Friday, Feb. 25, 2005 | ||
Bad Links? | Union City now home to more than 15,000Ben Nelms Mayor Ralph Moore used broad strokes to paint a picture of the affairs of Union City in his Feb. 15 State of the City address. He used the occasion to call for a bond issue to address the citys deteriorating streets. Moore began his remarks to the nearly two-dozen in attendance saying that Union Citys house was in order. He announced that the citys growth included, as of the end of 2004, the plan or proposal of more than 5,000 housing units, reflecting the significant increase in the citys population since the 2000 census. Our explosive housing boom had caused our population to increase from 11,621 to a projected figure of a little over 15,000 in the city, Moore said. Addressing economic issues, the mayor said city codes overseen by the planning department will be a catalyst for transforming the area of Shannon Mall into an area of convenience to work, play and to live. Union Citys continuing growth is matched by the efforts of the police department. With such growth in the city, the police department is faced with the ever-increasing challenge of public safety, Moore told the audience. While crime is slightly up in our city, the good news is that our police department continues to meet the increase with continued proactive patrols and increased awareness training for our officers. Moore added that the citys high-profile crime cases have resulted in successful prosecution, while the traffic division is keeping roads safe for both vehicular traffic and pedestrians. The challenges coming from growth are also being met by the fire department, Moore added, with the number of calls to the fire department and EMS increased by four percent during 2004. He referenced the opening of the citys new fire-station #1 in July, equipped with state-of-the-art environmental and safety equipment. Moore also acknowledged the work of the administrative and public works departments. I will not stand here and gloat over our accomplishments tonight, but my real need is to express the ever-present challenge of the external forces that we must deal with as a city each day. I will call it the unholy trio- the state, the metro region and the county, Moore explained. Moore used examples of mismanagement from outside the realm of Union Citys control as a jumping-off point to propose a bond issue to resolve what he called the tremendous problem of deteriorating streets and other city needs. A bond issue would facilitate Union Citys need to get our house in order, he said. Moore qualified his request by saying the state continues to believe that bottoms-up planning will resolve the development crisis, metro believes additional taxes will resolve problems and the county continues its policy of sprawl and leap-frog development. All this mismanagement in growth has resulted in more and more negative spill-over into our community on the south side, particularly in regards to continuously increasing traffic and road conditions, he maintained. While many marvel at the growth, heads are turning at the cost of this growth. While the city grows we are constantly overwhelmed with mismanagement from outside. Increasing traffic not generated from within is causing roads to deteriorate. Streets are the skeletal framework that our city must maintain. We are at a point in time where we must ask the question, are we able to continue to nickel and dime ourselves to correct this tremendous problem? Moore reiterated his call for the community to support a bond issue to address substantial street repair and rehabilitation and the purchase of heavy equipment and, if necessary, additional road crews. Though not outlined in detail, other potential items for inclusion in the proposed bond issue were the purchase of floodplain property to construct a park, building a third fire station and installation of a neon sign similar to that of Georgia Tech to be used as a means of welcoming visitors to Union City.
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