Transcript Downtown - City of Evansville

State of the City Address
Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel
Presented to Rotary Club of Evansville
March 17, 2009
• Road Paving
• Sidewalk Replacement
• Pigeon Creek
Greenway Passage
• Bike Lanes on City
Streets
• Education Roundtable
• Southwest Indiana
College Access
Network
• Bellemeade and
Howell Parks Pools
• Boys & Girls Club
Partnership
• Museum Expansion
Project
• Front Door Pride
Progress
• New Downtown
Restaurants &
Shops
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
THE ECONOMY IS THE TOPIC
OF THE DAY .
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
January 2009 Unemployment
Rate
Number
State of Indiana
City of Evansville
9.9%
8.8%
319,801
5,142
United States
8.5%
13,009,000
Source: Indiana Department of Workforce Development, www.in.gov/dwd
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
Closings, Layoffs, Job Reductions,
Salary and Benefit Reductions
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
Local Government Finances
• City budget affected by:
– Increased fuel costs
– Increased utility costs
– Increased health insurance costs
– Decreased revenues
• Result of State property tax reform
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
Local Government Finances
• City budget balanced for 2009
– 5th year in a row
• Could never have predicted
what has happened with
the economy
• In a good position to handle it because of
changes made over the past five years
• Have demanded that our City operate more
efficiently
• Have looked for partnerships that allow us to
make good use of our resources
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
Streamlining Local Government
• Partnership with USI Center for
Applied Research and Technology
– Evaluated issues related to
city-wide parking enforcement
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
• New online time and
attendance system
• Cooperative
Purchasing
Organization (CPO)
– Cut costs
– Create efficiencies
– Leverage increased
purchasing power
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
Streamlining Local Government
• 12 City positions
eliminated in all
– No employees put
out of work
• $553,000 annual
savings*
• Able to provide the same level of service
*Based on 2008 salaries and benefits
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
Streamlining Local Government
• Haven’t had to take
actions that other
Indiana communities
have, such as:
– Laying off large numbers
of employees
– Making drastic cuts to
essential services
– Increasing income taxes
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
Private Sector Relatively Stable
• Local financial services relatively stable
because of conservative lending practices
• Evansville’s unemployment rate is a full
percentage point below the State average
• Ft. Wayne, Gary and South Bend have
unemployment rates above 10%
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
Job Creation, Business Expansion
• Mead Johnson Nutrition:
– Investing $26 million to
build new R&D Technology
Center
• Berry Plastics:
– Investing nearly $21 million
for new global
headquarters in Evansville
– Hiring at least 250 new
workers
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
Job Creation, Business Expansion
• American General:
– $35 million expansion
nearing completion
– 150 new full-time positions
will soon be filled
• Vuteq (Toyota parts supplier):
– Adding 50 jobs
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
Reality of the Economic Situation
• These are challenging times
• It will take a lot of hard work and
collaboration to turn things around
• We need to be patient
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
THE ECONOMY DIDN’T REACH
ITS CURRENT CONDITION
OVERNIGHT, AND IT WILL TAKE
TIME IT TO RECOVER.
