To the citizens of Westfield:
On Monday, November 9, 2015, at 09 a.m. I resigned from the office of Mayor. Mayor-Elect Sullivan, in his capacity as City Council President, was sworn in shortly thereafter and will complete my term as Acting Mayor.
The last six years has seen historic change in our city. With our Federal and state government partners we have invested over 100 million dollars in our transportation infrastructure and with local money we have invested nearly 50 million dollars in our public facilities and equipment. Additionally we have consolidated many departments within our city government making it more efficient, modernized our information technology infrastructure, secured funding for a new school, built our cash reserves from approximately 3.5 million dollars in 2010, to nearly 10 million dollars this fall, and raised our city’s bond rating to AA status. And of course, after many decades of discussion, we have finally opened the doors to a new senior center. Additionally, 4 of my 5 budgets saw levy raises less than the state allowed maximum of 2.5%. The city by all measures is in better condition than just a few short years ago.
It has been the highest honor to serve as your Mayor. The Whip City, has a long and storied history, and it is incredibly resilient. As I leave office, one of the greatest memories I have is how this community “weathered” the five Federally declared natural disasters of 2011-2012. The greatest of which was of course, the 2011 October snowstorm. I am pleased to say, in our darkest hour, we rallied as a community and came out stronger from that experience. It is that spirit of community that all cities strive to achieve, we have it here in Westfield and that is what makes our city such a great place to live.
I would like to thank you for the opportunity you have given me to serve as your mayor since 2010. I am also appreciative of the confidence you have shown in me, with my recent election to the city council. I am looking forward to returning to the city council, where I started in city government in 2002. We have many more good days ahead of us and together we will make Westfield an even better place to live, work and play. I extend my sincerest congratulations to Mayor-Elect Sullivan and wish him the very best in his upcoming term as Mayor.
Sincerely:
Daniel M. Knapik
