Thank you and good evening President Ludeman, councilmembers, Bishop Tisdale, distinguished guests, City of Toledo professionals, elected officials and citizens of Toledo.
Toledo is a wonderful city. But too many Toledoans lack pride and confidence. Pride in our past, pride in our present and confidence in our future.
This evening is not about where we’ve been. This evening is about where we’re going as a city. Tonight is about the future of Toledo, and the region – and that future will be very bright if Toledoans work and act with pride and confidence.
We are gathered at Owens Corning’s World Headquarters to celebrate our pride in the rebirth of one of Toledo’s signature companies. Six years ago, the future was dim for Owens Corning. They faced billions of dollars of liability and debt. Yet, they persevered, planned and dedicated themselves to rebuilding this company. It culminated in the relaunching of Owens Corning stock on the New York Stock Exchange on November 1. Today, the future for Owens Corning is bright. I congratulate Dave Brown, Mike Thaman, David Johns and Owens Corning’s employees in Toledo and around the world.
Assembled here this evening is the leadership of our community. Whether you are a civic or education leader, a religious, labor, or business leader, or a city professional, you help lead this city. I know you share the pride I feel for Toledo. We must act together to renew our pride in our community – and confidence within our citizens.
Join me on a tour of Toledo in the year 2007. You’ll see why I’m so optimistic about Toledo’s future.
We’ll start in south Toledo where we are working with developer Larry Dillin – who is here this evening, the State of Ohio, and Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur to reshape southwest Toledo. We want to redevelop and reinvigorate, not only the Southwyck Mall in this $125 million project, but the entire Reynolds Road corridor. We are convening a public session on December 12 at Maumee Valley Country Day School to start planning the future of Reynolds Road from the Ohio Turnpike to Central Avenue.
Moving from south Toledo, we head northeast to Toledo Hospital – owned by ProMedica Health Systems, one of the city’s largest employers. They are building, and near completing, a $156 million expansion of their campus on Monroe Street. The City of Toledo is contributing streetscape improvements and street resurfacing. The Colony neighborhood is getting new life, and a new look.
We head west from Toledo Hospital to Westgate Village. This shopping center, once the cornerstone of retail in the Westgate neighborhood, is being redeveloped, adding a Costco store, as well as other businesses. This project represents a $30 million investment. In the year ahead, university students and nearby residents will be able to mingle in this popular urban neighborhood.
From Westgate Village, we move quickly to another expanding retailer at the Westfield Franklin Park. This shopping center continues to add new theaters, a new food court, and a new parking garage. They recently acquired property adjacent to their existing site and anticipate breaking ground in 2007 on a $15 million expansion of this nationally recognized mall.
From Talmadge and Monroe, we travel north to a Toledo landmark. General Motors Powertrain announced early this year that they plan a half billion dollar expansion and modernization of their transmission plant on Alexis Road. This announcement is a testimony to the Powertrain workforce, among the most efficient in the country. This will ensure good-paying manufacturing jobs for future generations of Toledoans.
Moving east from Powertrain, we arrive at the institution that has defined us as a city for generations. The new Jeep Plant and supplier park in northwest Toledo is one of the great success stories in Toledo history. It has been a decade since then-Chrysler Chairman Bob Eaton announced that he was looking for a new home for Jeep. The City of Toledo and the State of Ohio, working together, identified a 300-acre parcel for the new Jeep Plant.
Today, we are reaping the rewards of that effort. DaimlerChrysler recently added the Dodge Nitro to the Toledo facility, giving us a new vehicle and a new nameplate. Jeep and Dodge suppliers are building facilities adjacent to the assembly plant, adding jobs to the local economy. This past week, they ramped up to a seven-day work-week for the first time in years – MORE JOBS!
Thanks to DaimlerChrysler and the UAW for their work to expand Toledo’s presence in the automotive industry. The new Jeep Supplier Park has a bright future. The total capital investment in the DaimlerChrysler campus, to date, is $3.3 billion.
We continue east to a brand-new City facility in Point Place -- our $100 million Wastewater Treatment Plant. This facility is part of the $455 million Toledo Waterways Initiative and will dramatically increase the water quality of the Maumee River and Lake Erie. This project is scheduled for completion in March 2007.
From Point Place, we head to Central Catholic High School. Since 1920, this college-prep school has been turning out future community and civic leaders. Next year, they plan to build a new stadium bringing $3 million in investment to our community, and future expansion is on the horizon.
We travel a short distance from Central Catholic to the new Heart Center at St. Vincent’s Mercy Medical. This state-of-the-art facility represents a $50 million investment in our community. Across the street, the St. Vincent Medical Center will receive an additional $50 million upgrade. The city will provide streetscape improvements and beautification along Cherry Street.
