STATE OF THE CITY ADDRESS

CARLISLE, OHIO 2005

Fellow Council members and Citizens of Carlisle, it is my privilege to deliver to you my second State of the City Address as Mayor of Carlisle.

As we review progress we’ve made in 2004 and look forward to 2005, we continue to see moderate growth that we have predicted in the past.

2004 saw the completion of another phase of the road project in which we will change an old two-lane highway to a three lane urban design to help ease the flow of traffic through the City.

2005 will see the next phase of improvement of Central Avenue. The road will be widened from the underpass to the Dry Run Bridge.

2004 saw the sale of land on Eagle Court for a new 10,000 square foot building, which brought two new businesses to the City. One is Debello Masonry and the second is Wellbrock Distributing. Mr. DeBello already has plans to build another 5,000 square foot addition to house an additional another business on the site.

2004 saw the retirement of Bob Pieper, our former Police Chief and the promotion of Sergeant Tim Boggess to Chief of Police. Chief Boggess and the Police department continue to implement the continuous improvement plan suggested by the Ohio Chief of Police Association in order to improve the Police Services we offer the citizens of our City.

2004 saw another successful year for our Fire Department. In 2004 we were concerned what effect a proposed merger between Franklin and Franklin Township would have on the department. Even though the merger issue was defeated and the Township will continue to exist, there is still uncertainty about the Fire contract the City has with the Township. Our contract with the Township for fire protection west of the river was renewed for only four months of 2005. The revenue we receive from this contract is a significant part of the budget for the Carlisle Fire Department and if we lose it, we will have to take some action to replace the lost revenue. The ad hoc fire committee has identified three options to deal with the loss of this revenue. One is to raise taxes. The second is to have the Fire Department consolidate Emergency Medical Service with fire service, and the third is to form a Joint Fire and EMS district with the City of Franklin and Franklin Township.

2004 saw the Service Department acquire a new plow truck. The snowstorm we had at Christmas last year was a real test for our service department and the City and I believe they performed with flying colors. I received many complements from residents about how well Carlisle’s streets were cleared of snow during the storm. Unfortunately the storm cost about $20,000 in unplanned expense to the road fund. I want to thank all our service department workers and everyone else who helped for such a valiant effort in dealing with the storm.

In 2004, we saw the repaving of Meadowlark Drive and the South end of Sunset Drive.

2004 saw continued new home building in Timber Ridge and Pineview subdivisions and the addition of two new subdivisions, The Villas at Timber Ridge and Eagle Ridge. These exciting new additions to Carlisle’s housing stock offer two new levels of homes not seen before. Eagle Ridge offers high-end homes while the Villas at Timber Ridge offers a low-maintenance development geared toward empty nesters and seniors.

When it comes to the City’s finances, 2004 was another successful year for the City. Our income tax revenues were down from the previous year due to the sluggish economy, but so was our spending. We ended last year with a balanced budget once again, and I want to thank our Finance Director, the Manager and all the Department Heads for their efficient use of our limited resources. We are budgeting conservatively for 2005 but hope that it will be a better year financially with the improving economy.

I want to honor the Carlisle School District for its increase on the State Report Card from “Continuous Improvement” to an “Effective” rating. I know our teachers, staff and administration have been working hard to keep improving our schools and I want to let the school know how proud I am of them for this achievement.

I want to thank the staff for their extra hours they put in last week in dealing with the flooding we experienced when the Miami River flooded to its highest level since 1959. Fortunately we escaped with relatively minor property damage in the City.

And finally, I would like to thank the Manager, Finance Director, all the Department Heads and Staff for their service to the City and its citizens. You are the ones who make this City government work and I look forward to serving with you in 2005.