GOAL

To advance the City of Tallahassee as a competitive, innovative, and sustainable regional economic hub.

Objective 1A:
Enhance and modernize infrastructure to enable capacity for growth.

• Percent of households in city limits with broadband internet (25 Mbps) coverage. Target: 99%
• Number of brownfield areas assessed, remediated, or redeveloped within the South Monroe corridor. Target: 20 sites
• Number of electric vehicle (EV) charging stations installed in utility customers’ homes. Target: 500
• Miles of aging wastewater pipes upgraded annually. Target: 5.5 miles
• Complete construction of Customs Facility at Tallahassee International Airport by 2024.
• Invest $25 million through 2024 in stormwater capacity enhancements to improve water quality, and mitigate flooding, in the urban service area.

 

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Objective 1B:
Solicit opportunity for new and emerging industries to locate in Tallahassee.

• Percent of employment in targeted industries. Target: 60%
• Number of jobs added to the economy annually. Target: 2,500 jobs
• Gross Domestic Product of Tallahassee Metropolitan Statistical Area. Target: $15 billion
• Rate of unemployment. Target: Below the State average
• Total annual exports from the Tallahassee Metropolitan Statistical Area. Target: $350 million by 2024

 

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Objective 1C:
Increase Tallahassee International Airport’s economic impact on the region.

• Dollar value of Tallahassee International Airport’s economic impact. Target: $1 billion
• Annual total passenger traffic (enplanements and deplanements). Target: one million
• Annual total cargo (enplaned and deplaned). Target: 22 million pounds
• Acres of land leased near Tallahassee International Airport. Target: 100 acres

GOAL:
To be a leading community partner that actively connects residents to resources that remove economic and social barriers.

Objective 2A:
Support education, training, and job readiness for target populations.

• Percent reduction of disconnected youth. Target: 30%
• Number of TFLA participants that have moved on to higher education, trade school, certification programs, or military over a five-year period. Target: 500
• Number of TEMPO participants enrolled in a technical college or higher education institution over a five-year period. Target: 150
• Number of TEMPO participants that have found employment paying a “fair” or “living wage” over a five-year period. Target: 100
• Number of TEMPO participants completing a GED over a five-year period. Target: 150
• Percent increase in teen program participation at the Palmer-Munroe Teen Center. Target: 3% annually

Initiatives

1. Enhance partnerships with community reentry programs.
2. Promote the City’s Explore Program and Junior Cadet Program.
3. Host annual job fair.
4. Continue providing free bus passes to our area’s K-12 students.

 

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Objective 2B:
Rehabilitate and enhance the existing housing inventory to reduce the cost of living.

• Number of homes served annually by energy efficiency grants, audits, and rebates to improve affordability and reduce homeownership housing costs. Target: 6,000
• Number of homes rehabilitated and/or receiving emergency repair. Target: 425

Initiatives

1. Convert vacant student housing units into affordable housing units by working with Community Land Trust.

 

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Objective 2C:
Facilitate and encourage the construction of affordable housing units..

• Number of new affordable homes or rental units built through the Community Land Trust. Target: 35
• Number of new homes built as a result of inclusionary housing programs. Target: 60
• Number of Habitat for Humanity homes built by City employees. Target: 10
• Number of down payment assistance grants awarded, creating pathways to home ownership. Target: 125
• Secure funding for Purpose Built Community and redevelopment of an additional 200 dwelling units at the Orange Avenue Housing Complex.

Initiatives

1. Increase residential density within City limits.
   

 

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Objective 2D:

Support community health and wellness initiatives.

• Percent of residents living within 1 mile of a fresh food source. Target: 100%
• Create performance matrix to measure Return on Investment (ROI) for Community Human Service Partnership (CHSP) by 2024.

Initiatives

1. Leverage community resources to increase access to recreational facilities and programs.
2. Cultivate partnerships to further the implementation of wellness programs.

GOAL:

To be an impact-focused workforce that is inclusive, pioneering, and technology-driven.

Objective 3A:
Attract, develop, and support the best talent.

• Rate of total employee turnover. Target: 6.5%
• Median number of days to fill a position from advertisement to offer. Target: 60 days
• Rate of employee satisfaction on annual Employee Engagement & Satisfaction surveys. Target: 90%
• Identification of City employees proficient in Spanish or American Sign Language.
• Grow employee participation in professional development programs by 10 percent by 2024.

