A Message from Mayor Stimpson - February 8
Feb 8th, 2021
Good evening,
It is 7:30 p.m. on Monday, February 8, and I am writing to give you an update from the City of Mobile.
Today, the Mobile County Health Department reports 34,317 COVID-19 cases, an increase of 156 cases. To review the most recent detailed report, click here.
Earlier today we announced that Gov. Kay Ivey has instructed the Alabama Department of Transportation to study options to relieve traffic congestion on Interstate 10 and across the Bayway that will not include tolls on existing routes. Ivey gave word of this development in response to correspondence sent by myself and Fairhope City Council President Jack Burrell as the chairmen of the Mobile and Eastern Shore Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs), respectively.
I am grateful to Gov. Ivey for recognizing the need for a locally supported solution to our growing traffic congestion problem along this I-10 corridor. Studies and planning for a solution to this problem have been in the works for nearly 20 years. As Mobile’s economy continues to grow and thrive, this problem will only get worse. Now is the time to find a solution that does not saddle citizens with a toll. I look forward to exploring new concepts with ALDOT, the Eastern Shore MPO, and the public to find the right solution.
Last week, the Mobile Airport Authority accepted a grant offer for $9.1 million from the U.S. Department of Transportation that will fund the rehabilitation of Runway 14/32 at the Mobile Downtown Airport. The project includes milling and resurfacing across the runway, upgraded lighting, and pavement marking. The improvements are expected to start this March/April and be finished by the end of 2021.
These improvements will help revamp this 91-year-old runway, which was last upgraded in 2005, and will help the MAA continue its mission of providing premium air-service to the residents of Mobile and Baldwin counties. We thank Alabama Sen. Richard Shelby for his continued support for Mobile and Coastal Alabama.
Today, Dr. Kevin Elko's Monday Morning Cup of Inspiration lived up to its name in my opinion. Dr. Elko was talking about the way we set goals and said that often “it’s not that we have big dreams and fail, it’s that we have small dreams and set small goals and succeed.” For as long as I’ve been the mayor, we’ve set some pretty ambitious goals for the City of Mobile, and we’ve managed to meet and exceed many.
From major capital initiatives, to big economic development projects and securing competitive national grants, we set our sights high because we believe in Mobile. We have great expectations because we have great people and great opportunities in our City. As Dr. Elko said, sometimes the real loss isn’t falling short of those big dreams, it’s never pursuing them and settling for something smaller.
Sleep tight,