Davenport is "striving, vibrant, and strong." That's according to Mayor Frank Klipsch during his state of the city address Monday to members of the Rotary Club and Chamber of Commerce.
He says one example of strength is its finances - Davenport has plenty of reserve funds in case of emergencies, good bond ratings, and will continue the current tax levy next year.
"We get more revenue by a couple different ways - we either have more people or we charge more taxes. We're getting more people and larger tax base growth and that's enabled us to do things without putting additional burden on the taxpayers."
Klipsch says the city's solid finances will also allow the city to spend a record 34 million dollars in the coming year on streets and sidewalks, and add four police officers.
"Minimum staffing levels are increased for all patrol divisions and the creation of a gun investigation unit. Again, it's not a matter that we have a tremendous amount (of crime) - we want to prevent it from happening and make sure we can react quickly and effectively right away."
He says Davenport is also working on system to coordinate services for young people who commit crimes, hoping to keep as many as possible out of jail.
This was Mayor Klipsch's final State of the City Address following his announcement in December that he will not run for re-election this year after serving two, two-year terms.