By JAN LARSON McLAUGHLIN
BG Independent News
Mayor Mike Aspacher’s optimism peeked through the COVID cloud that hung over Bowling Green and the rest of the nation last year.
His “state of the city” address during his first year as mayor was canceled in 2020 due to the pandemic. His address this year was performed to a camera and taped for the community to view remotely.
“While I had envisioned that my first state of the city address would be shared with an audience, our vigilance to safety protocols must continue,” Aspacher said as he began his non-traditional speech.
“Thinking back to last March, that seems like a very long time ago,” the mayor said of the year that challenged every community.
The pandemic took a “tremendous toll” on the city, through losses in employment, finances and good health.
“We know this pandemic has touched the lives of everyone,” Aspacher said. “There have been many opportunities lost, sacrifices made, hardships endured.”
However, “as a generally optimistic person, I tend to reflect on the bright spots that emerge in dark times,” he said.
When COVID first hit, city leaders weren’t sure of its intensity and duration.
“There were so many unknowns,” the mayor said. “We took immediate, but measured actions.”
City government officials cut back on spending, and advocated for federal and state help to get the community through the pandemic.
“I’m happy to report our strategy was successful.”
The city’s 2021 budget reflects steady staffing numbers, no long-term changes to city services, and no increases to city fees.
Now, as the light is visible at the end of the tunnel, the mayor is ready to talk about moving ahead.
“I think it’s important for a community to be aspirational,” he said. At the top of the list of goals for the city are land use planning, zoning updates, improvement of the East Wooster corridor, strengthening of neighborhoods, and the construction of a new city administration building.
“I’m pleased we have a solid plan to move forward,” Aspacher said of the new city building planned in the space currently occupied by the senior center on North Main Street.
The new city building will have much better access for citizens, compared to the existing building which was built as a school in the early 1900s, the mayor said.
“It’s a maze of offices carved out of former classrooms,” he said.
The city is also moving ahead on infrastructure investments – some very visible, like roadwork, and others buried underground, like water and sewer improvements.
“Orange barrels that give us all a headache are a sign of progress,” he said.
Those infrastructure improvements that are less visible are also investments in the city.
“These projects can be transformative for neighborhoods,” Aspacher said.
The mayor renewed his support for the “Complete Streets” concept – “to make Bowling Green more walkable and more bikeable.”
He talked about the record attendance at city parks last year, when people turned to parks for respite during the pandemic.
“Our parks are a tremendous community asset,” he said.
He reminded that the quality of parks and recreation programs rely on continued support by the community of a levy every five years – with the next one to appear on the ballot this fall.
The mayor also pointed out the city’s emphasis on a “dialogue about race,” with efforts to provide outlets for community discussions. Aspacher talked about the city’s police division – which has achieved accreditation, which will soon have body cameras for all officers, and which has changed its hiring process to widen the pool in hopes of getting more diversity on the force.
The police division “takes its responsibility of policing the community very seriously,” he said.
The mayor also advocated for the city’s sustainability programs.
“I add my voice of support to efforts to increase sustainable practices in local government and the community,” he said.
Aspacher talked of the need to ramp up economic development efforts in the city.
“We need a renewed focus and more modern, proactive economic development approach,” he said. “We cannot rely exclusively on the same ways of doing business.”
“In my view, we must adopt a fresh approach to economic development – one focused on attracting more diverse business segments.”
“We must aggressively and intelligently pursue this new path,” he said. “Bowling Green is unique and we need to tell our story, and invite others to invest in and share in our success.”
Aspacher concluded with a wish for healthier days ahead.
“It is my hope we emerge from this difficult pandemic energized to embrace numerous opportunities that lie ahead of us.”
