Dearborn Mayor Abdullah H. Hammoud delivered his first State of the City Address entitled “Always Bet on Dearborn,” where he outlined achievements and his vision for the city’s future. The Mayor unveiled a new vision statement for the community and five strategic priorities to guide his administration’s work, including Innovative Government, Civic Engagement and Democracy, Economic Opportunity and Mobility, a Green and Healthy Dearborn, and Safety and Justice for All.
Mayor Hammoud outlined several accomplishments from his administration, including a partnership with Google Cloud to make the city a 24-7, multilingual service provider; a program that provides free books to Dearborn children; and local interventions to address the opioid crisis and hold accountable polluters in the city’s most vulnerable neighborhoods.
He also shared renderings for three new parks that will be constructed in the city, part of a $30 million investment known as the PEACE (Parks Equity and Access for City Engagement) Parks Project.
Throughout his remarks, Mayor Hammoud stressed the importance of investing in people, declaring Dearborn as “the talent hub of the State of Michigan.” Noting Dearborn’s proportion of youth—nearly 40% of the city is under 24, saying companies within driving distance would want the “Dearborn hustle” powering their organizations.
Mayor Hammoud announced that he had submitted a balanced budget for the first time in two decades, which he said was achieved without cutting services or deferring needed investments. Other major highlights from his remarks include a $1 million investment to remove log jams in the Rouge River, a joint initiative with Google Cloud and ACCESS to provide 500 free Google certifications to residents, and decreased auto accidents and racial disparities in traffic stops.
Watch Mayor Hammoud’s full address here.
