By Joanne Bailey-Boorsma
With such accomplishments as resurfacing more than 40 miles of roads, the approval of four new hotels, the opening of 28 West Place and the passage to open the library millage for park improvements, Wyoming Mayor Jack Poll said “How can I walk away from that?”
So in his State of the City address last night, Poll, the longest-serving mayor in the City of Wyoming’s history, officially announced that he would seek his fourth term as mayor.
“So therefore, if the residents desire that I continue as their mayor, I will be placing my name on the ballot in this year’s election year, to serve four additional years,” Poll said during the Monday night meeting.
Poll has served as the Wyoming mayor since 2009. Before that, he served on the Wyoming City Council from 2001-2005 and 2007-2009.
After the Jan. 15 meeting when Poll presented his State of the City Address, he said that he is considering retirement from his full-time job. Poll is pharmacist for Family Fare.
“So basically, during the next term, of the four years, I will be retired for about three of them, allowing me to be more of a full-time mayor attending more events for the city,” Poll said.
Also after the meeting, Mayor Pro-Tem and Council Member at Large Sam Bolt said he would be seeking his third term on the council.
“I still enjoy it,” Bolt said. Council Member at Large Kent Vanderwood, whose seat is also up for election this fall, was on vacation and did not attend the Jan. 15 meeting.
To a packed house of city officials and residents, which included Poll’s wife, Mary, and family members, Poll said he hoped to provide a “snapshot” of what has taken place in the city with his State of the City address, noting it has been “a very busy year.”
“This is a long list of accomplishments but it hardly scratches the surface when we consider all that city leaders and staff have done over the last year, primarily in collaboration with one another,” Poll said.
Highlights included:
• For infrastructure, the city completed two water main projects that total almost two miles of water main, resurfaced about 43 lane miles and added two miles of non motorized trails.
• For the water plant, which, according to Poll, continues to provide the highest quality water in the state, is looking to add a second Lake Michigan intake and a third transmission pipeline, expanding the plant’s capacity which will help the community to grow, Poll said.
• Parks and Recreation has focused on storm clean up and replacement of trees along with improvements at Palmer, Kelloggsvile, Lemery, and Pinery parks.
• The library milage allowed for new technology and LED lighting in the library and was opened by voter approval to allowed for park improvements for Ideal, Ferrand, Gezon and Jackson parks.
• The Planning Department has approved in 2017 four hotels, annexed 60 acres of industrial development, worked on the 28 West Place project and a number of other developments including The Havens. Inspections also approved permits for about $70 million new and renovated construction projects.
• The city also was able to implement a new medicare advantage prescription drug plan for retirees that will allow the city to reduce its longterm liability by $42 million.
Public Safety continues to make community outreach its main focus. Police officers logged 6,000 visits to local schools, 8,500 business contacts and 7,000 physical business checks. The police department also has instituted a cadet program to recruit students. On the fire side, staffing at station 3 and 4 has allowed response times to be cut in half along with there being training on speciality skills for water, ice and trench rescues. Also a partnership with Metro Health – University of Michigan Health has allowed for a helipad to be placed at Station 3.
“We are blessed with employees who are so highly respected in West Michigan, across the state and even at the federal level,” Poll said. “I have watched the skillful handling of tragedies both natural and produced, deep thinking and solving of situations that seemed impossible. I can stand here today and say, we made it through them all. Our city is better today because these trials have become victories that make Wyoming a beacon of bright light shining in West Michigan.”
For the complete speech, click here.
For 2018, Poll said the city will continue to work on those areas with a number of opportunities and challenges on the horizon.
“Above all these things, financial sustainability remains our top priority and biggest challenge we face,” Poll said. “The city council and I will continue to look for ways to insure that we can provide services at the highest level to our residents and businesses.”
Poll said while many things have been discussed, such as a millage increase and an income tax, city leaders “don’t know yet what the best solution is. However through all the ideas we proposed, we ask that you, our friends and neighbors, and the partners that come along beside us, give thoughtful consideration and examine all sides of the issues…
“The only way we will continue to be a city of vision and progress is if we work through these challenging times together.”
