Fultondale — Residents and business owners who are curious about what’s going on in Fultondale can find out this week.
On Thursday, Mayor Jim Lowery will give his annual State of the City Address at Fultondale City Hall.
The speech will touch on highlights of 2009, which Lowery said was a successful year for his city, despite the recession.
He said one of the city’s greatest successes was the opening of the Norwood Medical Plaza at the site of a former Winn-Dixie store.
“That project really goes hand in hand with a lot of other things we’ve done,” he said. “With the economy like it is, we filled an empty building and found the perfect tenants. It meets the needs of citizens who have used that clinic all their lives.”
He said unlike other cities across the state, Fulto-ndale had a stable year financially. The city began 2010 with about $4 million in reserve funds, up from $500,000 in 2007.
“When I first came into office, I had to borrow money from Regions Bank to make payroll,” Lowery said. “We’ve come a long way.”
The mayor expects 2010 to be just as successful in terms of growth, but also in terms of regional cooperation. Lowery said one of his goals is to work more closely with mayors from surrounding cities on projects that will benefit north Jefferson County.
He said some of those projects may lead to new dispatching services and a new regional jail. In addition to Fultondale, five other area cities — Gardendale, Brookside, Center Point, Graysville and Tarrant — have agreed to join the Five Mile Creek Capital Improvement Cooperative District. The purpose of the district is to continue progress on the Rails to Trails project.
Two other projects on Lowery’s agenda is the continued revitalization of U.S. 31 and the future of the former Physicians Medical Center-Carraway Hospital in north Birmingham. Lowery said he plans to meet with Gov. Bob Riley and other BIrmingham officials on Tuesday to discuss the future of the hospital.
“That hospital brings in a lot of business and is an asset to north Jefferson County,” he said. “I just appreciate being included in the discussions.”
Hear Lowery’s presentation in its entirety Thursday at 8 a.m. at Fultondale City Hall.