 Thank you all so much Please Thank you Well, I said I wasn't going to get emotional and by God. I'm not going to get emotional Vernon with your your introduction and your mention about the the recent ice storm and the power issue Well, I'm glad I'm not running for reelection. Of course, Rosie's down here doing the happy dance. So But let me let me thank you for the kind introduction Vernon I know we go way back and you've been on this journey with us and we appreciate you Friends partners citizens It is indeed an honor to join all of you this afternoon Before I get into my remarks I'd like to as I always try to do and have for the past eight years Thanks some folks. I want to thank Jeff King. I want to thank Bill Thornton for his hard work in Cancun I mean for Sorry about that. Sorry about that. No, his daughter was getting married So but y'all need to make sure that he gets a share of grief when he gets home I want everybody to ask about the wedding Everybody everybody make note that he had way too many margaritas, but that will that will help welcome him home But I want to thank the the Chamber of Commerce and the team for hosting this lunch and What will be my final state of the city address? Let's give them a hand. That was a pretty good team that put this whole thing together. Thank you all Well, just eight years ago. I Announced my candidacy for mayor of Fort Worth And I asked for your trust You answered by giving Rosie and me your resounding support and continued support It's been an unforgettable honor to serve the proud people of this strong safe and growing city a Lot has happened since taking office in 2003 a lot has changed We've been on a whirlwind journey But together we've marched side-by-side to overcome great challenge and seize tremendous opportunities Although much work remains today, we can see the other side of that great recession And I'm proud to say that Fort Worth remains strong and resilient. I Don't know how it happened, but the stars aligned over Fort Worth during the past 12 months. I think you will agree Our city impressed millions as we hosted the Pittsburgh Steelers ESPN and others for the biggest football game on the planet We witnessed the magical undefeated run of our mighty Rose Bowl champion horned frogs go frogs While we were at it. We also saw the TCU baseball team go to the college World Series You can give them a hand go frog And we had another little local baseball club that went to the World Series our own Texas Rangers and one thing that Rosie and I won't soon forget and That was the bitterly cold day in Wisconsin as we stood in awe and watched the launch of the massive USS Fort Worth how cool was that? Nothing gives our city yards people more stature than this remarkable vessel navigating the world's oceans K in the name of freedom 2010 was something else But that's not to say that there weren't some challenges We continued to wrestle with the city's aging infrastructure We balanced the budget in the face of unprecedented circumstances And we continued our critical work to improve the health of the city's pension fund Now that that work has begun to address that challenge it must not stop We have got to finish that journey As you know the mayor has only one vote and I am proud to serve on this city council along with a dedicated group of community leaders Mayor pro-tem Danny scarth councilmember Salas-Peno Zim Zimmerman Frank Moss youngest Jordan Carter bradette Kathleen Hicks and Joel Burns Please stand or raise your hand Stand up or raise your hand. Let us thank you for the work that you guys do And let me say so there's no doubt in any of your minds about how I feel about these folks Without any hesitation each of these council members are tried and proven leaders and Those seeking reelection deserve to remain in office You can give them a hand they have worked hard and they deserve to stay Advising this council throughout most of the past year was our talented chief city executive team Including our former city manager or city manager Dale Fistler Who recently retired and is on his he is now on his way to become an assistant city manager in Waco? Dale successfully guided our city with deliberate focus through one of our nation's deepest recessions These past three years have been difficult on him, but I believe that this was Dale's time for a reason Dale set a course that has left this city stronger than he found it And I have no doubt he will do the same for Waco Dale, please stand up and let us thank you again We appreciate you being here. He's gonna leave and go back down get on his houseboat Well serving as city manager in the interim is Tom Higgins and he needs no introduction to this audience Tom joined the city in 1987 and we thank him for his continued commitment to our citizens Someone else who deserves our appreciation is my wife and your first lady Rosie She She is a special woman and one who works as hard as anybody to preserve and improve That quality of life that we value so deeply She's graceful and courageous She's a remarkable leader remarkable role model She's my strength and she is my rock So thank you precious and I can't wait to come home and help you with the house. I Got some great ideas