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
National Recovery Process
• Federal government taking steps to speed
up the recovery process
• Not “Wall Street” vs. “Main Street”
• Taking action on multiple fronts to:
– Create jobs
– Put people to work
– Put money back into the economy
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
Meeting with President Obama
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
Meeting with President Obama
• Had the honor of traveling to Washington,
D.C. to meet with President Barack
Obama, Vice President Joe Biden and
several cabinet secretaries at the White
House
• Meeting took place right after Congress
passed the American Recovery and
Reinvestment Act
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
American Recovery & Reinvestment Act
• Will create or save
millions of jobs
• Invest billions of
dollars in the nation’s
infrastructure
• Help reinvigorate
neighborhoods
• Invest in clean energy
technology
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
American Recovery & Reinvestment Act
• President Obama urged us to use this
money wisely
• That’s what the City of Evansville intends
to do
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
American Recovery & Reinvestment Act
Amount
Source
$795,964 Community Development
Block Grants
$1.2 million Homeless Prevention Funds
Use
Revitalize older neighborhoods (Build,
revitalize and/or demolish homes)
Keep people in their homes and fund the
services necessary to support them
$5 million Highway/Bridge
Infrastructure Funds
Modernize Downtown traffic flow and
signalization; construct Pigeon Creek
Greenway Passage, Industrial Corridor,
Phase 2
$388,019 Byrne Justice Assistance
Grant (JAG) Program
Prevent and control crime
$2.6 million Federal Transit
Administration
Buy 3 more hybrid buses, bringing total to
11; retrofit existing facilities and buses to
use 20% biodiesel (B20)
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
American Recovery & Reinvestment Act
• States and cities can compete for billions
of dollars in grants, such as:
– $2 billion available through the
Neighborhood Stabilization Program for
redevelopment projects
– $5 billion available for home weatherization
– Will pursue funding to continue work dealing
with flooding on the southeast side
• We are carefully monitoring grant
opportunities
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
American Recovery & Reinvestment Act
• We are not waiting for the Federal
government to bail us out
• Have our own stimulus projects which will
put hundreds of people to work and
pump more money into our local
economy
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
EVSC Construction Projects
• EVSC spending $150 million to:
– Build new North High School/
Middle School complex
– Renovate other schools
• Work is underway
• All projects should be complete
by fall 2011
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
EVSC Construction Projects
• Timing is ideal
• Bids for have come in well
under budget
– Due to reduced material
and borrowing costs
• Projects will:
–
–
–
–
Improve our children’s education
Cost less
Create jobs
Stimulate the ecoomy
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
New Arena to Stimulate Local Economy
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
Hundreds of New Jobs for
Our Community
• Economic impact study
commissioned by the
Evansville Regional Business
Committee estimated that:
– 670 jobs created during construction period
– 530 jobs created after arena is complete
– New restaurants, new businesses need
hundreds of workers
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
Spin-off Economic Development
• Browning Investments
is committed to
building a 250-room
hotel
• City issuing an RFP in
the next few weeks
• Just the beginning of the investment and
jobs that will be created in our community
by a new arena
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
Deciding to Build a New Arena
• Has been a long and thorough process
• Started talking about what to do with
Roberts Stadium years ago
– Built in 1956
– Renovated in 1990
– Has served our community well
• Have known for several years that the
facility needs a massive upgrade
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
Public Involvement
• Formed Roberts Stadium
Advisory Board, with
members representing:
– Business
– Labor
– Neighborhood associations
– Universities
– Government
• Hired experts like The Gateway Group to
help us sift through all the data
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
Public Involvement
• Roberts Stadium Advisory
Board held 13 public
meetings over the course
of 18 months
• Invited the community
to participate and speak
at each opportunity
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
Advisory Board Recommendation
• Roberts Stadium Advisory
Board unanimously
recommended building
a new arena downtown
• City Council endorsed recommendation
• County Commissioners, County Council
endorsed use of Food & Beverage Tax to
help fund it
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
Facts Supporting Recommendation
• According to Gateway, we will need to
spend up to $17 million over the next 3 –
5 years to keep Roberts Stadium open
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
Roberts Stadium Deficiencies
• Would cost a total of
$40 million to correct
deficiencies
– Concourses too narrow
– Aisles too narrow
– Seats too small
– Concession areas and kitchens inadequate
– Not enough restrooms
– Restrooms not up to code
– Facility not ADA compliant
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
Roberts Stadium Structural Problems
• Would $90 million to
fix major structural
problems
– Rigging can’t support
equipment weight
– Floor not regulation size
• Too small for ice shows, arena
football, hockey, and any other
event that uses a standard floor
– Undersized truck docks and marshalling areas
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
Renovating Roberts Stadium:
Bottom Line
• Would cost us at least
$90 million to renovate
Roberts Stadium to
make it lasting and
competitive
• In essence, we would have to build a new
facility
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
Building on Same Site
• If build downtown, can take advantage of
tax increment financing (TIF) district
• TIF funds NOT available to use at current
Roberts Stadium site
• Would need to increase property taxes by
about $60 million to build a new facility at
the current site
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
Building on Same Site
• No other economic
development taking
place in that area
• None has occurred in the past 50 years…
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
Building on Same Site
• Would have to
shut down the
whole area for
almost two years
to allow the
intensive
construction to
take place
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
Downtown is the Best Choice
• Can finance construction with
sources of revenue that are
only available downtown
– Food & Beverage Tax
– Gaming Proceeds
– TIF District
• Can finance a new arena and provide
excellent coverage on debt obligations
without raising taxes
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
More Bang for our Buck
• Will see economic
development take place
downtown because of
this project
• People will walk to
downtown businesses and restaurants
• Retailers and developers already telling
me they can’t wait for a new arena
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
Asset for Attracting Conventions
• Arena will be located
right next to The Centre
• The two facilities can
be used in tandem
• Will allow our community
to attract even larger
conventions and events
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
Roberts Stadium Parking
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
Parking Comparison:
Downtown vs. Roberts Stadium
Downtown*:
5,296 spaces
Roberts Stadium:
3,000 spaces
* Within a five-minute walk of the intersection of Fourth St. and Locust St.
