aimed at developing a National Housing Strategy to present to the Prime Minister through the Big City Mayors' Caucus.

While London has been a leader for years in providing affordable housing, there is still no national program. Yet, City Council has approved a local housing strategy that will see 1,200 units built by 2010. As your Mayor, I have also been invited to play a key role with my Caucus colleagues on five other working groups, developing initiatives from a National Transit Strategy to growing our revenue grants from the federal government.

These areas of work are all important and I note that our own London Transit Service is poised to hit its highest ridership numbers since annexation, as it celebrates its 130th year of operation, and looks for innovative improvements including Rapid Transit Service in years to come.

An Emerging City

The work we do as a region, to solidify our reputation across the country will make a fundamental difference in London. Equally, empowering our next generation of leaders is where London's future strength lies. I was gratified to see the local media recently report Statscan figures showing London has attracted almost 4000 young workers between the ages of 25 and 44 in five years.

Our young leaders come from all sectors: business, technology, education, health care, and research. They represent different cultures; they bring new ideas; and they are seeking a place that values them as individuals and contributors to the community.

They want a chance to pursue their dreams, their lifestyle and an opportunity to make a difference. The Emerging Leaders' Think Tank series, established by TechAlliance, is giving this group of talented young professionals an opportunity to make their voices heard. And, they are challenging us to develop a course of action to keep them here. We need to be more welcoming, more supportive, and more courageous. They want opportunities to link with business and community leaders, as well as quality volunteer experiences. And, these future leaders tell us London's brand or image, needs an overhaul to embody culture, innovation, technology, youth, excitement and buzz.

Well, we're stepping forward to answer this challenge. I am pleased to announce, the first-ever ‘Emerging Leaders Community Champion Project' and I'm proud to be the first Champion. My focus will be to raise the level of participation of young people on London boards, commissions and advisory committees.

The experience of being a volunteer will reinforce the importance of teamwork, decision-making, and giving back to the community. I congratulate the London Arts Council for being the first organization to get involved by officially welcoming young entrepreneur Andrew Francis, owner of the Alex P. Keaton, to its Board. And, I encourage all of you to join us and become more involved with the Emerging Leaders initiative through www.emergingleaders.ca.

Our young people are looking for a place to grow. We can offer them roots and wings. Our roots grow deep in the fertile ground on which great cities are built. Our young professionals will soar into the future and across the globe, returning to London because London is home. London's international reputation is growing, as our businesses look farther afield for opportunities for success.

Global reach is a key strategy for successful companies everywhere and we, the citizens of London, are beneficiaries of that strategy. Our outstanding teams of health, education and research professionals are connected with their worldwide colleagues, sharing information, expertise, vital research and scientific discoveries.

London is attracting an international audience to every major event it holds today. Meantime, London International Airport has become a dynamic portal - linking London to the world. In the past two years, the Airport has grown by a remarkable 38%: more services, more flights, more destinations and more value.

A City of Opportunity

So it's clear - London is a city of opportunity. It's a place to grow - as an individual, as a family, as a business. When I meet people from out of town for the first time, they usually say, ‘I hear London is a beautiful place'. I assure them it is, and invite them to ‘come and see'.

Londoners know it, visitors recognize it. Now it's time for each of us to become London's greatest promoters. I'm asking you to be proud and passionate with every visitor you encounter and when you travel, promote London as a great place to live, work and play. Today, I am proud to announce the official launch of London's Ambassador Program, a community calling card inviting companies to locate and expand their businesses here.

It will encourage young people and entrepreneurs to start their families and careers in London. And, it will convince national and international corporations and associations to plan their conferences and conventions here.

This community-wide promotional campaign is powered by people who are enthusiastic and energetic, representing many sectors. I thank Perry Ferguson of Voyageur for his leadership in accepting the role as Chair of the Ambassador Program. I also thank his hard-working team of fellow ambassadors. While this group has already stepped forward, we invite every Londoner to join with us and proudly celebrate London as your home. Will each of you also take on this challenge and join us?

Community building is a never-ending process. It takes time; it takes courage; it takes leadership; and it takes all of us. Our roots grow deep. We have wings to fly. Together, we will build our community to be the envy of Ontario and open to the world. Thank you for your many contributions to our great community. Thank you for your belief in me as your Mayor and thank you for sharing in a vision of a brilliant tomorrow for our city, our home - London, Ontario, Canada.

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