2023 Overiew from Mayor Chris Hare

I would like to express my gratitude for your support of me and our city this past year. Despite the inevitable challenges we've faced, the hard work of the city council and myself has yielded positive results. Glencoe has made great strides in growth and development that promise an even brighter future ahead.   In 2023, we made significant progress together in advancing Glencoe's Public Works, Parks and Recreation, Public Library, Senior Center, and Public Safety.   Becoming a USDA-eligible city was a major accomplishment for Glencoe and its future growth, as citizens can now apply for low-interest housing loans. Glencoe is the best place to live, and now young families will have the chance to move in, raise their children, and call the beautiful city of Glencoe home.   Over the last few years, we have focused on growing businesses here in Glencoe. This year we took another step forward in this mission by purchasing property in strategic areas for future retail and commercial development. The city also formed a board to recruit businesses to locate in Glencoe. With these efforts, Glencoe has positioned itself as a city that is open for business.   In 2023, the City of Glencoe received over $1 million in grants for public safety, parks and recreation, and the water department. The city has allocated over $450,000 for paving projects and applied for additional grants to continue improving roads. The city has also funded numerous drainage repairs. Grant funding has enabled the Public Works Department to acquire new equipment for brush and debris removal, including three new fleet trucks and a track excavator.   Our City continues to work closely with all Glencoe schools to assist wherever possible. We have invested significant effort and funding into improvements. Recent upgrades include renovating the basketball, tennis, and pickleball courts, remodeling the varsity baseball and softball fields in partnership with the Etowah County Board of Education, installing new fencing at Wilson and Hollingsworth Parks, and being awarded a $500,000 TAP Grant to construct a new bridge across Cove Creek and pave accessible walkways. We believe these improvements will make our community even more attractive for new families.   Our Public Library was refreshed on the exterior. The Senior Center was updated with a new sign and parking lot that was seal-coated and re-striped.   Through collaborative marketing campaigns, events in our park have attracted many new visitors to Glencoe and generated additional revenue for our wonderful city.   This year, we have supported our Fire Department with new equipment such as a rescue boat and Aqua Eye Underwater Sonar. In partnership with the Alabama Fire College, the Fire Department installed over 50 new smoke alarms free of charge for Glencoe residents. We also aided our Police Department by providing new equipment, a second certified narcotic detection dog, and additional officers. These first responders answered over 10,680 calls this year!   Though we still have many projects ahead, together we can accomplish anything. We hope you will continue to live, shop, and play in Glencoe to build a stronger community, as your involvement makes a real difference.   Thank you for allowing us to serve Glencoe.   -Mayor Chris Hare