State of the City is Just Fine, Mayor Says

Strongsville held its own -- and even grew -- through the worst of the economic recession, and now has a "bright and vibrant" future, Mayor Tom Perciak said.

The mayor, delivering his State of the City address to more than 300 members of the Strongsville Chamber of Commerce Tuesday, recapped successes over the past year and laid out encouraging -- if moderate -- plans for new projects this year.

Among the highlights:

• Perciak said he would name Bryan Bogre, who has been serving as interim recreation director, to the post permanently. City Council would have to approve the appointment. 

• Three new baseball fields at Youth Sports Park on Lunn Road will be open for play by Memorial Day. The fields were made possibly by a $250,000 state grant and a $50,000 donation from Strongsville Travel Baseball for backstops and fences.

• The $15.5 million Pearl Road widening project will wrap up in June and include new state-of-the-art traffic signals at Drake, Echo, St. John Neumann and the post office. "Not one red cent of taxpayer dollars (was used), and we will have it done no later than June 30," Perciak said.

• The city will erect new monument signs welcoming motorists to town. "We want the business world to know where Strongsville is," Perciak said. "We're letting everyone know Strongsville is open for business."

• While other communities struggled to keep their tax base, Strongsville added 350 new non-retail jobs and 150 retail jobs during 2010. Thirty businesses either moved here or expanded last year, as well.

• The city issued 51 permits for new homes in 2010, and while that can't compare to the 200-plus requests in past years, it's "a whole lot better than the communities that have zero," Perciak said.

• More than 400 residents have applied to to natural gas to take advantage of a deal the city worked out with Columbia Gas that offers discounts on the conversion.

• The city will do $5 million worth of road repairs this summer, including 30 concrete streets and about eight asphalt roads.

Perciak also gave an overview of the city's accomplishments in the last year, including the opening of the renovated police station; receiving a $355,000 grant to replace lighting in the rec center that saves $35,000 a year on energy bills; and joining other communities in going to court over a plan by the Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District.

He also said that since 2008, Strongsville has reduced -- through attrition, not layoffs -- its work force by 40 employees, saving $3.4 million. 

Perciak said he is proud Strongsville has weathered the recession without making cuts that affect residents.

"We are one of the few cities in the nation," he said, "that didn't cut services or furlough employees."