Mayor Martin Delivers Annual State Of The City Address

STAMFORD, CT — Earlier this week, Stamford Mayor David Martin gave his annual State of the City Address to the Board of Representatives.

As the pandemic continues to wane and normalcy comes back, Martin called Stamford "the success story of Connecticut."

"Stamford continues to reign as Fairfield County's crown jewel. We are committed to funding our long term financial obligations, we're committed to improving our infrastructure and services, and that's across not only physical infrastructure, but technological infrastructure," Martin said. "We are attracting the businesses and workforce of the future. We're growing this city, and in particular we're growing it in a group that will provide jobs for the future. If we do not do that, we will go the way of the Dodo Bird."

Martin began his address by recounting the past 16 months, in which the world grappled with the COVID-19 pandemic. Martin spoke about the peaks and valleys of case numbers along the way, and noted that right now, every area in Stamford is seeing below five new cases per day, with the exception of the South End.

On vaccinations, 68% of the city's population has at least one dose as of June 30. The city is ahead of the overall state average, and doing better in first dose vaccinations than nearby Greenwich. Martin thanked the many volunteers in Stamford who have helped during the pandemic, whether it was to hand out masks, or work at vaccination sites.

"Despite the pandemic, we didn't stop," Martin added. "It wasn't like everything came to a crashing halt."

Martin praised the Board of Representatives (BOR) for working together virtually to conduct the business of the city. "There were two pandemic budgets and over 70 appointments and numerous reviews. You are part of what made us succeed," Martin told the BOR.

On the public safety front, Martin called Stamford "the safest city in all of New England."

He pointed out that the overall crime trend from 2019-2020 declined by 8%, and property crime decreased by 11%. Unfortunately, he said, crimes against persons increased 15%. The city noticed a crime rate peak this year in March and April, but that has since declined to levels below what was seen in 2019 and 2020, Martin said.

Martin highlighted the success of the new Stamford Police Department mental health program, which sends more trained mental health professionals on calls, rather than police officers. The SPD also hired a social worker to ensure coordinated care with residents on calls.

"I believe we're the first in the state to initiate something like this. If this continues to go in a positive direction, we will figure out a way to add additional resources either through grants or coming to you because this is clearly an important initiative," Martin said.

Stamford has also seen improvement on street paving and maintenance, Martin said. He noted that the city has tripled its paving and maintenance budget from $3 million before he became Mayor in 2013 to $9 million in the last few years. Seventy-five miles of roadway has been paved over the last 8 years, with the city looking to add another 22 plus miles this fiscal year.

"Infrastructure is not just streets and engineering projects, it is also our city IT support," Martin said, noting that Stamford's new payroll system was just implemented earlier this month. He also touted the new city website, which is more user friendly and allows residents to get anywhere they need to with three clicks or less.

The biggest and most expensive infrastructure project Stamford is working on now is implementing a new Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) System to modernize the city's financial and management systems, Martin said.

Martin spoke about increasing pedestrian safety, and he highlighted the addition of Rectangular Rapid Flashing Beacons, crosswalk signs, speed feedback signs, and street trees. He also detailed various transportation intersection projects and improvements, such as the newly unveiled intersection at West Avenue and West Main street.

Improvements included the widening of the intersection, the addition of dedicated turn lanes on both West Main Street and West Avenue, new traffic signals, ADA compliant pedestrian ramps, and thermoplastic crosswalks.

“The Stamford accident rate is trending down, while the rest of the nation is trending up,” Martin said. “I'm very pleased with the effectiveness we’ve had in reducing the number of serious injuries and fatalities on our streets.”

Future projects could include the Greenwich Avenue/Pulaski Street Roundabout, lower Summer Street Promenade, and Atlantic Street and Main Street intersection.

Environmental issues have also been front and center for Martin. The new residential food scrap recycling program allows residents to dispose of food scraps at the Katrina Mygatt Recycling Center for composting. The program has the potential to reduce Stamford’s garbage production by 30-40%. Residents can also take advantage of the city's partnership with the textile collection company HELPSY.

Martin concluded by thanking the BOR again for their commitment to moving Stamford forward.

"We have our disagreements, we have our challenges," Martin said. "I thank you on your board for all you've done to help further Stamford's success, in particular during this pandemic."

To watch Martin's entire hour-long address, click here and fast forward to the 33:30 mark.