Starr gives close-up look at city in annual address

Mount Vernon Mayor Matt Starr is a visual person. This past week, he gave about 100 guests at the State of the City Address a snapshot of the city, both a look back at what’s happened in 2025 and what can be expected in 2026.

“2025 was a great year. It was a hard year, but we have really accomplished quite a bit. There’s a great deal to be proud of and a great deal to be proud of what we have going forward,” Starr told the audience.

He started the address hosted by the Knox County Chamber of Commerce with information on a recent event, that of the condemnation and future demolition for three buildings on North Main and East Chestnut streets. The city’s Board of Property and Maintenance Appeals decided March 24 that the buildings, including the Henry B. Curtis Building on North Main, had been damaged, most recently by a windstorm that struck the city and county, to the extent they were no longer safe for use.

The city had purchased the buildings in 2022, trying to figure out what could be done about possibly expanding City Hall for a new justice center after moving city offices to another facility. While there had been some discussions about the state of the buildings, the windstorm opened up a new set of concerns — the safety of those inside them and the surrounding areas.

“That’s the job that we do. To protect the future, to protect the taxpayer dollars, to invest wisely, not put us into unnecessary debt. We take that very seriously,” Starr said. “You’re always adapting to what’s going on around you. You’re balancing the future, the environment, public safety and tax dollars. That’s really what the artistry is in public service.”

From there, Starr took the audience through some of the city’s finances, it’s achievements and goals for the future.

He explained where the city receives its revenues — from resident and business taxes to lodging taxes to state and federal grants. Starr said the city received approximately $22.2 million in tax revenue during the past year. They also received nearly $7 million in grants for engineering projects, money from permits and even some from things like fees to enter Hiawatha Pool and Waterpark.

Starr then went into detail on the city’s various departments – from public works to utilities. The public works department is the largest in scope, dealing with everything from streets to parks to cemeteries in the city. Those departments work behind the scenes to make sure everything — from getting around in the city to things to do while here — are available and work for the residents and guests.

The street department maintains the roads, from paving and patching them to plowing snow to helping remove leaves in the fall. The parks department keeps the city’s recreation facilities in working order, and the cemetery department maintains 61 acres and more than 20,000 grave sites at both Mound View and Mount Calvary cemeteries. Starr also talked about the work the fire and police departments do for residents.

The utilities department handles water and wastewater for residents, treating more than 1 billion gallons of water each year. They also take care of 418 linear miles of water and wastewater lines throughout the city.

Starr showcased several projects that are gearing up for this year in Mount Vernon. He said they are working on a flood plain study, as well as levee maintenance and bridges and channels study, for the west end of the city. The State Route 13 corridor is also expected to see some major changes in the future, including the connecting of South Sandusky Street with the viaduct. They also are in the beginning stages of changing the traffic pattern at the North Sandusky-Upper Fredericktown intersection.

The city is also in the process of building a new police station on Sychar Road, as well as moving into a new municipal center on South Main Street and then turning City Hall into a new justice center.

“Our philosophy for the year is to strengthen the economy, fix what is broken and invest prudently,” Starr said.