Mayor Moore Delivers the State of the City Address

The Annual State of the City address was presented by Quincy Mayor Kyle Moore today at the Quincy Exchange Club. The Mayor remarked that there were plenty of positives in the year 2014.

The Mayor said 2014 will always be remembered as the year the City of Quincy passed the historic $89 million school bond referendum which means the city will see more than $250 million worth of construction projects over a 10 year period.

The Mayor went on to say as for 2015 the City of Quincy will see the groundbreaking for a new $10 million supportive living center on 48th and Maine, the completion of a new branch for People’s Prosperity Bank, the completion of $4 million in renovations to Q.U. Stadium and in the spring, Blessing Hospital officials expect the $70 million dollar patient addition named the “Moorman Pavilion” to be open.

The Mayor went on to say this past year the Hollister Whitney Elevator Company added 50 jobs and expanded into the Glenayre building. Gardner Denver constructed a $1.65 million flood wall and added 50 new jobs at their Quincy facility. Gates Air added two dozen employees and expanded their operation in Quincy. The Mayor also announced that Prince Agri-Products completed the purchase of the United States Postal Sorting Facility a few days ago.

The Mayor mentioned that the State of Illinois released $1.3 million in funding to complete the engineering and design phase for the Mid-America Port. If completed, the Port would be a catalyst for $94 million per year worth of economic activity.

Some other highlights of the Mayor’s speech included:

2014 brought the culmination of a 4 year effort to bring next generation fiber optic access to city residential neighborhoods.

The City Council passed a 5 year Comprehensive Infrastructure Plan ending the practice of year to year infrastructure spending

In January, the City of Quincy and Quincy Medical Group launched their Employee Clinic, an arrangement that could save the city from $50,000- $200,000 a year on health care costs.

The City also partnered with Blue Cross/ Blue Shield for a plan that realizes no increase in the annual insurance costs and projects to save the city $300,000 - $900,000 per year depending on their claim experience.

Finally, the Mayor urged all residents to vote in favor of the referendum to build a new Adams County Jail in April.