“We all have stories to live, and all of our stories matter,” said Athens Mayor Ronnie Marks at the 2024 state of the city address held at Athens State University on Feb. 28.
The theme of the address was “Athens — Living her story,” and Marks said that city leaders tell that story in six key ways: serving, funding, connections, planning, growing and engagement.
Marks and his staff highlighted various partnerships, planning efforts and youth engagement efforts as a part of Athens’ growth.
One such partnership is with the Tennessee Valley Authorities as Athens received a federal grant to update its transportation plan. The two organizations are working on a pilot program called Connected Communities to address community needs.
Preparing the city’s future leaders has also been a focus of city leaders. Athens offers the Athens Mayor’s Youth Commission program for high school students to learn about local government’s role and their role to be engaged and informed citizens.
Two youth commissioners from Athens High School took part in the event. Chloe Malone ended the program with her thoughts on what she loves about Athens and how we can work together to enhance our city. Avery Paysinger introduced Marks and spoke about her experiences on youth commission and the importance of involving youth in living our city’s story.
Marks discussed economic development efforts for proposed retail projects along U.S. Hwy. 72, U.S. Hwy. 31 and in the southern part of the city.
“More than 40 percent of our city revenues come from sales tax,” Marks added. “Shopping locally supports firefighters, police, garbage trucks, parks and other city services.”
City planner Erin Tidwell pointed out that the population of Athens rose 16.03 percent between 2010 and 2020.
She also spoke about the Athens 2040 Pathways to Excellence Comprehensive Plan and some of the action items the city is working on, such as a water/sewer master plan, an updated transportation plan and more retail options.
Chief building inspector Erik Waddell discussed residential growth. Within the first two months of the year, his department has issued 515 building permits, compared to 402 permits it issued over the same 2 months last year.
Grant coordinator/communications specialist Holly Hollman discussed the importance of making connections and how that leads to impactful projects that benefit Athens.
One such project she discussed was the 32-acre site that once was an abandoned chicken processing facility until the city purchased and cleared it with plans to build Sunshine Park in multiple phases.
Phase 1 will have an inclusive playground and a splash pad. This portion of the project will go out for bids in March. The city of Athens has secured nearly $1 million in grants and sponsorships, including a $570,841 grant from ADEM, to help fund the start of this multi-million dollar, multi-phase project.