Initiatives

1. Recruit employees from local educational and vocational training centers.
2. Have a City workforce that is reflective of community’s demographics.
3. Develop and implement a City-wide Talent Development Plan.

 

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Objective 3B:
Leverage technology to deliver faster, more convenient services.

• Percent of payments received digitally. Target: 80%
• Implement online customer service and inquiry portal by 2022.

Initiatives

1. Implement fully paperless internal services.

 

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Objective 3C:
Map, analyze, and improve all work processes.

• Rate of availability for City fleet. Target: 96%
• Percent of budget document receiving ”Outstanding” ratings from the Government Financial Officers Association (GFOA). Target: 25%
• Achieve Sterling designation for Human Resources by 2022.
• Attain status as a “Top 100 Fleet.”

Initiatives

1. Map, analyze, and enhance all departments’ procedures and processes.
2. Evaluate service departments based on the customers they serve.
3. Develop customer-centric service model within Procurement.
   

 

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Objective 3D:
Maintain the City’s strong financial standing and fiscal stewardship practices.

• Percent of general employee pension funded. Target: 90%
• Percent increase of annual grant awards. Target: 5%

Initiatives

1. Maintain a fully funded deficiency fund, in accordance with City policy.
2. Maintain best-in-class municipal “AA” Bond rating.

GOAL:

To be the leading publicly owned utility that supports a growing and progressive community.

To be a city with an efficient public transit network supported by well-connected roads, sidewalks, transit amenities, and public transportation.

Objective 4A:
Be a leader in utility service delivery.

• Average customer outage response time for electric outages. Target: Less than 40 minutes
• Average customer outage response time for gas problems. Target: Less than 30 minutes
• Rate of availability for utility services (electric, gas, water, and sewer systems). Target: 99%
• Dollars invested in sewer collection system upgrades. Target: $61.3 million Target: 8.5%
• Provide electric and gas utility bills at or below the statewide average.

 

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Objective 4B:
Be a leader in environmental stewardship.

• Percent of electric, hybrid electric, and CNG vehicles within inventory of City’s Light Duty Fleet by 2024. Target: 25%
• Tonnage of recyclables collected annually. Target: 13,000 tons annually & 75% recycling participation rate
• Develop and adopt the City’s Clean Energy Plan for 2050 by 2024.
• Remain a Top 3 municipal leader in the prevention of sewer spills during the next five years.
• Reduce the number of impaired water bodies.

Initiatives

1. Continue the reduction of total greenhouse gas emissions for the City’s electric utility.
2. Improve water quality by reducing harmful discharge and runoff.

 

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Objective 4C:
Ensure safe and clean drinking water.

• Win the “Best Tasting Drinking Water in Florida” award.
• Complete construction of new water quality laboratory by 2021.
• Invest $44.9 million in the enhancement and maintenance of the potable water system over the next five years.
• Secure funding to continue the TAPP program over the next five years.

Initiatives

1. Maintain best in class water quality.

 

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Objective 4D:
Enhance the city’s network of roads, bike lanes, and sidewalks.

• Percent of City-maintained roads rated as “Good,” “Very Good,” or “Excellent.” Target: 70%
• Percent increase of annual grant awards. Target: 5%
• Complete Weems road and mixed-use trail project by 2024.
• Become a “Gold Standard” Biking Community by 2024.

Initiatives

1. Increase percentage of residents using alternative modes of transportation to/from work.

 

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Objective 4E:
Ensure public transit is accessible, efficient, and equitable.

• Rate of on-time transit performance. Target: 90%
• Complete construction of a multi-modal transportation hub at C.K. Steele Plaza by 2022.
• Construction of the South City Transit Center by 2022.

GOAL:
To be a safe, resilient, and inclusive community.

Objective 5A:
Implement proactive community-based solutions to enhance public safety.

• Number of neighborhoods participating in neighborhood watch programs. Target: 45%
• Number of community-oriented policing activities held annually. Target: 35
• Number of Community Liaison Officers deployed. Target: 15

Initiatives

1. Increase public and private partnerships for citizen maintained and installed camera technology.
2. Increase the number of neighborhoods participating in the Neighborhood Public Safety Initiative.

 

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Objective 5B:
Crime prevention through effective policing and public awareness campaigns.

• Rate of annual success for all TEMPO participants. Target: 10% or less
• Reduce vehicle burglaries through crime prevention and community partnerships to reduce the number of stolen firearms. Target: 15
• Reduce violent crimes by partnering with community leaders and other law enforcement agencies. Target: 10%

Initiatives

1. Enhance specialized knowledge needed to address cybercrime.

 

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Objective 5C:
Training and readiness of public safety employees.