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
Downtown Parking
City Garages
Sycamore St.:
Locust St.:
Third St.:
TOTAL:
588
378
613
1,579
Private Garages
420 Main St.:
Executive Inn:
Old National:
One Riverfront:
Fifth Third:
TOTAL:
150
600
600
425
400
2,175
Surface Lots
TOTAL:
1,542
Total Parking: 5,296 Spaces*
* Within a five-minute walk of the intersection of Fourth St. and Locust St.
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
Planned Downtown Traffic Changes
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
Access Points to Downtown
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
Access Points to Arena Area
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
Access Point Comparison:
Downtown Site vs. Roberts Stadium
Roberts Stadium
Downtown Evansville
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
Funding Plan
• Funding for new arena will not take away
from City services
• Relies on completely different funding
sources: Downtown TIF, Gaming Receipts,
and Food & Beverage Tax
– Cannot be used for things like salaries and
benefits
– Can only be used for capital projects
• Does not touch current allocation of
revenue for existing projects
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
WE CAN PAY FOR AN ARENA AND
STILL HAVE MONEY TO INVEST IN THE
CAPITAL NEEDS OF THE CITY AND
OTHER DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS
THROUGHOUT OUR COMMUNITY.
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
Arena Project Director
• John J. Kish
– Former Executive Director of the
Indianapolis Airport Authority
– Responsible for all aspects of
$1.1 billion Midfield Project
– Completed on time and on budget
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
Food & Beverage Tax
• Working to get the State legislature to
approve use of the local Food & Beverage
Tax as a revenue source for the arena
– State law must be changed
• Proceeds currently paying off bonds on
The Centre
– Once paid off, all proceeds will go to arena
• House approved the bill unanimously
• Now being debated in the Senate
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
Property Acquisition
• Discussions
taking place
with
property
owners
• Making
progress
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
Next Steps
•
•
•
•
Secure site
Food & Beverage Tax change
Construction to begin this summer
Opening date: Late summer of 2011
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
No Better Time to Build a New Arena
• Create community pride
• Improve quality of life
• Attract more prestigious and visible
events to Evansville
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
Our Own Stimulus Package
• Put hundreds of people to work
• Support more economic development
downtown
• No Property Tax Increase
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
Community Pride
• I am proud that this
community continues
to move forward with
projects like the arena
– even in this
frightening economy
• We really have no choice
• We must move forward and build on the
momentum we have going here
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
National Economy Will Present Challenges
•
•
•
•
But here in Evansville:
We’re tough
We’re smart
We know how to work together
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
Please Do Your Part
• Talk to your friends
and neighbors about
the new arena and
how important it is
• Tell people that we
are on track to lead
the state out of the
economic challenges
we face
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
SHARE YOUR PRIDE AND
OPTIMISM THAT EACH OF US
HAS IN OUR COMMUNITY…
NO MATTER WHAT WE
MIGHT FACE.
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009
Questions?
State of the City Address | Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel | March 17, 2009