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News February 22, 2010 Chester Mayor's State of the City CHESTER - Mayor Wendell Butler Friday offered his 2010 State of the City Address. Here is the full text of his speech: For more than a decade now, we have been working hard to build a better Chester in a step-by-step, year-by-year process that is affordable, without raising taxes. We have focused on taking control of our own destiny rather than letting outside circumstances or naysayers dictate the nature of our actions. We charted a new course for our City that will allow us to be the kind of City that residents are proud of and that visitors enjoy. In following that course, we have been fortunate to achieve some significant successes. At the same time, there is still a great deal of work ahead of us. As we are gathered here in the second month of a new decade, it seems to me that this is a very good time to take stock of where we are in the City of Chester, relative to where we want to be. It is a good time to look back at the decisions we made over the last ten years or so, and the outcomes of those decisions. It is an especially good time to lay out a clear vision for where we want to be ten years from now and to formulate the basics of a strategy for building a better Chester in the years to come. In taking this hard look at the City, I want to focus my remarks on how we are doing in several critical areas - financial stability, opportunities for our residents, livable neighborhoods and public safety. One of the best ways to gauge where we are in the City of Chester is to look around and see how other cities are doing. The headlines are dire indeed. Philadelphia is facing a $100 million deficit over the next few years and is raising taxes and cutting services. Lancaster reduced its workforce by 10 % and raised property taxes by 25 %. Reading is eliminating 68 positions. Across the river, Camden is balancing its budget with over $121 million that it receives from the state of New Jersey. Think about that, Camden gets almost three times the entire Chester budget in annual state subsidy to cover its operating costs. In contrast, here in the City of Chester, we are standing on our own two feet in the midst of one of the worst economic periods in our nation's history. We have a balanced budget, we have not cut services and we have not raised property taxes for fifteen (15) straight years. We may well be the only one of Pennsylvania's fifty (50) or so cities able to make that fifteen year claim. In addition, we have once again not raised resident and non-resident earned income or business privilege tax rates for 2010. How is it that we are holding up so well financially when other cities are struggling so hard just to make ends meet? The fact of the matter is that our current financial success has its roots in decisions made by Chester City Council over the past decade. Tough decisions to forego limited short term tax revenue and to use the Keystone Opportunity Zone to create an incentive for new development, made the City an attractive location for the developers of the Wharf at Rivertown, Harrah's and other projects in the City. Resisting the naysayers and fighting for and securing the racetrack license that led to Harrah's, provided us with a revenue stream that other cities can only envy. Although these decisions were criticized by some at the time, the financial results speak for themselves and are the reason why we have a balanced budget today, when so many other cities are struggling. Those same difficult decisions made by City Council over the last decade have brought more than just a balanced budget to the City. As a result of those decisions, more than 2,600 jobs are now in Chester that were not here ten years ago. In 2010, with the arrival of table games at Harrah's and the Philadelphia Union for their first Major League Soccer season in Chester, we will see many more jobs added to that total. According to Temple University's Metropolitan Philadelphia Indicators Project, this kind of job growth has Chester classified as an economic hotspot in the Philadelphia region. Of course, while more jobs in the City is certainly a positive result, it is far better for the long term stability of our community if City residents are able to take advantage of those job opportunities. As I walk through Harrah's, and more recently the new TD Bank at University Crossings, to name just a few of the new arrivals, I see City residents working in jobs that did not exist just a few short years ago. That is certainly a very good thing. However, the number of Chester residents hired into the new jobs arriving in town has not been as large as we would have liked. Some may suggest that Chester residents should have gotten more of the new jobs just because they are Chester residents. That is an easy sound bite that resonates with people who are struggling to make ends meet. Recognizing this problem, during the last decade we established the Chester Workforce Development Center. This first-time-ever initiative was designed to link Chester residents with the resources they needed to take advantage of the opportunities that our economic development polices were providing. Under the direction of Robert Wrease, the Center has reached out to thousands of City residents to let them know about job opportunities and resources that can help them find and keep a job. As job opportunities continue to expand in the City in the years ahead, these types of activities will be increasingly important. Through the Workforce Development Center, we will work to link residents to resources and skills and job-training services that will help them be competitive in the ever-changing job market. While the mission of the Workforce Development Center is critically important, it is too often needed as a result of the fact that many residents attempt to enter the workforce without the needed level of education or the critical job skills that employers demand. On that subject, under the leadership of Dr. Thornton, the Chester Upland School District has made significant progress in educating our children in the last few years. As many of you may know, Dr. Thornton may soon be leaving the District. Over the years, I have developed a great working relationship with Dr. Thornton and have personally expressed my desire for him to stay and finish the tremendous work that he has started. In addition, with the assistance of some key partners, he has given students broader options to achieve an education. The Smedley High School for Health Careers and the School of the Arts are only two of the most visible aspects of the changes underway in the school district that will better prepare our children to compete for jobs in the future. Along with progress in the school district, the Chester Community Charter School and the Widener Partnership Charter School have both shown similar progress in the ability of their students to demonstrate academic success on the state PSSA tests. Early success on these types of measurements gives students the confidence that they can learn on a par with students from other districts around the state. This better positions them to become lifelong learners and solid employees. While these signs of progress are encouraging, the demands of the workplace continue to rise. In order to compete for jobs over the next ten years, it is likely that many positions will require more than a high school education. The recently established College Access Center, a joint effort of multiple area colleges and universities, can certainly help in that regard. Residents and their children need to take full advantage of the free resources available at the center offered for students of all ages who are interested in pursuing their college education. Unfortunately, for many City residents, the cost of post secondary education is too high. To help address this problem, I worked closely with Senate Majority Leader Dominic Pileggi to assure that the recent

News
February 22, 2010

Chester Mayor's State of the City
CHESTER - Mayor Wendell Butler Friday offered his 2010 State of the City Address. Here is the full text of his speech:

For more than a decade now, we have been working hard to build a better Chester in a step-by-step, year-by-year process that is affordable, without raising taxes.

