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From YouTube: City of Charleston State of the City
Description
City of Charleston State of the City
A
A
A
A
Mayor
Pro,
tem,
saccharin
members
of
city
council,
honored
guests,
my
fellow
citizens.
What
a
difference
a
year
makes
just
12
months
ago,
when
I
last
reported
to
you
on
the
state
of
the
city,
our
high
hopes
for
2022
we're
surrounded
by
question
marks.
Yes,
the
pandemic
seemed
to
be
getting
better,
but
were
we
really
returning
to
normal?
Yes,
we'd
flatten
the
curve
on
violent
crime
here
in
Charleston,
but
would
we
actually
be
able
to
bring
the
numbers
down?
A
And
yes,
our
plans
for
flooding,
relief,
affordable
housing,
West,
Ashley,
revitalization
and
all
the
rest
were
ambitious,
but
would
National
economic
problems
like
inflation,
Force
us
to
cut
back
tonight?
The
answers
to
those
questions
are
in
and
they're
positive
covet
is
present
but
contained,
and
we
can
see
each
other's
smiles
again.
A
Violent
crime
is
down
and
our
police
are
working
hard
every
day
to
bring
it
down
even
further.
More
than
30
flood
relief
projects
are
moving
forward
in
all
parts
of
the
city.
Affordable
housing
starts
are
at
an
all-time
high.
New
fire
stations,
parks
and
local
businesses
are
coming
to
every
area,
with
West
Ashley
leading
the
way,
and
thanks
to
the
common
sense
and
uncommon
decency
of
our
citizens,
Charleston
remains
a
city
of
Civility
and
an
era
of
deep
National
division
put
simply
in
2022,
the
people
of
Charleston
proved
the
Nays
Sayers
wrong.
A
Of
course.
Here
in
Charleston
we
know
that
progress
isn't
a
stopping
point
and
much
work
remains
to
be
done.
That's
why,
in
2023,
we
plan
to
move
faster,
even
faster
on
our
City's
top
priorities,
the
issues
that
matter
most
to
our
citizens,
quality
of
life,
fixing,
flooding,
flooding,
keeping
us
all
safe,
building,
affordable
housing
and
improving
neighborhood
livability,
with
a
special
focus
on
traffic
and
new
and
improved
city
parks.
A
A
Thanks
to
the
ongoing
commitment
of
this
city
council
and
the
strong
support
of
our
citizens,
we've
been
able
to
cut
red
tape
for
affordable
housing
initiatives,
strengthen
affordable
housing
requirements
on
developers
and
invest
our
own
resources
in
both
single-family
homes
and
outstanding
new
multi-family
projects
such
as
the
James
Lewis
homes,
the
Archer
School,
low
line,
Bermuda
point
and
West
Ashley
and
more
taken
all
together.
These
efforts
represent
nothing
more
or
less
than
the
largest
most
ambitious,
affordable
and
Workforce
Housing
Initiative
in
our
City's
history
and
as
the
Charleston
area
continues
to
grow.
A
So
we
plan
to
continue
to
insist
that
developers
pay
their
fair
share
to
keep
expanding
the
stock
of
affordable
housing
for
our
citizens.
Finally,
this
evening,
I'd
like
to
look
at
just
a
few
of
the
neighborhood
livability
and
quality
of
life
projects
we
currently
have
underway,
specifically
with
regard
to
traffic
relief,
new
and
improved
parks
and
playgrounds
opportunities
for
Citizens
and
local
businesses
and
the
Arts
first
traffic
relief,
we're
in
partnership
with
the
county
and
scdot.
A
The
opening
of
Carr
Richardson
and
improvements
to
Mulberry
Park
West
substantly
plans,
moving
forward
for
Fort
Pemberton
on
James,
Island
and
griffith
track
on
John's
Island,
the
new
Waterfront
Park
on
Daniel
Island,
the
new
Shiloh
Park,
and
improvements
to
Hampstead
Square
on
the
peninsula
and
with
plans
for
new
parks
on
wpal
dominion
and
Union
peer
sites.
Continuing
to
move
through
the
process.
We
expect
to
have
even
more
good
news
to
report
on
parks
in
the
days
ahead
now
to
expand
the
opportunity
for
our
citizens
and
small
businesses.
A
We've
started
with
our
own
City
Workforce,
where
our
minimum
salary
has
more
than
double
from
8.25
an
hour
to
17
an
hour
just
since
2016.
to
help
women
and
minority
entrepreneurs
get
their
start.
We're
moving
forward
with
a
new
business
incubator
on
the
east
side
and
to
assist
our
small
and
local
businesses,
we're
continuing
to
work
with
the
climb
fund
to
make
resources
available
to
them
when
they're
needed
and,
finally,
the
Arts,
with
terrific
new
leadership
at
the
gillyard
center
and
the
spoletto
festival.
A
A
Our
goal
is
always
is
clear:
to
make
this
holy
city,
not
just
the
best
place
in
America
to
visit,
but
the
best
place
to
live
work,
worship
and
to
raise
a
family
and
I
know
that,
as
long
as
we
stay
focused
on
public
safety
and
the
critical
quality
of
life
issues
that
matter
most
to
our
residents,
our
best
days
are
yet
to
come.
Good
night
God
bless
you
and
God
bless
the
great
City
of
Charleston.