Michael Brown |
Dear colleagues, friends, and visitors,
Thank you for your interest in Savannah and our City government.
We are constantly striving to make our City a better place to live, work, and visit. We hope you’ll see how much progress we’ve made by browsing through our website, which is also in a constant state of construction and improvement. For instance, on our website, permitting and construction projects can now be tracked; parking tickets can be paid; and Recorder’s Court information can be obtained. We are adding new features and “customer-” and “citizen-friendly” services, so please visit us often.
In Savannah, our first and most important mission is to ensure the safety of our citizens and guests, and we have made significant improvements over the past few years. Overall, serious crimes are down by 23% in the last ten years. During the past five years, serious crime has dropped by 18%. Part of our success is due to new strategies which include career offender tracking, job training, and more effective work with individuals.
The millions of dollars we’ve spent over the past six years on improving drainage in the City are now paying off. Major system improvements have been completed in every area of the City. Projects include water detention areas, channel and culvert enlargements, and pump stations. Our focus in recent months has been on the Southside and the Westside of the City.
Most of our blighted neighborhoods have turned the corner and are on track to becoming the vital and attractive areas they once were. Through strategic thinking, increased partnerships with neighborhood residents, and the creation of community based organizations, we have moved beyond dealing with crises into realizing excellent opportunities for revitalization. The Cuyler-Brownsville neighborhood on the City’s westside is a good example: with the assistance of a $500 thousand grant from the State, new homes, apartments, landscaping and a City park are being constructed in Phase 1 of the City’s revitalization plan.
Savannah is often called the “Hostess City of the South,” a fitting and well-deserved nickname. But achieving and maintaining that reputation is not easy, nor is it free. Much planning, foresight, hard work and attention to detail are required... During the past year, our award winning Park and Tree Department has planted more than one thousand new trees, and has enhanced our parks, rights-of-ways, and entranceways by planting thousands of seasonal flowers in 16 locations throughout the City.
Again, thank you for your interest in Savannah. We hope that you’ll visit often.
Sincerely,
Michael B. Brown, City Manager
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