about colors and fabric and furniture Maybe some beanbag chairs. I hear their back Little surround sound life will be good. Can't wait We're also joined today by one of our sons Troy his wife Julie and two of our grandchildren Ross and Ashley I guys appreciate y'all being here. I think you've been here almost every year That we've had the state of the city and I appreciate you being here again The day I'd like to keep my message simple If there is one thing that I have learned over the last eight years it is this here in Fort Worth partnerships equal progress You're gonna hear that again and again in my remarks Because when I say partnerships, I'm not talking about sharing a carpool or splitting a chicken fried steak I'm thinking bigger than that. I'm talking specifically about public-private partnerships and other innovative alliances These partnerships have shaped our cities past and make no mistake. They will define its future two weeks ago Thanks to Super Bowl 45 the eyes of the world were on North Texas And while it was warmer that week in Green Bay than in Fort Worth, but that's another story That's not what I'm gonna remember Rosie and I'll remember how our city came together We'll remember our ambassadors and our pep rally We'll remember the faces of new friends and the compliments that we received from far and wide I'll remember watching national ESPN broadcast with our beautiful downtown as a backdrop And I'll remember the TCU band and showgirls who showed up at 5 a.m. That frigid morning to kick off ESPN's first broadcast During super week downtown was electric Sundance Square saw triple the weekly pedestrian traffic Hotel occupancy rates were up across the city and occupancy downtown was up by 32% The line of cars trying to get into downtown on Saturday Was like the y'all got the visual It was like the famous final scene in the movie field of dreams Yes, we built it, and I think you will agree they came. I'll never forget that Neither will our officers trying to manage that traffic Chief and It wasn't just traffic downtown. It was web traffic as well The CVB's internet traffic was up 56% Sundance Square's website alone saw a hundred and forty seven percent increase in visitors And of course we won't forget those cheeseheads and stealer fans soaking up that frigid weather in nothing But they're Bermuda shorts Among other things Well, I knew we are gonna have fun with our visitors from the Northeast when the anchor of the morning show in Green Bay While preparing for a live shot in Countdown diner where Rosie and I were preparing for a TV appearance Ask Looking at the buffet. Is this salsa is this salsa? What do you put this on? Rosie said ice cream. I Think she actually believed her One visitor was blown away by Fort Worth's hospitality said the people here are so nice You said my wife has been called darling more times and I've called her that in 38 years of marriage only in Fort Worth Well last year I told you that Fort Worth would not miss this opportunity and I think you will agree We did not Now if that captive audience didn't experience Fort Worth in person they experienced it through television radio and the internet With an average audience of more than 111 million people Super Bowl 45 was the most watched program in the history of Television think about that in the history of television Pay off has been and it's going to continue to be immeasurable This exposure has spawned short and long-term economic opportunity commerce business growth and jobs So despite the weather Fort Worth shined Let's look at the record sales in Sundance Square the record crowds in the stockyards. What a success But think about this for a moment Why was it a success? What was the key to taking that ball across the goal line? Partnerships that's what as I said earlier partnerships equal progress Shortly after the announcement on May 22nd 2007 that Super Bowl 45 would be played here in North Texas Fort Worth spring into action And our private sector and business leaders stood ready to help We soon had a collective vision and a public-private partnership called touchdown Fort Worth You're starting to hear a little bit more about it now that we brought it out of the shadows where we kept it intentionally wrapped very tightly Funded by the Fort Worth promotion fund the same the same thing that that is funded by the party in Fort Worth Which many of you recently attended We brought together business tourism and sports experts The goal was pretty simple and it was to ensure the best exposure for Fort Worth during Super Bowl week ESPN was a big whale in the vast ocean and Thanks to touchdown Fort Worth We caught it We caught it that success funded fueled even more success Because we marched in unison opportunity was realized for the greater good of our city It was a wonderful and successful journey one filled with excitement surprises and yes new friends Among those to recognize are my wife Rosie Ed Bass John and Kami Goff Bill Thornton Shirley Little Tom Higgins Libby Watson Johnny Campbell Tracy Gilmore Pam and Billy Minnick David DuBois John Cycle Andy Taft Secret weapons Nolan and Ruth Ryan Gary and Kelsey Patterson Johnny and Betty Rutherford and Genesco Sports