• Number of training hours per police officer annually. Target: 3
• Number of emergency preparedness training hours conducted, including training and exercises. Target: 5

Initiatives

1. Increase annual community-oriented policing, sensitivity, fair and impartial policing, and de-escalation training for TPD officers.

 

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Objective 5D:
Provide state of the art technology to support public safety initiatives.

• Percent of the City covered by ALS certified fire stations. Target: 100%

Initiatives

1. Implementation of license plate reader (LPR) technology at strategic locations in the city to enhance traffic and public safety.
2. Enhance City capabilities to proactively detect criminal activity.

 

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Objective 5E:
Enhance community preparedness initiatives.

• Number of attendees at disaster preparedness events. Target: 1,250
• Number of neighborhoods with PREP plans in-place. Target: 5
• Number of active shooter training seminars annually. Target: 25
• Facilitate annual table-top preparedness exercise for all response agencies.

Initiatives

1. Identify faith centers that will serve as potential recovery staging sites for distribution of water, meals, and emergency goods.
2. Facilitate annual large-scale community preparedness scenario, integrating all response and medical agencies.

 

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Objective 5F:
Create modern facilities to support community engagement and best-in-class public safety.

• Complete construction and begin operations at the new Public Safety Campus by 2024.

Initiatives

1. Increase economic multiplier effect of police headquarters on the community and surrounding neighborhoods.

GOAL:

To enhance public trust through ethical business practices and transparent governance.

Objective 6A:
Infuse ethical practices into daily operations.

• Rate of compliance for annual employee ethics training. Target: 100%
• Rate of compliance for elected and appointed officials submitting financial disclosures with the State of Florida. Target: 35
  
• Adopt a No-Gift policy for all City employees by 2024.

Initiatives

1. Increase public and private partnerships for citizen maintained and installed camera technology.
2. Increase the number of neighborhoods participating in the Neighborhood Public Safety Initiative.

 

Objective 6B:
Enhance citizens’ access to city government operations and public meetings.

• Implement digital town hall at City Commission meetings by 2021.

Initiatives

1. Enhance online transparency portal for registered lobbyists, city vendors, and the City’s budget.
2. Regularly inform the public of progress toward achieving the targets within the 2024 Strategic Plan.
3. Implement data-sharing with local law enforcement partners.

GOAL:

To be a creative and inclusive community with beautiful public spaces that protect and promote resources and culture.

Objective 7A:
Maintain a safe, accessible, well-maintained network of parks, recreational facilities, greenways, and trails.

• Number of parks by 2024. Target: 100 parks
• Percent of residents of living within a 10-minute walk of a park or open space. Target: 100%
• Number of participants in City Parks and Recreation programs. Target: 612,000
• Complete construction of Market District Park by 2024.
• Complete construction of the second Senior Center by 2024.
• Achieve CAPRA accreditation (Commission for Accreditation of Park and Recreation Agencies) from the National Recreation and Parks Association by 2024.

Initiatives

1. Continue with the implementation of Greenways Master Plan projects.

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Objective 7B:
Enhance livability and preserve the unique characteristics of neighborhoods.

• Number of neighborhoods with an established liaison. Target: 225 neighborhoods
• Number of sidewalk projects completed annually. Target: 10
• Rate of voluntary compliance by property owners for code violations. Target: 90%
• Percent of urban forest tree canopy coverage. Target: 55%
• Achieve 30 consecutive years of “Tree City USA” status.

Initiatives

1. Facilitate neighborhood entry signage and placemaking.

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Objective 7C:
Keep residents and visitors informed about events and attractions in Tallahassee.

• Establish a Historic District / Museum Walk by 2024.

Initiatives

1. Increase attendance at City-organized and City-sponsored festivals and cultural events year over year.
2. Increase diversity and variety of City-sponsored events.
3. Provide multiple platforms to inform citizens of local culture and City events.

The COVID-19 outbreak has affected the lives of everyone in the community, nation, and globe. People the world over wonder if the pandemic has changed the way that we will work, live, and play. For some, it may have completely altered how we interact with cities.

At the very least, the response to the crisis led to a rattled economy with aftershocks that the City will feel in the new fiscal year. While partially recovered, unemployment is higher than the year before and many small businesses supported by our citizens have closed their doors for good.