We now cross the river on the $250 million Veteran’s Glass City Skyway – the most expensive project in Ohio Department Of Transportation history. We will see it dedicated in April 2007. When completed, Toledo’s already impressive skyline will rank among the most beautiful in the Midwest.
Exiting the Veterans’Glass City Skyway, we arrive at The Marina District. This $250 million development, designed by Larry Dillin, will feature a River Walk, market-rate housing, greenspace, retail, restaurants, a marina, and a marine passenger terminal plus a visitor center and ice-house. Construction is 95 percent complete on the marina. This is a 10 year project that, when completed, will redefine East Toledo and Toledo’s downtown waterfront.
A short distance north on Front Street is the new American Biodiesel plant. Many envision alternative fuels as THE economic engine of the future. This new facility brings a $17 million investment to east Toledo.
Going northeast on Front Street, we arrive at the Port of Toledo and the new U.S. Coking Plant to be constructed in 2007. This new facility will employ 150 people and lead to $800 million being invested in east Toledo.
We next head down Miami Street to the Pilkington property. This brownfield, located at the extreme southeast corner of the city, next to the L.O.F. plant in Rossford, is ripe for redevelopment. River Road L.L.C. is moving forward with plans to transform this vacant land. This $22 million mixed-use project will combine residential, retail, and office space and put old, industrial land back into productive use and back into the city’s tax base.
Crossing the river, we arrive in downtown Toledo at the signature building of Toledo’s skyline. One Seagate will be full again. The city has worked with Michael Realty and R.V.I. to keep many of the current tenants and this majestic building will continue as one of downtown Toledo’s signature buildings. An announcement of a new, major tenant is expected in early 2007.
Virtually next door to One Seagate is the Edison Steam Plant. This historical building will soon be the site of apartment and condominium living on the banks of the Maumee River. Local basketball star and entrepreneur, Jimmy Jackson joins David Ball in investing $20 million to rehab this formidable structure on the west shore of the Maumee River.
We continue to the latest major downtown redevelopment project. The proposed new $82 million multi-purpose arena will be a facility that will create a synergy with the Mud Hens’ Fifth Third Field and The Seagate Convention Center, providing Toledo and the region with a first-class sports and entertainment complex in the heart of downtown. My thanks to Tina Skeldon-Wozniak and Pete Gerken for your leadership on this project. The City of Toledo stands ready to work with you on the infrastructure needs of the site.
A good baseball throw from the new multi-purpose arena are two of the most exciting and vibrant neighborhoods in the city. The Warehouse District and Uptown Neighborhood have emerged as trendy entertainment and market rate housing venues. New businesses such as Swan Creek Candle, The Blarney Irish Pub, Frickers, Home Slice Pizza, and Packos at the Park in the Warehouse District, and Manhattans, Ottawa Tavern, and the restored Park Lane in the Uptown neighborhood are bringing new vitality to these dynamic neighborhoods.
We’ll head up Monroe Street to the nationally recognized Glass Pavilion at the Toledo Museum of Art. This amazing structure has attracted the attention of newspapers across the country, who have been stunned by its beauty. Inside The Pavilion is housed a priceless collection of glass art. Congratulations to the board and staff of the Toledo Museum of Art on the completion of this spectacular facility. The City of Toledo has added streetscape improvements to further enhance the campus at Monroe and Scottwood.
Our next stop is actually multiple destinations. We are in the process of building 45 new schools in the city of Toledo. Four new schools have already been completed and fourteen more will open during the next school year. Pictured here is Oakdale Elementary. Each of these technology-rich buildings has state of the art facilities. These new schools promise tomorrow’s leaders a quality education. They serve as a catalyst to the revitalization of 45 neighborhoods surrounding these new schools. $635 million will be expended upon these schools.
Our final destination is the University of Toledo. The merger of the Medical University of Ohio and the University of Toledo was completed this year and Toledo is now home to the third largest university in the State of Ohio. On July 1, 2006, Dr. Lloyd Jacobs became the 16th President and a new era has begun. Over the next three years, U.T. will invest more than $130 million in capital projects. Dr. Jacobs, congratulations to you, the board, faculty and staff of the University of Toledo on this milestone for the University and the City of Toledo.
These economic development projects, combined with other projects undertaken by the city, total approximately $6.5 billion of investment in our community. That is something of which we can be proud.
Ladies and gentlemen: it is my pleasure to introduce Dr. Lloyd Jacobs, President, the University of Toledo.
DR. LLOYD JACOBS
One of the things I like about The University of Toledo is its name. It’s the University of Toledo; The University for Toledo; the university in Toledo. It is your university and my university. It is our university.
The University of Toledo takes seriously its commitment to you, the citizens of the City of Toledo and of Northwest Ohio. We recognize that we are here to serve you; without you we would not exist. We want you to feel proud of us. We want you to be involved with us and with our students to make clear what a great place Toledo is to live in. We believe in you and want you to believe in us.