Enterprises I believe in given credit where credit is due and you can give those hands Give those folks a big hand. They've worked hard One more thing that we had behind it all Fort Worth had its own coach Putting things together for a winning team game plan That fellow was Chris Gavis if he's here today. I'd ask him to stand up Where are you Chris? I know you're here. You're just not standing. We'll give him a hand anyway He worked we worked very hard and tirelessly this city So with touchdown Fort Worth we planned the work and we work the plan Partnerships like touchdown Fort Worth have proven their worth several times over and that's nothing new for us When you think about it Partnerships are the bread and the butter of Fort Worth prosperity and my successor whoever that might be should always remember That partnerships are the key to our city's success Think about our city's early pioneers who picked up sledgehammers and shovels to build that first railroad to our city Think about Fort Worth's bomber plant Think about Sundance Square West 7th Southeast Fort Worth Think about our nationally recognized zoo Alliance Texas Motor Speedway in every case partnerships equal progress So when it comes to partnerships Fort Worth did set the bar and we wrote the book And what do we have to show for all of these partnerships? economic opportunity growth and prosperity and JOBS jobs the driver of any economy These partnerships come in many forms Their loose associations their formal alliances Their personal friendships that are built on trust Whatever form they take partnerships are all about stepping out of that proverbial box and working together for the greater good it's about recognizing the limitations of one and Leveraging the strengths of many It's about an honest toil in harmony Now let me share just a few specific examples about how partnerships have fueled progress in Fort Worth We've used these partnerships to diversify our economy Take for instance our convention center hotel. Let's go back to a little history Mayor Kenneth Barr and his council deserve credit for their unique vision of a hotel to serve our convention visitors This was one of the first issues that I addressed when announcing my candidacy for mayor more than eight years ago Kenneth will be the first to tell you That he and the city council at the time were in the middle of a battle royal over the concept of a publicly owned convention center hotel wisely Mayor Barr and the leaders at the time directed the city to take a step back Take a step back and re-examine the big picture As I made my pitch for mayor in 2003 I made it clear that if I had the honor of serving as mayor Fort Worth would have a state-of-the-art convention center hotel But it would do so through the resources available from a public private partnership Instead of the city building a hotel the city would create the incentives To lay the foundation for a successful private venture Over the next several years. We committed to that strategy and Fort Worth found a friend and mr. Bob Rowling and the Omni hotels Today the success of our partnership has been an absolute game changer for our city We met and surpassed our five-year goal to double tourism And over the past two years During a recession mind you Fort Worth saw a 68 percent increase in hotel stays and millions of visitors downtown In fact the omni fort worth hotel is among the top hotels in the omni chain This additional hotel capacity created by the omni equals larger conventions And larger conventions mean more room nights for not some but all of our hotels And what do those visitors mean to us to our businesses to the people of fort worth? It means commerce. It means jobs. It improves the dynamics of our economy by diversifying our tax base It all comes together to create a healthier balanced economy That my friends is the power of partnership Fort Worth public private partnerships also help community challenges solving those challenges Let's take for example the animals that you saw outside the ballroom today Well, there's a story behind them as you might guess In 2008 bill baker and his wife tony Were moved by a story that they read about fort worth struggle to find homes for adoptable animals abandoned at its shelter Well at the time Homes were found for less than half of the 4,500 incoming adoptable dogs and cats each year Less than half Something had to be done and the bakers took a stand Bill put his head together with fort worth code compliance director brandon Bennett His staff and community stakeholders to find a solution Ultimately bill helped broker a deal with pet smart charities To open the first of its kind municipal animal adoption center in a pet smart retail store under the agreement Pet smart provides the space the city provides the animals and caring staff The operating costs are covered by generous private donations You'll find that new 1800 square foot adoption center at at pet smart store at the shopping center just northwest of hulin and i20 As it made a difference You bet In december of 2009 Only 80 impounded animals were adopted 80 But this past december More than 300 were adopted And since we opened the doors to the new adoption center, I want