On Thursday, December 1, the La Porte Economic Advancement Partnership (LEAP) hosted its annual State of the City Address. Over 200 community members eagerly gathered to hear Mayor Tom Dermody speak about how far La Porte has come in the past year. Everyone was beyond excited to celebrate all the incredible work that’s been done to make La Porte an even brighter place.
The event kicked off with bright smiles, contagious laughter, and delicious food catered by the local businesses Red Door, Melt Kitchen, Bare Bones, and Little Bo’s Sweets. After everyone was stuffed, Mayor Dermody took the stage.
Mayor Dermody explained that since 2016, over 60% of La Porte’s roads have been paved. He talked about how the city has worked hard to improve the city’s sewer systems to help prevent flooding. He also commended the fire department for battling one of the biggest fires in La Porte history without losing any lives. The list of achievements was endless.
Mayor Dermody also spoke about his goals for La Porte’s future and emphasized how eager he is to keep making improvements in La Porte. He couldn’t thank everyone enough for their support and commitment to improving their community.
“I can’t thank you and tell you enough about what an honor it is to be the mayor of our city. We’ve done a lot and we’ve got a lot more to do. I’m telling you that La Porte is a special place and it’s going to be the place to be as we continue to grow, continue to move this community forward, develop, and shake things up. I’m just excited to be partnered with all of you to make sure that happens,” said Dermody.
After speaking, Mayor Dermody opened the floor up for questions, so if people wanted to know more about a specific issue they could ask him about it personally. It was the perfect opportunity for people to learn more about what’s happening in their community and spread the word about all the wonderful things happening in La Porte.
“We routinely get questions about what’s going on in the city, and this is an opportunity for everyone to hear from the best source, the mayor, about everything that’s happening. So, I really think this event allows people to walk away with a renewed sense of pride in their local government and have some excitement about what’s going on in their community. These people become ambassadors and can share this information with their friends, their families, and their entire community, and that’s really important,” said Bert Cook, Executive Director of LEAP.
Not only was the event a great way to share and celebrate La Porte’s latest achievements, but it was also a great way for community members to network and make new friendships,
“I really love connecting with everyone in the community. I serve on the city council and I have my business, but there are so many people in the community that I don’t get to engage with, and here I get updates on what’s happening with them--it’s just a great time to catch up,” said Laura Cutler, a La Porte city councilwoman.
By the end of the night, there was no doubt in anyone’s mind that La Porte’s future is incredibly bright.
“It’s just fun to see La Porte continue to move forward. We always have to say that we’re competing with all of our surrounding communities, but I don’t really feel like we’re competing. I feel like we’re becoming our own and that La Porte is a special place to be,” said Courtney Parthun, clerk-treasurer of La Porte.
Everyone was ultimately grateful for getting the opportunity to celebrate and learn more about all the good things happening in La Porte.
“We just appreciate the mayor and all of the department heads for all the work that they’ve done and for taking the time to be here tonight and helping us share this information with the community,” said Cook.
To learn more about LEAP visit, https://laportepartnership.com/.