The City of Tallahassee is fortunate to have diverse revenue streams and considerable size to absorb and mitigate the effects. Student populations are expected to be down 20% which will affect utility revenues, and State of Florida revenue sharing will decline. Despite these challenges, the City is committed to providing the same level of services for all activities in fiscal year 2021.

As an employer, the organization had provided raises to its employees consistently over the years. With the expected declines in proceeds, foregoing employee raises was necessary to provide a balanced budget. It was, however, able to retain all employees without position cuts. The City Commission, acknowledging the tireless work provided by staff through the pandemic, maintained a position of finding some way to compensate employees despite a year without raises.

Many staff refrained from using personal leave, both due to safety concerns and for lack of available options, causing high vacation hour balances for employees. In response to its desire to compensate employees, the City made available a one-time leave buy back for up to 80 hours of accrued leave. This has the dual benefit of supporting employees and decreasing leave liabilities.

Through intense negotiations, City leadership signed new agreements with its health insurance providers and lowered the employees’ paid share for coverage. On average, employees will now contribute 25% of their coverage cost with a goal of 20% on the horizon. Higher healthcare costs have created some recruitment issues as other local employers provide very generous benefits packages. This shift will help to address this long-term recruitment issue.

 

Health Options - Retain 2020 health plan provision for 2021 and adjust the Employee/City share to an average of 25/75 from 30/70. Single rate complies with ACA Affordability.
Premium FY21	Monthly Premium			Average 25/75
	Employee	City	Total	EE%	City%
Employee Only	104.16	629.50	733.66	14%	86%
Employee +1	366.90	1,115.62	1,482.52	25%	75%
Family	725.90	1,290.66	2,016.56	36%	64%

 

Finally, over 500 City staff earning less than $20 per hour received a $1,000 bonus at the start of the fiscal year. This helps those that are more likely to have trouble making ends meet in a year when across the board raises are not possible.

The road to a balanced budget does not always happen with ritualized resources. The federal CARES Act, passed in fiscal year 2020, supports lost revenues in the new year. With the Great Recession still in its rearview mirror, the federal government had learned many lessons. Legislatures understood that when local governments are forced to cut jobs, not only are critical services lost to communities but the economic recovery becomes more difficult.

CARES Act grant awards were given to StarMetro, the City’s bussing service, the Airport, and Housing and Community Resilience. Coronavirus Relief Fund (CRF) dollars, while not given directly to the City, were provided to Leon County which will allocate some of those resources to its only municipality.

In the face of an economic recession, the City maintains its commitment to offer the same level of services as the year before. This is possible in part due to a sacrifice made by employees as well as the federal government’s response with grant funding.

A pandemic was not the only event to sweep the nation in 2020 but also a movement for increased law enforcement accountability, especially when officers use force. A theme of increasing community engagement emerged during the development of the fiscal year 2021 budget. After meeting with peaceful demonstrators and organizers, the City developed three new means for interacting with the public related to law enforcement.

• A Citizens Police Review Board that inspects completed internal affairs investigations and provides recommendations.
• The Tallahassee Police Department’s Citizens Advisory Council that strengthens the relationship between law enforcement and the community.
• The Youth Citizens’ Advisory Council creates open dialogue about issues impacting Tallahassee’s youth.

Crime is complex. There is much more to criminal activity than “bad people doing bad things”. When faced with a convergence of concentrated poverty, limited economic opportunities, and shortfalls in education, a person may choose crime out of desperation or a lack of hopeful outcomes for themselves or their families. The City of Tallahassee recognizes this and does not rely solely upon policing to fight crime. Sometimes what a community facing crime needs is not to have their hands cuffed but to receive helping hands. In fiscal year 2021, the City will fund several programs to achieve these ends.

Tallahassee Engaged in Meaningful Productivity for Opportunity (TEMPO)

Disconnected youth are teenagers and young adults between the ages of 16 and 24 who are neither working nor in school. Tallahassee’s largest potential gun violence victims and offender pools can be found within this group of Disconnected Youth. This vulnerable group includes high school dropouts, those with prior criminal history, or those aging out of foster care. Without workforce training, vocational skills, diplomas, Disconnected Youth become further disengaged from the productive facets of society and therefore subject to the appeal of criminal activity.  

TEMPO, a City of Tallahassee community engagement and public safety youth program, steers Disconnected Youth to more viable alternatives. Program identifies, engages, and reconnects this group to educational and employment opportunities. Through these activities, the program can help to end cycles of poverty, reduce crime by providing economic hope, and reconnecting local youth with the community. 

