Mayor talks stadium, ‘tourism corridor,’ city employee pay raises at ‘State of the City’

• Max Blau
• “I’m taking care of home, ladies and gentlemen,” Reed said regarding the city’s financial turnaround

On the morning after President Barack Obama’s 2013 State of the Union, Mayor Reed updated Atlanta’s movers and shakers about the city’s recent accomplishments and hinted at what’s to come in the year ahead.

After a heartwarming and somewhat gratuitous video introduction, Reed took the stage and thanked his family, colleagues, and employees for their continued support. The mayor quickly gave an overview of his notable achievements since taking office, which included a bolstered police force, an amenable pension overhaul, and the city’s “strong” financial outlook. In addition, he praised Intown development, pointing out the Atlanta Beltline and Ponce City Market as key examples, and noted the way in which Councilwoman Cleta Winslow “challenged his soul” as she convinced him to reopen Fire Station 7.

Moving forward, he stressed that Atlanta needed to “move out of a posture of near survival.” As part of that, he announced forthcoming proposals that would give all city employees pay raises and issue “at least $200 million” in bonds to help tackle a $922 million infrastructure backlog. He also affirmed that Atlanta’s 311 call center will launch in 2013 - a move that the city thinks will help the city fix its transparency woes.

Reed added that the emergence of the Atlanta’s “tourism corridor” - including the National Center for Civil and Human Rights, College Football Hall of Fame, and Atlanta Streetcar - will help continue economic development between Centennial Olympic Park and the King Center. That, combined with Invest Atlanta’s ability to attract over $700 million in private capital and create more than 3,000 jobs, will add to the city’s appeal to outside investors from places like China and Brazil, the mayor said.

As he’s done over the past few months, the mayor voiced his support for the Savannah Port, saying that “the great cities in the world have great airports and great seaports.” He sees the port playing a major role in his mission to make Atlanta the “logistical hub of the Western Hemisphere.”

Reed closed with a few brief remarks about the stadium. He didn’t touch on the brewing dispute over cost estimates to maintain the Georgia Dome, but did place the project into a larger context similar to remarks he made following the 25th annual Buckhead Coalition luncheon a few weeks ago. The mayor compared the decision to the way former Mayor William B. Hartsfield chose to give Delta a long-term lease or how Andrew Young helped moved highways for the airport’s sake. Like those choices - or MARTA, the 1988 Democratic National Convention, and the 1996 Olympics - he said that the stadium is now the city’s chance to make “the right decision at the right time.”

And after a brief head fake, Reed told the crowd he was running for re-election. After laughing for a solid minute, he ended with a “simple” request. Reed asked Atlantans to “always be in the posture of choosing the future.” Now with that in mind, let’s turn our attention to this afternoon’s stadium talks with City Council.