During these difficult times Rutland needs a proven and sensible executive who’s shown he can responsibly guide our City. This is precisely why I have decided to seek re-election to the office of Mayor of the City of Rutland.

As your Mayor, I made righting our financial ship the number one priority of my first term and, working with City Hall staff, brought fiscal order out of chaos. Deficits are now a thing of the past. Through aggressive budgetary management and responsible staff reductions (10 positions city-wide), spending has been controlled without jeopardizing the services that all taxpayers deserve. I successfully negotiated union contracts so that City employees are now contributing towards their health care premiums and you will no longer see “two men in a truck” during sanding and salting operations.

Uncompromising leadership from the Mayor’s office guided Rutland through two major storms, and we can all be proud of how the City weathered those catastrophic events. Through effective lobbying of the legislature, we avoided the passage of bills that would have had dramatic impacts on taxpayers and property values. And Rutland has met head-on a number of challenges to public safety throughout our neighborhoods.

But elections are about the future, not the past. Though I am proud of the accomplishments of my first term, I must now turn my full attention to expanding our tax base and job market. The City must provide the tools and resources to existing employers so they can grow. Whether it is agricultural, light industrial or family-owned businesses, we must encourage smart growth in concert with the State objective of traditional city-centered development patterns.

Though we cannot ignore our challenges, we should not dwell on the negatives but instead must focus on embracing every opportunity for development so that Rutland City will be positioned to thrive when the country comes out of the economic downturn.

Thanks for your time and please feel free to contact me at 773-5780 or by e-mail. I am looking forward to your support on Town Meeting Day.