Bessemer Mayor Kenneth Gulley highlighted economic development, crime-fighting efforts and plans to build a City Hall and a city recreational facility during his State of the City Address last week.
Speaking at the Bessemer Civic Center on Monday, Jan. 27, Gulley said tough decisions made by the City Council and himself early in his term have opened the door for great progress in the city.
“The past 12 months have seen great growth in our city,” Gulley said. “People’s perceptions of Bessemer are changing. Old houses are being torn down. Roads are being paved. Resources are going to our school system for our teachers and students. Our crime rate is dropping.”
Gulley said the city plans to break ground later this year on a new City Hall. The new building will be located at the corner of Third Avenue North and 17th Street. It is being designed by Exford, LLC and will cost in the neighborhood of $5 million.
The current City Hall at the corner of Third Avenue North and 18th Street was built during the Great Depression and is showing its wear and tear, he said. The new City Hall is scheduled for completion by summer of 2015.
The city has also set aside $12.9 million in bond money for the construction of a youth and senior recreational facility at Roosevelt Park. The new facility is being designed by the architectural firm of Charles Williams and Associates. It will be the highlight of a renovated Roosevelt Park.
The city purchased the former Davis Middle School property from the Bessemer Board of Education last fall. Plans are to demolish the school building this spring to make way for renovations to the park.
“As many of you are aware, recreation has been promised to our seniors and youth for many years,” Gulley said. “Regardless of the naysayers, this will become a reality.”
Gulley spoke on the addition of new businesses and industry to the city. In the past year, companies such as BLOX, Intertec, Steyr Arms USA and Consolidated Pipe and Supply have announced plans to move to Bessemer. About 2,000 jobs have been created in Bessemer within the past three years through the arrival of new companies and the expansion of existing companies, the mayor said.
Gulley said the city has increased funding for the Bessemer Library by $75,000 and ensured tax money set aside for schools goes directly to the Bessemer Board of Education. The Board had sued the city prior to Gulley taking office over the apportionment of tax dollars.
Gulley also took time to shoot down a recent social media article which painted Bessemer as the 7th Most Dangerous City in America. Gulley said the city’s crime rate has dropped 25 percent since 2011 and the number of homicides in the city has been cut in half. There were 10 homicides in Bessemer when Gulley took office in 2010, but only five homicides in the city in 2013. A suspect has been arrested in all but one of the 2013 homicides.
Other major crimes such as burglaries, robberies and felony assaults have declined as well, according to statistics from the Bessemer Police Department.
“Let’s not be deceived by statistics comparing our city to larger cities with populations of 200,000 to 300,000 people,” he said. “I think this is wrong and unfair.”
Gulley said the Bessemer Police Department plans to hire an additional 25 new officers in 2014, bringing the department to full staff for the first time in 16 years.
Gulley closed the address by highlighting the demolition of 113 dilapidated and blighted structures over the past three years. He said the city’s clearance program is leading to the demolition of anywhere from six to 10 blighted structures a month.
He also spoke on improvements at the Bessemer Airport, improvements in the city school system, city departments and at the Bessemer Housing Authority.
The city of Bessemer has also received federal money through the state’s ATRIP program to resurface and improve roadways in the city.
The city, Gulley said, was in terrible financial straits when he arrived in 2010, but sound financial management has allowed it to provide city employees with cost-of-living increases over the past two years.
“I promised our city employees that we would work to re-establish our position as being on the higher end of the pay scale in Jefferson County so that we could hire, train and retain the best employees,” Gulley said. “I am proud to inform you that over the past two years the city of Bessemer’s employees have received 6 percent in cost-of-living increases.
“We will continue to make the necessary decisions to support our employees.”
