One Year In: A Look Back at Mayor Stimpson’s First Term Challenges
A review of Mobile Mayor Sandy Stimpson's first year in office, covering budget struggles, blight, litter and efforts to recruit Airbus suppliers.
When Sandy Stimpson was sworn in as Mobile’s mayor, he brought with him a campaign theme of “One Mobile” and a pledge to make the city the safest, most business- and family-friendly community in the country within roughly six years. A year into the job, his administration had confronted a lengthy list of challenges that tested that vision.
Over his first 12 months in office, Stimpson’s administration dealt with a city budget crisis that forced officials to rescind a previously announced pay raise, ongoing questions about race relations, a sales tax increase approved by the City Council, ongoing battles with litter and neighborhood blight, contested administrative appointments, and complicated negotiations with public safety unions amid a vacancy in the city’s fire chief position.
The administration also spent significant energy courting suppliers tied to the Airbus manufacturing plant taking shape in Mobile, along with ongoing questions about the future of the Alabama Cruise Terminal and the pursuit of new public-private partnerships. At the same time, city leaders worked to redirect the municipal budget toward capital expenses and technology upgrades, while also facing scrutiny over funding cuts to local nonprofits.
The anniversary offered residents a chance to weigh in directly, with the mayor participating in an online town-hall-style discussion open to public questions about the state of the city and his plans heading into year two.
The Airbus factor
The Airbus plant is the company’s first U.S. assembly line for commercial jets. Airbus announced in July 2012 that it would build A320-family jets at Brookley Aeroplex in Mobile, and it broke ground on the facility in April 2014, prompting a push by city and state leaders to attract suppliers to the area.
