Last month, I had the privilege of standing

before hundreds of neighbors, business owners, and friends at Woodstock City Church to deliver my 2026 State of the City address. Looking out at the largest crowd in the event's history, I was reminded that Woodstock's story isn't written in government halls, but in the storefronts of Main Street and on the front porches of our neighborhoods.

Four years ago, at the start of my first term, our administration made a commitment to you. We didn't promise the road would be easy, but we promised the destination would be worth it. We rejected the false choice that says a growing city must choose between prosperity and character. We chose a different path.

Today, I am proud to report that those promises were kept.

We are safer.

For the first time in a decade, our police department is fully staffed. We invested in the largest pay increase in department history, and as a result, crime is down 21%. Simultaneously, our fire department, now ranked in the top 1.5% of departments nationwide, is expanding with two new stations and has slashed response times by 21%.

We are stronger.

Woodstock has grown into an economic engine that generates 40% of Cherokee County's GDP on just 3% of its land. Our local businesses are generating more than $5 billion in annual revenue, proving that we are the premier destination for commerce in the region.

We are respectful of your investment.

Because of that commercial growth, we stopped asking homeowners to foot the bill for their own prosperity. We have cut the city tax rate by 15% since 2022, and today, you are paying Woodstock's lowest millage rate in more than 30 years.

We've opened the largest parking deck in the county (and kept it free); we're connecting our trails to the Silver Comet Trail; and with an 87% mandate from voters, we are building a generational legacy at Little River Park.

Make no mistake — the state of our city is stronger, safer, and better off than it was four years ago.

But the question before us now is not "How did we do?" The question is "What's next?" To answer that, our team has stripped away the government jargon and focused on a single, guiding mission for Woodstock: We are building a city that feels like home.

From the "orange cones" of progress to the quiet security of a safe neighborhood, every decision we make is dedicated to that mission. Thank you for inviting me back. Let's get to work.