you to listen to this carefully The city hasn't euthanized one healthy adoptable animal not one Not one Pet smart has opened four more pet adoption centers across the country Using fort worse business model of how to get things done through a public private partnership So bill and brandon Bennett are here today y'all stand up and let us give you a hand That was going the extra mile and thank you all very much Working together Turned a negative into a proud positive And that's making our city a better place to live For both people And pets Now no brandon and his staff be standing by to help you adopt one of those animals as you leave today So y'all be sure and stop by and say hello and I might tell you you might need to hurry because I understand One dog has already been adopted and two more are on hold So Y'all take care of business on your way out Partnerships have furthered progress in addressing the challenges that come with living in the fastest growing large city in the united states One of our major challenges of course is mobility And let me share some numbers Over the past year the city improved or reconstructed 163 lane miles of streets As part of our accessibility issues and initiatives we installed 320 wheelchair ramps And we patched more than 230 000 potholes and I know every one of you are saying I wish it was 230 000 and one But that's progress on many levels There's still work to be done Does this region continue to face significant mobility challenges? Yes Will there be additional speed bumps? No pun intended along the way absolutely But as edward murrow once said difficulty is the excuse history never accepts Although the road is rough a challenge caused by the demands of extraordinary growth We continue to make deliberate progress through important and unique partnerships I-35 check southwest parkway check tower 55 check Let me briefly expand on these projects because I know you're thinking well they're not through yet In october, texas transportation commission approved 135 million dollars for the expansion of i-35 between downtown and highway 286 27 This artery is vital to fueling the continued success at alliance and north fort worth south Construction is expected to begin next year and be completed in 2017 Work on the 28 mile public-private partnership called southwest parkway began last spring This is a major step to relieve congestion in southwest fort worth To clear the air and build a seamless connection between terrant and johnson counties This 1.4 billion dollar project is expected to open in 2013 jungus Another major victory was the public-private partnership that will begin Reliving relieving i'm sorry the congested rail corridor at tower 55 just southwest of downtown Roughly 100 freight and passenger trains cross daily and crossing is the problem As as these trains sit idle waiting to cross they not only waste valuable time They block roadways. They pollute our air And they block key corridors to future commuter rail service These trains are also a danger to the families and the children living in those neighboring communities Well, i'm proud to say after years of cussing and discussing Tower 55 stakeholders came together and they are addressing this significant challenge How is tower 55 a public-private partnership? Simple everyone has skin in the game Everyone has skin in the game instead of the public picking up the entire 90 million dollar tab Private partners are rightfully committed to the solution Bnsf and union pacific have committed 51 million dollars to that tab And the rest will come from the city the federal government cog and the fort worth transportation authority This partnership will improve livability and safety in fort worth And what's more these major mobility projects continue to fuel progress in the forms of hundreds of construction jobs Our progress on mobility solutions is the result of significant efforts by our city council by private partners and our federal and state legislators k Each have been absolutely instrumental We're also grateful to bill meadows and texas transportation commission to maribel shavis text dot As well as michael morris the regional transportation council And on the subject of mobility Let's be very clear about the future of street cars in fort worth The urban street car Is worthy of review joe But review under a different equation Not unlike our effort to reassess the convention center hotel proposal Let's hit the reset button Let's consider another model with greater participation from the private sector I personally believe that fort worth can and will Find a successful balance Partnerships have met economic meant economic opportunity for thousands Thanks to the talented city staff and the innovative tools at the council's disposal what we call our toolbox There are countless examples of of successful partnerships fueling economic progress Some are as big as alliance Which today admits more than five billion dollars in foreign products annually and has created 30 000 jobs Others are small Yet also important Take for example, mr. key song He owned and operated a men's clothing store in southeast fort worth But he had a bigger dream A new location with expanded merchandise With