Mayor gives Columbus State of the City address

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) -- The future of Columbus was in the spotlight Tuesday evening when Mayor Andrew Ginther delivered the State of the City address, focusing on safety, housing and transit.

“We don't want to just get bigger; we want to get better and that means everybody out there needs to step up," Ginther said.

The mayor said the city has had a successful year so far in slowing violence.

“We're leading the nation, along with Fort Worth, in reductions in homicides and violence,” Ginther said.

However, he said after last week’s violence where Columbus officers came under fire three times and five people were shot and killed over the past weekend, there is work to be done.

“We've seen great progress and great momentum, but we cannot rest on what we've seen thus far and this weekend is the perfect example of that,” Ginther said. “We have to double down. We have to fight back. The future of this city is worth fighting for.”

He said another thing worth expanding is access to housing.

This year the city has proposed changes to its 70-year-old zoning code. The plan would bring in not just more housing, but more affordable housing.

“The best way for us to deal with the supply crisis is zone in, you know, having a code that works,” Ginther said. “One that supports density and height, particularly in these key corridors. So, you think about it for a second.”

He said that in a little more than a month, hundreds of people have come by the city’s Zone In Gallery to learn more about those plans.

The mayor said another thing that could be changing is transit. He said he plans to talk more about the Link-US program.

“The COTA board will be placing the issue on the ballot for this November for consideration for voters,” Ginther said. “This is going to be a transformational transit investment that we can make in ourselves as we grow. This bus rapid transit line will be 500 miles of, you know, everything from sidewalks to bikeways, connecting trails.”

The mayor said the top priority with all of these plans is to ensure it touches every part of the city.

“The decisions we make in the next ten years are going to impact this community for the next 50 to 100, so it's critically important that everybody get engaged, involved and help us grow the right way,” Ginther said.