A Message from Mayor Stimpson - November 4
Nov 4th, 2020
Good evening,
It is 7:45 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 4, and I am writing to give you an update from the City of Mobile.
Today, the Mobile County Health Department reports 17,609 COVID-19 cases, an increase of 103 cases. To read a detailed report, click here.
With good weather our crews on the ground are making good progress collecting debris from hurricanes Zeta and Sally. Public works employees and third-party contractors are collecting debris following our normal trash pickup routes. Our aim is to have the city completely cleared by Thanksgiving.
This evening, I'd also like to thank the representatives from the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the U.S. Small Business Administration who participated in a Facebook live event today for businesses and individuals seeking federal disaster relief funding in the wake of the recent hurricanes.
While these funding sources aren't directly associated with COVID-19, the reality of this pandemic is that it has already impacted so many local businesses and individuals. That has also made these FEMA and SBA relief funds for Hurricane Sally more important than ever. If you were unable to catch the event live, you can still find it on the City of Mobile's Facebook page by clicking here.
Some of the same procedural hurdles that make it difficult for residents and businesses to apply for federal assistance can also be challenging for municipalities that are simply unfamiliar with the application process. That was the case with our neighbors to the North in the City of Citronelle.
However, members of our GIS team have helped guide employees from Citronelle on how to properly document some of the data that's required for clean-up costs to be reimbursed by FEMA. We were happy to lend a hand and little experience to them given the damage they sustained from Zeta. I also want to personally commend our staff for making the time to do this even as we continue our own recovery.
During our State of the City presentation earlier this year, I unveiled an ambitious plan my administration has put together to create or preserve 1,000 homes in some of Mobile's oldest neighborhoods by 2026. Led by our Neighborhood Development Department, this plan expands upon work we've already been doing to increase affordable and workforce housing as part of our larger efforts to grow the city.
Tomorrow morning, we'll be holding a press event to discuss how we plan to reach these goals by leveraging grant funding and deploying innovative programs to assist homeowners and first-time home buyers, create more affordable housing options and rehabilitate blighted and abandoned properties.
As I was looking back in my personal journal this morning, I realized it was seven years ago today that I was sworn in as the 108th Mayor of Mobile. I remember in those early days how often we were told "You can't do that, or this is how we've always done things." I'm not sure if it was faith or that we simply didn't know any better, but we started trying anyway. While there is still work to be done to achieve the vision of One Mobile, we've accomplished a lot over these past seven years because we believed in that vision and still do.
In his book "Sparkling Gems, Rick Renner writes that "Jesus made it very clear that we receive exactly what we believe. If we believe we can do the impossible, we will do it. But if we believe we cannot do the impossible, we will not do it. When I look at those who have warned me about all the things they thought couldn't be done, most of those people have done nothing."
My prayer for all of us is that we will not be judged as having done nothing.
Sleep tight!