the help from andre mcqueen and southeast fort worth ink Mr. Song found a foreclosed property that had sat vacant for years It was old dirty and dark But that's not what mr. Song saw He saw something else He saw potential He had a vision And with the city's assistance through the east berry tax increment financing district his vision was within reach Mr. Song committed more than a million dollars to renovate that location The tiff through the increased value of the property chipped in over 200 000 For new infrastructure The renovation was completed in october And mr. Song is proudly open for business With the new name being men's collection and ladies selection To compliment i'll give you that opportunity to say to compliment the building improvements their trees Their new sidewalks their new light standards to improve both the aesthetics And the security So on top of cleaning up an old eyesore There's a new tax base There's expanded sales tax potential And he created more than three additional full-time jobs in the process Now i would ask you to give him a hand and please mr. Song stand so we can thank you There are plenty of other redevelopment examples Thanks to the efforts of lockered companies mariah real estate We have the the remarkable renaissance square on the former masonic home property in southeast fort worth This project will add new retail and restaurants to a place some thought was forgotten Well cathleen we didn't forget Frank we didn't forget According to lockhart approximately 300 000 square feet of renaissance square Is under letter of intent in lease negotiations or land leases and sales i see susan down here just a big grin on her face With the addition of the nearby improvements to highway 287 and berry street intersection The bold renaissance square development will be bustling with activity by the end of 2012 I want to give a special shout out to michael malley who made this historical transformation possible He also had a vision We also have plans for the contemporary ray street loss in riverside We have the location of the former grandberry hill apartments That that will be transformed into a bright transit oriented development in south fort worth We're also working with state to bring in more than 50 new affordable rental homes to the near south side With hopes to do the same in komo and other communities These partnerships are golden They are real and they are creating jobs as well as opportunity for all We can and we must continue to seize these opportunities. In fact, we need to push even harder We've used public-private partnerships to promote a sustainable city And ladies and gentlemen, I think this is very important for our city for your home If you don't think sustainability is important, let me see if I can put it in the proper perspective Fort worth population grew by more than 200 000 in 10 short years In other words, fort worth added a population the size of lubek since the year 2000 But the fastest growth of any large city in texas fort worth population now stands at more than 400 or 741 000 And let me tell you if our secret wasn't out before super bow it is now And more and more people are going to learn about our quality of life and opportunity here in fort worth Our city is going to continue to grow make no mistake And so will our businesses and so will our commerce However, this growth must be managed responsibly You can build a city responsibly or you can build it irresponsibly That's why my city council colleagues and our talented city staff and I remain focused on sustainability We must continue to foster partnerships that encourage energy efficient and environmentally friendly development The nearly completed brit facility just north of the botanic gardens is just one stellar example The new art institute of fort worth is another those are just a couple of the lead certified buildings in our city Another sustainable project is marriage homes frank We went out to cut the ribbon on that development in east fort worth It is the first high performance green community In in the dfw area Our continued growth requires that kind of innovation For instance more people equals more trash So we've teamed up with waste management to bring new solar trash compactors downtown These compactors hold five times as much waste and they reduce the pickups in the process Well, why is building partnerships like these important? Because they will be vital to preserve Our good standard of living for our children and for our children's children It's about fighting back pollution that could stifle the very opportunity that made fort worth an economic oasis in a dry and desolate desert Building a sustainable city also is about attracting the best And the brightest who will continue to fuel our competitive workforce and support our growing economy Our future leaders are looking for the kind of urban settings that we're creating in downtown Long magnolia and throughout the west seventh street corridor They want to live work and play in the same general location They reject crowded highways. They would rather walk ride or bike or use public transit To generations x and y Being green is more than just a catchphrase. It's a lifestyle. It's an