Kokomo Standard

‘State of the City’ Highlights Growth & Investments in Huntington’s Future

In his annual State of the City remarks, Mayor Richard Strick applauded the innovative ventures happening alongside of investments in public and private assets, bringing new activity to all parts of Huntington.

“The reinvestments and redevelopment in downtown storefronts is as exciting as the new investments and development along U.S. 24, in the north and south shopping plazas, and our new industrial park,” Mayor Strick said.

Private construction projects throughout the City in 2022 included work beginning on the new Teijin Automotive plant at the developing Riverfork West industrial site, a $1.6 million remodel of Ecolab’s facilities on Tipton Street, a $1.7 million Planet Fitness remodel, a $3.5 million Shuttleworth expansion and a $14.8 million PLEX athletic fieldhouse project at Huntington University.

Teijin’s overall investment in its new facility is expected to top $100 million.

Public investments in 2022 included the remodeling of the Victory Noll Center by Huntington County to create The O’Donnell Center, the expansion of the Huntington County Jail and the completion of Huntington North High School’s athletic stadium facility.

The strides made across Huntington, the mayor said, were a true community effort.

“We work best when we work together to solve the problems facing us. We work best when we focus on results instead of credit. And we work best when we continue to pioneer and improve the way we live together and serve one another.”

Police Chief Cory Boxell, appointed in December 2021, completed his first full year leading the Huntington Police Department. During 2022, HPD launched a new and improved DARE program throughout Huntington schools. Investments in technology and equipment, such as a countywide collaboration to acquire new communications radios, kept the department well-positioned to continue serving Huntington in the years to come.

Advanced training continues to be a focus for Huntington’s police officers. Continuing training hours increased 31 percent in 2022, and Huntington officers are training on average at three time the statewide minimum requirement, Mayor Strick reported.

“I am thankful to work with a City Council that agrees with me on the importance of investing in equipment and training to make sure our officers perform their duties with integrity and return home safely at the end of a shift,” he said.

In addition, the city completed design plans for the final three sewer separation projects in the Long-Term Control Plan and laid the groundwork for construction to begin in 2023. The projects, which are being driven by federal and state mandates, will address pollution control concerns related to combined sewer overflows during periods of snow melt or heavy rainfall.

In updates from other city departments:

• The Huntington Fire Department maintained its standing in the top 6 percent statewide for Public Protection Certification.
• The Street Department continued its year-round work maintaining Huntington’s 95 miles of streets and 25 miles of paved alleys. This department also helped manage the transition of the city’s expiring trash and recycling collection contracts to a new provider, GFL Environmental.
• City Utilities Distribution worked closely with the Street and Engineering departments to continue improving the City’s water and wastewater distribution systems. By surveying 19 miles of water mains and other proactive maintenance, the department identified and repaired leaks and other issues to prevent service disruptions and lessen pressure on utility rates.
• Parks & Recreation engaged the Huntington community with a variety of activities, events and programming at the city’s 186 acres of public parks. At the same time, volunteer hours coordinated by Parks & Recreation totaled nearly 2,000 service hours – or nearly $60,000 in labor cost savings.
• The Communications Department launched Huntington Connect, a mobile 311 app for residents to request services and report concerns. The lion’s share of the work on a new city-county website was completed in 2022, with the site launching in early 2023.

Mayor Strick closed his address by recommitting to his belief in and work toward a better Huntington. He outlined just a few of the city’s goals and objectives for the rest of 2023.  Huntington will:

• Celebrate the 175th anniversary of its incorporation as a town throughout the year.
• Continue developing and work to implement a comprehensive housing strategy as part of a countywide coalition announced in 2022, in order to attract and retain new workers and families to Huntington.
• Invest in infrastructure and equipment while providing a modest decrease in the city’s tax rate (from 2.6119 to 2.2981).
• Build upon a recently established community Addiction Recovery Fund in partnership with Huntington County, Town of Warren and the Community Foundation of Huntington County to support local substance abuse prevention, intervention and treatment in the short- and long-term.

 “As the second largest City in Northeast Indiana, I’m not content – we can and will do better as we keep investing our lives in this community,” he said.

Original source can be found here.