By 2024, TEMPO aims to reduce the percentage of disconnected youth by 30%, impacting the lives of over 2,100 youth. The fiscal year 2021 budgets for an increase in staffing and resources for this effort.

Mental Health Crisis Response Unit (Pilot)

While many first responders are trained in dealing with individuals experiencing a mental health crisis, they are not always best equipped to deal with the myriad of service requests that come through the Consolidated Dispatch Agency (9-1-1 call center). Several cities across the country have begun to redirect calls for nonviolent, crisis situations away from law enforcement to a designated response team of trained mental health and social work professionals.

The fiscal year 2021 budget includes a new crisis intervention response unit consisting of a licensed mental health professional, a TFD Paramedic or EMT, and a CIT trained TPD officer. This team is equipped to provide immediate medical or psychological stabilization, as well as assessment, and referral for additional services beyond the initial incident.

If proven effective, the program could evolve into a 24/7 response unit to include additional human service partners who may provide services during the time of response or provide proactive outreach to vulnerable communities to mitigate crisis situations. In one highly successful model in Eugene, Oregon, the response teams have diverted 18% of overall emergency call volume and saved over $8M in public safety spending annually.

Tallahassee Future Leaders Academy (TFLA)

TFLA is a premier leadership program that provides teens with mentorship and summer employment for well over one hundred participants annually.

The trainings related to job readiness, leadership, careers, customer service, financial literacy, and college campus enrichment open new opportunities that may not otherwise be available. Partnerships with local institutions of higher education enhance youth exposure to college campuses.

Housing Programs

Increases in the rate of home ownership have shown to be linked to declines in both property and violent crimes. While the reason behind this relationship is not completely understood, homeowners likely form deeper connections of social and economic investment with the community. These connections lead to stronger social bonds that spread, affecting many characteristics of the area, but also reducing crime. Homeowners are likely to care more for their properties and their street, as well as lead stable lives and less likely to commit crimes themselves. 

The City operates several housing programs with multiple goals in mind, including assisting lower income individuals and families, and reducing the impact of reducing crime.  

• Habitat for Humanity Partnership
  Habitat for Humanity’s vision is of a world where everyone has a decent place to live. Habitat works toward that vision by building strength, stability, and self-reliance, in partnership with families in need of respectable and affordable housing. Habitat homeowners help build their own homes, alongside volunteers, and they pay an affordable mortgage on their home. The City provides both funding and volunteer hours (more than 1,335 hours to date) to build Habitat houses. 

• Emergency Home Repair Program  The Emergency Home Repair Program aims to improve the living conditions of low-income homeowners by removing health and safety hazards and/or architectural barriers from their homes. EHRP is designed to make emergency repairs and accessibility improvements to homes owned and occupied by income-eligible persons. 

• Code Enforcement Repair Program 
  The Code Enforcement Repair Program provides monetary assistance to owner-occupied, income-eligible homeowners who have received notice of exterior code violations, while improving and preserving neighborhoods. To help make needed repairs to bring the home into compliance, $2500/unit is made available as a forgivable loan.

• Storm Damage Mitigation Program 
  The Storm Damage Mitigation Program provides grant assistance to low-income homeowners to harden their homes against future storms or natural events.

• Owner-Occupied Rehabilitation Program  The rehabilitation and preservation of owner-occupied housing has been identified as a key priority for the City of Tallahassee. Committed to improving the quality of affordable housing, the City allocates a substantial portion of its annual housing budget to the Owner-Occupied Rehabilitation Program (OOR). The goal of OOR is to enhance and strengthen neighborhoods through the rehabilitation of owner-occupied housing. 

• Inclusionary Housing 
  The Tallahassee City Commission passed an ordinance in 2005, requiring new developments in certain areas of the City with 50 housing units or more, to sell 10 percent of their units at an affordable price. The sales price range is established by the ordinance. Developers can pay a fee instead of building the units. The money collected is used to build future affordable housing units. The units are sold to income-eligible homebuyers and are subject to re-sale restrictions. 

Neighborhood First

Neighborhood safety is about more than just the absence of crime. It is about the opportunity for residents to build relationships with each other and enjoy vibrant public spaces, accessible social supports, infrastructure that supports resiliency in times of stress, and a shared trust between government and its constituents to allow for partnership at all levels. The City of Tallahassee works with neighborhoods to build partnerships that proactively address crime prevention, disaster response, and safe community spaces. 

