City of Niagara Falls, N.Y.

State of the City Address by Mayor Paul A. Dyster

City Council members, fellow public officials, department heads, community leaders, ladies and gentlemen—good evening and thank you all for braving the cold to join me for the 2015 State of the City Address.   Last year, the State of the City had to be postponed twice because of bad weather.  I want to recognize the Department of Public Works for the great job they did making sure we could get here safely tonight; too often the hard work they do goes unappreciated.  They’re out there day and night to keep ahead of the snow and wind and cold.  We lay people think of it as a sprint: how quickly can they get the city cleaned up after a heavy snowfall.  But the pros know it’s really a marathon: how do we keep our city functioning in the face of prolonged periods of bad weather.  That’s the real test.  When we say the words “public safety,” it’s usually police and fire that come to mind, but dealing with extreme weather like we’ve had these last several weeks is a reminder that our plow drivers and equipment operators and all their support staff are part of the public safety team, too.  Join me in giving them a big hand in appreciation.You all know that there’s a friendly rivalry between our Police and Fire Departments.  Of course they are a seamless team when lives or property are at risk, but has anyone here ever been to one of their hockey or football games?  Ouch!   I try as much as possible to channel that energy in a positive direction.  The competition I’m trying to encourage is for them to try to out-do each other in bringing the maximum number of innovative positive changes to their departments.  I’m excited about some of the things we’ve done already, but I’m even more excited about what we’re going to do next.

You all know that there’s a friendly rivalry between our Police and Fire Departments.  Of course they are a seamless team when lives or property are at risk, but has anyone here ever been to one of their hockey or football games?  Ouch!   I try as much as possible to channel that energy in a positive direction.  The competition I’m trying to encourage is for them to try to out-do each other in bringing the maximum number of innovative positive changes to their departments.  I’m excited about some of the things we’ve done already, but I’m even more excited about what we’re going to do next.

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