Rochester Hills Mayor Touts Dwindling Debt, Dog Park, & Good Deeds in Disney Themed State of City Speech
(Crystal A. Proxmire, Oct. 10, 2024)
Rochester Hills, MI – “Under the sea” of bubbles floating down from the rafters of the Stoney Creek High School auditorium, surrounded by dancers in Mickey Mouse ears, and with singing princess interludes, Rochester Hills Mayor Bryan Barnett gave his annual State of the City address Sept. 26.
A six-month internship at Disney in the Mayor’s youth set the stage for a life of whimsy and strong branding that has carried forward into Barnett’s leadership style, and into the shaping of the city itself. Barnett shared that parts of Innovation Hills Park were modeled after Disney theme parks, including the large tree-shaped play scape in the center of the children’s area. And in City Hall a quote by Walt himself adorns the wall “It’s kind of fun to do the impossible.”
Rochester Hills employees are trained using principles of customer service modeled after Disney’s training program, which the Mayor says contributes to the 94% satisfaction rate of residents surveyed – a score that is even higher than the media giant itself.
Twirling teacups, a lively cartoon candle stick, and dancers donning animal prints helped tout the city’s successes over the past year, including the Herculean feat of Rochester Hills being on track to be debt free by March of 2025. In a city of nearly 33 square miles, and a population of 76,000 people, the city continues to add homes and businesses which means more money to the tax rolls. Such scale and prosperity make it possible for residents to have the third lowest tax rate in Oakland County.
Home values have gone up 13% this year. There is just 4.7% commercial vacancy and 2.3% unemployment. The city averages three new businesses per week. One of those is the recently opened Jackson restaurant in the Village of Rochester Hills shopping plaza. This business too takes inspiration from a familiar theme – not of Disney, but of the art of Jackson Pollock, with reproductions on the walls and food with artistic flair.
Mayor Barnett announced the recent promotion of Todd Gary to Fire Chief. Gary served in the department for 43 years prior to accepting the position just last month. He also announced the departure of Barnett’s Chief of Staff Maria Willett. Willett had been with the city for over a decade.
The speech also celebrated one of the city’s newer residents. Ava Katherine Senkarik was born on May 12, 2023 in the back of an ambulance after labor came quickly and unexpectedly in the parking lot of Papa Joe’s. Paramedics Paul Terbrack and Stephen Jelsch helped bring little Ava safely into the world, and earlier this year there was a reunion at the fire station to remember this exciting birthday.
Another happy tale was told when a city inspector, Jake Burger, used his lassoing skills to rescue a fawn that had fallen into a well, sparking reference to yet another Disney classic.
But even in worlds full of happy endings, there are still the more tragic parts of the story. One could not recall the past year without recalling it’s scariest of days.
On June 15, 2024 a lone male wielding a semiautomatic handgun open fired on families at the Brooklands Plaza Splash Pad. He shot 36 times, injuring nine people. None of the victims died, but their lives are forever changed, including an eight-year-old boy who is now blind because of the shooting.
Barnett expressed the horror he saw as he arrived at the scene, but also how moved he was by all of the people helping. Not only were there first responders, members of the community stayed to help the victims. As news spread on social media of an emergency situation, residents Kerrie Beckwith and Jarrett Schmidt led the effort to keep conversations respectful in the local Brooklands Facebook group, and in the coming weeks helped organize support for the victims and gave the community a safe place to chat about the collective grief, fear, and desire to help. Barnett chose the entire Brooklands neighborhood for the Community Excellence Award, with Beckwith and Schmidt accepting it on behalf of the community.
Based on the advice of experts, the city re-opened the splash pad not long after the shooting, with community members turning out in droves to add happy memories and healing to the space.
The need for gathering places and proximity to nature are part of the fabric of Rochester Hills, which boasts 142 acres of green space that are permanently preserved, including a slew of parks that are slated for upgrades. Innovation Hills continues to blossom, with a pathway on a new annex under construction. Barnett announced that Spencer Park will be adding a splash pad, pavilion, and boardwalk. Bloomer Park will have a wildlife observation deck, a great lawn pavilion, and new pollinator gardens. And an announcement that would make Pluto proud – Nowicki Park will be home to the city’s first dog park.
In addition to parks and green space, the city is working on environmental cleanup, with a $75 million grant from the State of Michigan assisting in the cleanup of old landfill properties. “To see this start to take shape is truly remarkable, “ Barnett said of the sites that could easily have remained unusable for decades to come without remediation.
Funding also helped the city to support it’s local nonprofits in the recovery after the COVID-19 pandemic. Grants were awarded to about 15 organizations, including the Rochester Hills Library, HAVEN, Rochester Area Youth Assistance, Dutton Farm, and Oakland Family Services.
The spirit of those and the other nonprofits all have their page in the Rochester Hills story, with the real life magic happening in the places where people come together to help each other.
Learn more about the City of Rochester Hills at https://www.rochesterhills.org/