Neighborhood First is a multistep planning process that assists neighborhoods who are participating in the Neighborhood Public Safety Initiative (NPSI). Neighborhoods develop an action plan to address community priorities. NPSI addresses public safety by focusing on crime prevention and education, community beautification, community empowerment, and volunteerism. 

Sustainability, Community Preparedness, and Resilience

Both single catastrophic events and long-term sustained pressures, such as concentrated poverty, can cause a community to experience increases in criminal activity. For the City of Tallahassee, resilience is about strengthening the reliability of infrastructure, protecting a robust natural environment and local economy, building up our adaptive capacity, and empowering self-sufficiency across the community. The Resilience Office partners across city government and stakeholders to build our community’s capacity to thrive in the face external threats or internal weaknesses. The Office develops a cohesive long-range strategy and oversees the integration of effective initiatives throughout city plans, programs, and policies. 

Community Human Service Partnership (CHSP)

CHSP helps prevent criminal activity through a multitude of approaches, from helping those with addictions which can result in seeking illegal sources of income, to serving as catalysts for economic or educational opportunities to ascend out of poverty. 

This is an innovative collaboration between Leon County and the City of Tallahassee. It was established to most effectively distribute community funds for human services. Historically, cities are less often involved in providing human service funding to nonprofits, as states and the federal government offer these organizations grants and contracts. By providing funding, this program can multiply the resources available to the community. While the City cannot fund all the activities for these nonprofits, agencies use local financing to bring additional state and federal dollars for the benefit of the community. 

The funded organizations all have different approaches that can ‘holistically’ impact crime, whether through affecting youth far before legal transgressions occur, or assisting those with mental-health issues.

StarMetro – Public Transportation

The City administers a comprehensive bus transportation system with over 15 routes, including night and weekend service. Each fare is provided at a reduced price to passengers below the actual cost of the ride itself, while some residents ride for free. 

This public transportation allows for lower-income workers access to more workable hours and employment than would otherwise be available for those without personal vehicles or to augment their own transportation such as a bike or scooter. Without this mobility, some would be without work and more likely to engage in criminal activity. It also allows for riders to save money otherwise spent on personal transportation to save money for education or starting a business so they may increase their income in the future, or to accrue enough for a down-payment on a home. 

While the bus system is supported by some fares and grants, the City transfers over $6 million per year to allow for reduced and free fares for many citizens who need it most. With Leon County Schools allowing for additional options for students to attend schools outside of their zones, StarMetro allows for K-12 students to ride for free. This opens educational opportunities and options unavailable to many citizens before because students must find their own transportation to attend schools outside of their zone.

Parks & Recreation (P&R) – Youth Activities

P&R operates several Community Centers that engage with the general public and juveniles at-risk for criminal behavior;

The Palmer Monroe Teen Center is especially designed to involve youth. The Center creates a positive environment for local teens to reduce conflict throughout the community. The Center focuses on attractive programming, adult mentoring, educational assistance, restorative justice collaboration, and the use of cutting-edge initiatives developed to engage teens through skills-based training, fun and safe entertainment outlets, and community service involvement. 

Citywide

In their totality, these programs account for $47.5 million of the budget, and deploy 361.5 FTEs, which is higher than that used for law enforcement. Every year, the City exhibits its versatility in a comprehensive approach in the ways it seeks to solve complex, multi-layer social issues.  Further, these solutions are measured and re-visited each year through the budget process to ensure effective outcomes in this community service/public safety investment. 

Beyond these programs, City employees make a difference in this community with their own dollars and time. Before the pandemic thwarted many philanthropic efforts, employees participated in a variety of efforts in the previous two years: 

• United Way contributions of $101,249 
• Relay for Life fund raising of $17,847, more than $95,000 over the last six years, with 400 volunteer hours 
• 5,714 pounds of non-perishable food donated for America’s Second Harvest of the Big Bend. Combined with cash donations from StarMetro’s partners, this provided more than 4,762 meals for residents in need 
• Over 240 pints of blood donated by City Employees from City Hall, the Gemini Building, and the Water department in a single year 
• More than $125,000 donated to community organizations via payroll deduction, with over $434,000 during the past four years 

In short, the City of Tallahassee will continue to innovate, approaching age-old issues and novel crises with both classic and cutting-edge solutions. The City can support its current efforts while exploring state-of-the-art programs, because we strive, every day, to be the national leader public service.