? What: Vancouver Mayor Tim Leavitt will deliver his State of the City speech, “Foundations for the Future.”
? When: 12:30 to 2 p.m. today.
? Where: Evergreen High School, 14300 N.E. 18th St., Vancouver (parking available in the east lot).
? Cost: On behalf of Mayor Leavitt, $5 voluntary donations to the Children’s Center are suggested at the door.
? Severe weather: In the case of severe weather, schedule changes will be posted at www.cityofvancouver.us and columbian.com.
? What: Vancouver Mayor Tim Leavitt will deliver his State of the City speech, "Foundations for the Future."
? When: 12:30 to 2 p.m. today.
? Where: Evergreen High School, 14300 N.E. 18th St., Vancouver (parking available in the east lot).
? Cost: On behalf of Mayor Leavitt, $5 voluntary donations to the Children's Center are suggested at the door.
? Severe weather: In the case of severe weather, schedule changes will be posted at www.cityofvancouver.us and columbian.com.
Vancouver Mayor Tim Leavitt is set to deliver his second State of the City address Wednesday, so on Tuesday, The Columbian decided to give those who aren’t his honor a chance to voice their views on the city’s direction.
Residents’ responses were mixed, but the most common answer was either “I’m busy” and to beg off, or say they didn’t follow local news well enough to give an opinion.
But outside the Whole Foods off Northeast 164th Avenue, Orchards resident Judy Consiglio paused with a bag of groceries to say she thinks things are getting better. She’s seeing development downtown and houses going up again.
“I work at a bank and I’m seeing unemployment checks less and less lately,” said Consiglio, 52. “For the most part, I’m pretty positive.”
But in front of the Borders next door, Derrick Moore, 37, took a different view.
An information technology worker, he said he has to commute to Tacoma, Kent, Portland and Seattle to find good-paying work. More jobs are among his top priorities.
“They need more programs to help people who have been stricken by the recession,” Moore said. “They need to put more money into those programs that help out residents.”
Lee Rafferty, executive director of Vancouver’s Downtown Association, said in an e-mail she thinks the city’s biggest challenges are shrinking funds for mental health issues, keeping the schools’ quality high and “how we come together as a community behind the infrastructure we simply must fund in order for this region to thrive.”
But she said that overall, “there is renewed optimism.”
“Downtown Vancouver, for example, has investors and businesses that I didn’t even know existed a year ago,” she wrote. “Signs of good health? New libraries, new businesses, and the fact that even in a poor economy, this community is among the most generous in the area.”
But 18-year-old Meghan Hales said she’s still looking for more from her city.
She said Vancouver is “fine,” but she still wants to move to a bigger city soon.
“We need more stuff to do, there’s nothing to do,” she said.
But like many people, Gary Armstrong, 56, seemed content to define his city in the terms of his life. His job in manufacturing at WaferTech pays his rent in the Hearthwood neighborhood and for his groceries, which he picked up Tuesday at Whole Foods.
“I haven’t been disturbed in my neighborhood by crime or any decay,” he said. “I’m happy — I always felt like it’s a comfortable place to live, shop and drive.”
Andrea Damewood: 360-735-4542 or andrea.damewood@columbian.com.
