The City of Battle Creek improved services, responded to community needs, and received recognition for accomplishments in 2019, all outlined at today’s State of the Community Luncheon.
The Battle Creek Area Chamber of Commerce hosted the annual event, where Chamber, City of Battle Creek, and Calhoun County leaders review the community’s previous year, and look ahead to the next. The presentation will air on AccessVision in February, in the Keeping You Informed time slot – 6 p.m. Wednesdays, and on demand at accessvision.tv.
Mayor Mark Behnke spoke about:
- the ballot question coming in March for Battle Creek voters, asking whether they want to direct-elect the mayor going forward;
- the Fire and Police Department efforts to keep the city safe, and build relationships across the community;
- work happening within the city, and in collaboration with other agencies, around affordable and accessible housing; and
- the great moves and opportunities happening around economic development, including the city’s small business work, new development at the city’s airport, and community programs creating positive outcomes for city neighbors and businesses.
“The city currently is engaged with at least four different housing developers, looking to implement projects in Battle Creek that range from 100 percent permanent support housing, to market rate,” Behnke said in his discussion of housing efforts. “We have more relationships with housing developers than ever before, which gives city leaders great optimism that the community will experience positive change in 2020, and more housing options – one of our basic needs – for our neighbors.”
The mayor’s presentation slides are at this link.
City Manager Rebecca Fleury debuted Stories from the City 2019, the city’s third annual story map project. The story map is a multi-media presentation using text, photos, interactive maps, links, and more – to tell the city’s 2019 story, and give an annual report of team projects and accomplishments.
Neighbors will learn about the city’s partnership with the Battle Creek Central High School Career Academies, our 2019 accolades, information and debris totals from our street sweeping program, and much more.
Access the story map on our website, battlecreekmi.gov. Scroll down to the City Spotlight and click through to view the presentation. It also is available under the Get Connected tab, at the top of the home page – see Stories from the City 2019. As always, feedback is welcome at PublicInput@battlecreekmi.gov.