ANDERSON — During his annual State of the City address, Anderson Mayor Kevin Smith said the city is growing as it enters its 150-year celebration.
Smith spoke Tuesday at the Anderson Rotary Club, which is the traditional venue for the annual message.
“Growth is apparent as you drive around the city,” Smith said. “There is new construction, new investment and new growth in every segment of the city.”
Several of the candidates seeking the Democratic Party nomination for mayor this year have raised concerns about public safety in Anderson and have said certain segments of the city have not shared in the investments evident along the Interstate 69 corridor.
The future of the city is dependent on economic investment, education and improving the quality of life, Smith said.
Smith said when he took office in January 2012, the unemployment rate was 11.2 percent; it was 7.4 percent at the end of 2014.
“We have had three years in which 27 businesses expanded or located in Anderson,” he said. “That’s an investment of $270 million and commitments to bring 3,120 jobs. That is a vote of confidence in your home town.”
Smith said Anderson has changed direction and is becoming a global city with companies from Europe, Asia and the Middle East locating here.
Smith said the shift in dynamics started during his first term in office in 2004 when Anderson started to associate itself with the metropolitan Indianapolis area.
“We have seen companies relocate in Anderson from the Indianapolis metropolitan area and global investments,” he said. “It’s essential to identify with metro Indianapolis.”
Smith said Ball State University economist Michael Hicks said last year the only thing holding Anderson back was the quality of education.
“There is a connection between education and attracting manufacturing jobs,” he said. “Our futures are intertwined.”
Cooperation with the local school system and institutions of higher learning is about the future of the community, Smith said.
“There is a curriculum in the Anderson Community Schools that prepares our graduates for manufacturing as a career,” he said. “We need to be aware of what is taking place in Muncie and Kokomo and in the global markets when it comes to technology.”
Smith said the Plant 18 project, which will create the Purdue College of Technology in conjunction with Anderson University, ACS and the Flagship Enterprise Center, will plug students into the new technologies that they understand.
“We have great students, a great curriculum and great schools in Anderson,” he said.
The city is accepting the challenge of attracting young families to Anderson by improving the schools and providing jobs, Smith said.
“We continue to work to bring a microbrewery to Anderson,” he said. “Young people want to be entertained and have things to do in the city.”
The city plans to open a bridle trail along the White River in 2015 to complement the river trail that extends from downtown to Raible Avenue.
Smith said his administration is also changing the face of city government by offering management positions to younger people, in particular in the controller’s office.
“We have immense potential,” he said. “Anderson has advantages. We're heading down an exciting direction for Anderson.”