Letter to Residents
From the Office of the City Manager
Sign up for City Manager-Letter to the Residents e-mail updates
Sugar Land Today | February '10 - March '10 Issue
On January 15, 2010, Mayor Thompson and I delivered the annual “State of the City” address to an audience of over 500 persons at a breakfast co-hosted with the Fort Bend Chamber of Commerce. With such good news to share, I would be remiss to not share with you the highlights – some of which are also included in the Capital Improvement Program (CIP) article beginning on page 1.
Having just celebrated our 50thAnniversary and completed the annexation of RiverPark, Sugar Land now has an in-city population of 84,511 and is becoming an increasingly complex city.
In 2009, our expenditures were just over $152 million, including $37 million in capital projects. Additionally, this reflects a reduction in operating expenditures which allowed us to end the year in an enviable position—over $1 million better than projected. As the result of the City Council’s continued proactive approach to fiscal management, we have managed the economic downturn with no employee layoffs, no reduction in the high-standard of City services, and no delay in capital projects.
2009 was one of the most successful years in our history. We saw many notable accomplishments—almost all of which were the result of very important partnerships.
First is our economic development program. We now have over six million square feet of both office and retail space and almost eight million square feet of industrial space; additionally, in 2009, we received confirmation that we are a regional employment center on par with areas like Greenway Plaza and the Energy Corridor. These successes are not only the results of our own internal efforts, but also partnerships with the Fort Bend Economic Development Council and our valued corporate citizens, many of whom were present as special guests of the City.
2009 was also a year of ribbon cuttings for the City. Through partnerships with TxDOT and Newland Communities, we completed key mobility improvements. The Houston Museum of Natural Science at Sugar Land opened, and we expanded our parks system with the additions of Pawm Springs Dog Park and the Justin P. Brindley Mountain Bike Trail.
Our successes were recognized by many others in 2009: Business Week named Sugar Land as one of the 50 best cities for Startup Businesses, Aviation International News named the Sugar Land Regional Airport as the #1 Fixed Base Operation airport in all of the Americas, and—for the third consecutive year—Sugar Land was among the top 20 safest cities in America. We also received positive feedback from our residents through the citizen satisfaction survey; for more information on the results of this survey, please see the article on page 3.
2009 was clearly successful, but we anticipate 2010 will be even more so. In 2010, we will continue our beautification efforts, we will break ground on our seventh Fire Station in Telfair—the City’s first LEED certified facility—and we will continue to assist with the redevelopment of the Imperial Sugar refinery. We will also continue our focus on mobility improvements, with progress on the expansion of University Blvd., the extension of Lexington Boulevard, and the reconstruction of Dulles Avenue. And, finally, we will continue to make progress on the Cultural Entertainment District.
Though this is a lot of information, it is only a summary of what is included in the presentation. I would invite you to view the presentation—including a highlights video—online at www.sugarlandtx.gov.xAdditionally, much of the information was included in our 2009 annual report, which is also available online.
Thank you all for your role in these successes. You have helped make Sugar Land the regional destination and city of excellence that it is today.