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Mayor & Council > Mayor > Speeches > Inaugural Address Inaugural State of the City Address Good afternoon and thank you for being here today. And ......Thank you to the Songhees and Esquimalt Nations in whose traditional territories we live and work..... Hay swx qa I am honoured and thrilled to deliver this State of the City address to you today. I don't think there is any secret about what I, and what our citizens want for Victoria. My vision for Victoria is a vibrant and safe city. A Victoria that is full of opportunities. A place where young people can start a family, and start a career. Where they can afford to buy a home. My vision is a city that supports its downtown. A city that gains strength from its diverse neighbourhoods and communities. A City that is known not for its challenges with homelessness but for the compassion and ideas used to solve it. From strollers to scooters, a city for all ages. A city that is Canada's social and environmental leader. A city that is sustainable - both in terms of the economy and the environment. And over the next three years, my Council and I, will work to make that vision a reality. But what will set the theme for the next three years is HOW we will get there. We have a huge job ahead of us ..... Municipalities are faced with shouldering more and more responsibilities, ..... our taxpayers and our city are facing uncertain economic times, ...........we are facing complex urban challenges .... However, we're also on the brink of something fantastic here in Victoria and I continually remind myself of why I ran for Mayor. I love this city. I always have. In the 30 years that I have lived in Victoria, I have seen our city go through dramatic changes. From a quiet and conservative town, Victoria has grown into a dynamic urban centre that boasts leading edge industries, cultural innovators, and ethnic communities from all over the globe. We have opened up to the world. (Pause) I believe we have enormous untapped potential to be a leader in environmental sustainability .... and can lead by example as to how a community can pull together and find solutions to homelessness. I want to leave a community for my daughter's generation that is better tomorrow than it is today. As the 51st Mayor of Victoria, I have a lot of things I want to see happen and in a relatively short amount of time. Over the next three years we will face some tough decisions. We will also create and enjoy incredible success. Now, there is no question what the number one issue is in our city and the number one issue on my agenda. We must find homes for those without. We need to look high and low for land, buildings and services that can support those currently living on the street. I have a seven year old daughter who knows what the term "homeless" means. A seven year old shouldn't have to wrap their head around why some people have homes and some do not. I want to be able to tell her that we're doing everything we possibly can to find homes for those in need. We need to look in our own "backyards" and open our minds to having supported housing in all of our neighbourhoods. The Premier has asked municipalities to find land for social housing.... We'll be working through the coordinated efforts of the regional Coalition to End Homelessness, .... ....we'll be working with our regional partners at the CRD and I'll be asking staff to identify additional public properties in Victoria that could be considered for supported housing. We can't expect other levels of government to introduce supported housing and treatment if we are not willing to have it in our community. Climate Change . . . . We are quickly becoming an environmental leader and we cannot afford not to be. Victoria's Dockside Green project - an award winning green community development - has earned international acclaim. This has been a lesson in the art of the possible. Special as it is, we have to stop looking at Dockside as a special case and start seeing it as the new norm. The City has the opportunity to use sustainability standards achieved here as a model for future developments. There are resources available to local governments in B.C. that are pursuing sustainability for their communities - including federal and provincial funds to support project planning and implementation. The City of Victoria does not need to re-invent the wheel - we need get that wheel on the road. Let me say a few words about city staff.... Council sets the direction, staff make it real. From the police and firefighters on the front lines keeping our citizens safe, .....to our early morning street cleaners and our talented parks workers ....these are the dedicated staff whose hard work keeps this city moving. We have a great leader in Penny Ballantyne, our City Manager, who has built a fantastic team of professionals to support Council and turn our vision into reality. To Penny and your team, Council and I look forward to working with you. Mayor and Council... To my fellow Councillors, we have our work cut out for us. Working together as Mayor and Council, one of our first tasks will be to get up to speed and ensure we are working as a team. Working together is the only way we will see progress and the only way we will see things get accomplished quickly. We are reviewing our governance structure to introduce ways to support effective and timely public participation and decision making. We will be taking a close look at the way we govern ourselves at City Hall I want action on our most pressing issues and that will only occur if we have a system that supports things getting done. With the exception of CRD appointments, I will be holding off on making my Council appointments to advisory committees ....to align all our efforts to focus on our priorities. The public's participation in Victoria's decision making is critical to our success, but our systems must solicit meaningful input that is actually used. The first day back in January we will start our strategic planning that will set the course for the next three months and the next three years. I look forward to sharing Council's priorities with the public by the end of January. I will be looking to my 8 councillors, returning and new, to show leadership and teamwork in making our system a successful one. As a council we will work together, as one. I love this city. I always have. I am honoured to be provided the opportunity make Victoria even better. I plan to be here each year giving my State of the City address, Each year I will be accountable to you and will demonstrate all we have accomplished and where we still have work to do. I will be honest about the challenges and opportunities we face and I will be upfront and clear about why we made the decisions we did. In three years time I hope we can all look back and see that THIS is where the tides shifted for the better in this community. This year the State of the City is a commitment to action. Next year it will be an accounting to the public for results we have achieved and the progress we have made. Lets get to work. I'd like to take this opportunity to acknowledge some of the key people here today who have supported and encouraged me. Shirley Fortin (Dean's mother) Mr Woodland - we have work to do. (Rob moves motion on CRD and Acting Mayors) I would now like to take the opportunity to appoint Councillors to the standing CRD committees. CRD Board: Dean Fortin, Charlayne Thornton-Joe, Geoff Young and Philippe Lucas Alternates: Lynn Hunter, Chris Coleman, John Luton, and Pamela Madoff Acting Mayor Appointments for 2009 Charlayne Thornton-Joe - December 2008
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