attitude In fact, it's a responsibility And friends if they don't find that lifestyle here in fort worth They're going to find it somewhere else And when they leave Then we all lose As the growth in fort worth continues and it will we must maintain our focus on building up instead of out We need to commit to mixed-use development and convenient public transit We must continue to foster those partnerships to promote green development and clean energy Partnerships in fort worth also have improved public safety I'm not sure if some of the younger crowd here realizes it But there was a time when fort worth bore the unfortunate label Of being one of the most dangerous cities in the country Until the 1980s downtown fort worth was like many urban areas in america. It was tired. It was gray It was dirty About the only time you took the family downtown was to drive past the santa displays at monnings during christmas Y'all are too young to remember all that Fortunately for all of us A new public-private partnership blossomed as the bass family began buying dilapidated structures just south of the courthouse in the late 70s Many of these old buildings represented former days of saloons gambling parlors and shooting galleries It was a time for major change and boy, did it ever come Today the once vacant dangerous and dilapidated central business district Is now the largest real estate property taxpayer in tarrant county This has a great deal to do with our city's strategic alliances and private partners such as downtown fort worth ink sundance square xto and others downtown fort worth is the jewel in our crowns in our city's crown And it's also a national model of urban redevelopment What's more our police department's partnership with sundance square and xto security forces Is another national model for public private collaboration Because of our ability to form partnerships our downtown today is safe It's clean. It's inviting It's both progressive and make no mistake authentically texan Most importantly, it's the kind of place that you want to take your wife your date your family or friends from out of town It's a remarkable shift and it represents the extraordinary progress that can be achieved by thinking differently thinking strategically thinking beyond the ordinary And building a bridge between the public and private sectors And I can't leave the subject of public safety without mentioning the fort worth crime control and prevention district This has been and continues to be one of the most successful partnerships with the citizens in our city's entire history Our remarkable drop in crime since the inception of this district is proof that it works and we must continue to support it Well, whether we're talking about keeping our streets free of crime Being stewards of our environment creating jobs or re-energizing neighborhoods Partnerships can lift a community to heights never imagined At an event several months back To announce the hopewalk held here in downtown super bowl sunday Former washington redskin and nfl hall of famer dale green Talked about the power of citizens helping citizens He said rosie and I remember because you were standing there with me. He said something that struck us He said in the old western movies When that building caught fire Everybody picked up a bucket Everybody picked up a bucket Well friends that's been the key to our success Think about it our natural automatic and sincere instinct To pick up that bucket This all for one and one for all spirit can be found in the offices of city hall In the hallways of local businesses and in our neighborhoods That spirit is found in the hearts of all of you In rosie and me Look at the progress we've made together Look at the progress we've made together on the issue of homelessness In the last two years The last two years the number of people living on our streets has dropped by 30 percent 30 percent More than five hundred and sixty people touched by our directions home program Have moved into stable secure housing. You've changed lives fort worth One life at a time You've given people a new opportunity to have a second chance. How good does that feel? How good does that feel? Thank you Never has there been a time when the generosity of private philanthropists and business leaders meant so much In addressing a difficult and costly public challenge You know, it's been said that and I quote every time people can contribute successfully to the cause of serving the community They become even more committed to it Well, that's exactly what you've seen here in fort worth We found the intrinsic value of partnerships Our success as a city is built on them Ladies and gentlemen, it has been an honor to serve as your mayor It has been the highlight of my public service The most valuable lesson I've learned Is that partnerships do equal progress The equation is as simple as it is powerful Greater things are yet to come fort worth It is my hope Indeed my prayer That those leading our city into the future do so on that foundation of partnerships The future of our city And the 741,000 people who are so blessed to call it home depend on it So god bless you And may god continue to bless the great city of Fort Worth