We have focused on taking control of our own destiny rather than letting outside circumstances or naysayers dictate the nature of our actions. We charted a new course for our City that will allow us to be the kind of City that residents are proud of and that visitors enjoy. In following that course, we have been fortunate to achieve some significant successes. At the same time, there is still a great deal of work ahead of us.

As we are gathered here in the second month of a new decade, it seems to me that this is a very good time to take stock of where we are in the City of Chester, relative to where we want to be. It is a good time to look back at the decisions we made over the last ten years or so, and the outcomes of those decisions. It is an especially good time to lay out a clear vision for where we want to be ten years from now and to formulate the basics of a strategy for building a better Chester in the years to come. In taking this hard look at the City, I want to focus my remarks on how we are doing in several critical areas - financial stability, opportunities for our residents, livable neighborhoods and public safety.

One of the best ways to gauge where we are in the City of Chester is to look around and see how other cities are doing. The headlines are dire indeed. Philadelphia is facing a $100 million deficit over the next few years and is raising taxes and cutting services. Lancaster reduced its workforce by 10 % and raised property taxes by 25 %. Reading is eliminating 68 positions. Across the river, Camden is balancing its budget with over $121 million that it receives from the state of New Jersey. Think about that, Camden gets almost three times the entire Chester budget in annual state subsidy to cover its operating costs.

In contrast, here in the City of Chester, we are standing on our own two feet in the midst of one of the worst economic periods in our nation's history. We have a balanced budget, we have not cut services and we have not raised property taxes for fifteen (15) straight years. We may well be the only one of Pennsylvania's fifty (50) or so cities able to make that fifteen year claim. In addition, we have once again not raised resident and non-resident earned income or business privilege tax rates for 2010.

How is it that we are holding up so well financially when other cities are struggling so hard just to make ends meet? The fact of the matter is that our current financial success has its roots in decisions made by Chester City Council over the past decade. Tough decisions to forego limited short term tax revenue and to use the Keystone Opportunity Zone to create an incentive for new development, made the City an attractive location for the developers of the Wharf at Rivertown, Harrah's and other projects in the City. Resisting the naysayers and fighting for and securing the racetrack license that led to Harrah's, provided us with a revenue stream that other cities can only envy. Although these decisions were criticized by some at the time, the financial results speak for themselves and are the reason why we have a balanced budget today, when so many other cities are struggling.

Those same difficult decisions made by City Council over the last decade have brought more than just a balanced budget to the City. As a result of those decisions, more than 2,600 jobs are now in Chester that were not here ten years ago. In 2010, with the arrival of table games at Harrah's and the Philadelphia Union for their first Major League Soccer season in Chester, we will see many more jobs added to that total. According to Temple University's Metropolitan Philadelphia Indicators Project, this kind of job growth has Chester classified as an economic hotspot in the Philadelphia region.

Of course, while more jobs in the City is certainly a positive result, it is far better for the long term stability of our community if City residents are able to take advantage of those job opportunities. As I walk through Harrah's, and more recently the new TD Bank at University Crossings, to name just a few of the new arrivals, I see City residents working in jobs that did not exist just a few short years ago. That is certainly a very good thing.

However, the number of Chester residents hired into the new jobs arriving in town has not been as large as we would have liked. Some may suggest that Chester residents should have gotten more of the new jobs just because they are Chester residents. That is an easy sound bite that resonates with people who are struggling to make ends meet.

Recognizing this problem, during the last decade we established the Chester Workforce Development Center. This first-time-ever initiative was designed to link Chester residents with the resources they needed to take advantage of the opportunities that our economic development polices were providing. Under the direction of Robert Wrease, the Center has reached out to thousands of City residents to let them know about job opportunities and resources that can help them find and keep a job.

As job opportunities continue to expand in the City in the years ahead, these types of activities will be increasingly important. Through the Workforce Development Center, we will work to link residents to resources and skills and job-training services that will help them be competitive in the ever-changing job market.

While the mission of the Workforce Development Center is critically important, it is too often needed as a result of the fact that many residents attempt to enter the workforce without the needed level of education or the critical job skills that employers demand. On that subject, under the leadership of Dr. Thornton, the Chester Upland School District has made significant progress in educating our children in the last few years. As many of you may know, Dr. Thornton may soon be leaving the District. Over the years, I have developed a great working relationship with Dr. Thornton and have personally expressed my desire for him to stay and finish the tremendous work that he has started.

In addition, with the assistance of some key partners, he has given students broader options to achieve an education. The Smedley High School for Health Careers and the School of the Arts are only two of the most visible aspects of the changes underway in the school district that will better prepare our children to compete for jobs in the future.

Along with progress in the school district, the Chester Community Charter School and the Widener Partnership Charter School have both shown similar progress in the ability of their students to demonstrate academic success on the state PSSA tests. Early success on these types of measurements gives students the confidence that they can learn on a par with students from other districts around the state. This better positions them to become lifelong learners and solid employees.

While these signs of progress are encouraging, the demands of the workplace continue to rise. In order to compete for jobs over the next ten years, it is likely that many positions will require more than a high school education. The recently established College Access Center, a joint effort of multiple area colleges and universities, can certainly help in that regard. Residents and their children need to take full advantage of the free resources available at the center offered for students of all ages who are interested in pursuing their college education.

Unfortunately, for many City residents, the cost of post secondary education is too high. To help address this problem, I worked closely with Senate Majority Leader Dominic Pileggi to assure that the recent