Message from the Mayor

Greetings to all!  As I write this, I am also preparing my State of the City Address.  Too often, we do not stop to celebrate the successes we have but focus on the problem at hand.  I am happy to share with you some of our successes as we continue to work towards making sure Euclid is a first choice suburb where we all can be proud to live, work and visit. 

A couple of things we all should be proud of:

We welcomed several new businesses in 2016:  Hibbett Sports, Euclid Brewery, Dollar Tree, Simon’s Grocery Store, DriveTime, NEOSports, Marathon, Terves, along with major renovations at Euclid Hospital, HGR, and AAble Rents.  We also are anxious for the completion of Lincoln Electric Welding Training Center and Chipotle in 2017. 

The Police Department welcomed new leadership with the promotion of Chief Scott Meyer who brings a commitment to actively and pro-actively addressing crime control issues while continuing a department wide commitment to “engaged policing.”  Chief Meyer has expanded the Community Response Unit and remains committed to community policing programs and activities.  In the Fire Department, we added a new ambulance and 2 new fire engines to our fleet of vehicles, continued Emergency Preparedness Training, and maintained staffing needed to provide highest quality service to our residents. 

The City expanded its events and engagement opportunities:  brought back WindFest, Concert Series, Mayor’s Listening Tours, Engage Euclid nights, Faith in the City Initiative, Art Walk and more.  We added amenities such as Bike Sharrows, bike racks, flower planters, planted more than 400 trees, paved 14 streets, replaced roof at Animal Shelter and dasher boards at ice rink, and completed Green Infrastructure improvements at Sims Park and the Downtown Municipal Parking Lot as well as renovations of Triangle Park. 

Despite a challenging budget, we ended the year adding more than $200,000 to our general fund cash balance.  We saw small increases in most major categories of income compared to 2015.  

Through the joint efforts of the Building & Housing and the Law Departments, we made progress in strengthening the compliance in the areas of rental registration and code enforcement.  The number of cases sent to the Prosecutors Office increased 77% and the number of Criminal Cases files in Court increased dramatically.  Median single family home prices in Euclid increased in 2016 by 20% (Plain Dealer article, Jan 10, 2017). 

I am particularly excited about the opportunities ahead in 2017 to complete our Master Plan, break ground on the next phase of Lakefront Development, and welcome more new business and industry to Euclid.  With the passage of the Schools Bond issue, we have the opportunity to see major improvements to Memorial Park in cooperation with Euclid Schools.  We will continue to work to improve core services to our residents, explore efficiencies and innovation, and improve our communication efforts.  As always, I welcome your ideas, feedback and involvement.  Full text of my State of the City Address will be available on the City of Euclid website (www.cityofeuclid.com).

Mayor Kirsten Holzheimer Gail