Let me give a few examples of things your University does to make us both proud:
In our College of Education, Assistant Professor Dr. Carla Johnson recently received the Outstanding Early Career Scholar Award from the national School Science and Mathematics Association.
The College of Engineering graduate program was recently ranked in the top 20 graduate engineering programs in the nation by the Princeton Review.
The College of Business is ranked 9th out of 7,000 Colleges of Business for the number of articles published in the Journal of Operations Management.
As you of course know, the merger of The University of Toledo and the Medical University of Ohio is complete. Significant efficiencies and cost savings are being realized. But more importantly, new programs are being developed. A joint program between the College of Engineering and the College of Medicare with a Ph.D. program, Bio Medical Engineering, has been developed and is in formal stages of approval. This program will begin admitting students in the fall of 2007; it will be unique in Ohio and one of only a few joint programs in the nation.
University of Toledo students taking the Ohio Bar Exam for the first time received a pass rate of 93%, tying with University of Cincinnati for 1st place among Ohio’s nine Law Schools.
In the College of Medicine, the first-time pass rate for medical students on the United States Medical Licensure Exam Step 1 was 98.5% -- among the best in the nation.
Three professors in one department: the Department of Chemistry are in receipt of career awards from the National Science Foundation.
John Hendricks, our world class Jazz vocalist received an award from the French Foreign Legion.
So I hope you can see why I am so proud of The University of Toledo and why I believe you also should be proud of it. It’s a great place to learn and work, and part of our job is to make Toledo an even better place to live.
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Thank you Lloyd. Our next speaker represents the young entrepreneurial spirit that will keep our city moving forward. Jimmy Jackson played championship basketball at Macomber High School, earned All-American honors twice at Ohio State, and has played 14 years in the N.B.A. He truly loves his hometown and has generously invested in our community. Ladies and gentlemen: Jimmy Jackson.
JIMMY JACKSON
Thank you Mayor. Good evening everyone.
Toledo is my home and I am proud of it. That is why I have invested in a number of businesses here. I believe in Toledo.
We need more young entrepreneurs to share this belief and invest in our city. With this entrepreneurial spirit, a more vibrant, energetic, and prosperous marketplace will exist. As a result, our best and brightest young people will not flee our city, but will remain to be apart of this transformation.
I am working not only to redevelop the Edison Steam Plant, which is scheduled to break ground in early 2007, but a number of other projects that will hopefully spur local and regional development opportunities that will ensure future economic prosperity and return respect back to our once proud city.
The question is always asked “why Toledo”? My answer to that question is simple, I take a negative word as in “not” and combine it with a question and a proper noun and create a positive and powerful rally cry for our city, “WHY NOT TOLEDO”!
Thank you.
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The city will be undertaking some new initiatives in 2007 that are significantly important to Toledo’s future.
First, creating new housing opportunities will be a top priority for the city. I established a City of Toledo Housing committee. They have recommended that the city provide prudent incentives to home builders to spur new construction on vacant parcels, as well as the rehabilitation of older homes. The developer incentives will target specific neighborhoods, such as those around the new schools, and other recent and planned developments.
Additionally, the city will attempt to recruit and provide incentives to artists and targeted groups of professionals and employees of high-tech and growth industries.
Second, we are working with the arts community to attract artists here from across the country. These artists will relocate to Toledo and, using their artistic skills, help our neighborhoods become brighter and more visually appealing. Our goal is to attract 30 new resident artists to the city next year.
Third, we are also working hard to attract and keep young professionals. On December 23, we’ll be hosting approximately 150 young people who responded to our Best and Brightest survey for a holiday gathering with community leaders where we will share our vision of Toledo’s future and ask these young men and women to assist us in moving Toledo and Northwest Ohio vigorously into the future.
I have encouraged, and will continue to encourage, the public and private sectors to recruit from local colleges and universities. I challenge each employer in this city – public and private – to hire at least one local graduate this year. We need to keep our young people living in and engaged in our city, if we are going to prosper in the future.
We are moving the city toward a new budget process. We will survey our citizens, through town hall meetings, to develop a list of priority programs. We will examine the effectiveness of the services we currently provide by emphasizing performance measurement.
The desired communities in which to live offer Tier 1 education systems. Our public and private schools are among the best in an urban setting, in the country. Toledo Public, Washington Local, our Catholic and Christian schools and Maumee Valley Country Day School all do an excellent job. BUT WE MUST GET BETTER! We must continue to raise the academic bar for our students. The key to a successful person’s life is found in his education and pride.
Thank you Dr. Jacobs, Jimmy Jackson, Owens Corning and everyone for being here this evening. I particularly thank those who are leading with pride – including the proud professionals of the city of Toledo. I look forward to working with all of you to inspire pride and performance in the great City of Toledo in 2007.