New Bedford mayor delivers annual State of the City address

NEW BEDFORD, Mass. (WLNE) — New Bedford Mayor Jon Mitchell delivered his annual State of the City address on Wednesday.

In his address, Mitchell discussed the city’s ongoing work during the pandemic, and outlined his vision for New Bedford to emerge a “stronger city.”

“Our goal, simply stated, is to establish New Bedford as the top blue economy on the East Coast,” Mayor Mitchell said.

Mayor Mitchell discussed plans to expand the Port of New Bedford’s industrial capacity and resources for commercial fishing, offshore wind, and a wave of growing maritime industries.

The Mayor also touched on his plans to increase the road construction funds by 25% in this year’s capital budget.

“The city didn’t have a capital plan when I got into office, but the one we’ve developed and executed has enabled us to more than double spending on road maintenance and building upgrades, which have included extensive energy efficiency retrofits,” Mayor Mitchell said.

Mayor Mitchell announced that the city would be using funding from the American Rescue Plan Act to develop vacant or under utilized commercial properties.

“I am announcing today that we are setting aside $5 million in funding from the American Rescue Plan Act to accelerate the development of vacant commercial properties that need just a little more funding to be redeveloped,” Mayor Mitchell said. “By helping these projects over the proverbial hump, we can help the city pay its bills.”

Another $5 million in ARPA funds will be going towards renovating and expanding the Zeiterion Performing Arts Center.

Mitchell was first elected as mayor in 2011, and is the city’s first mayor to be elected to a four-year term.

The address begins at 11:30 a.m. at the New Bedford High School.