Ken Striplin

As 2013 draws to a close, I want to personally wish you and your family a very happy holiday season. It’s hard to believe the year is nearly over, and here at City Hall, we are already looking at programs, projects and activities for 2014.

A number of awards and recognitions were bestowed on Santa Clarita this year, and I thought you might be interested to learn about them.

In the area of public safety, we have made tremendous strides in reducing crime and pro-actively dealing with issues such as gangs, drug use, graffiti and property crimes. Our crime rate is at its lowest point since cityhood, and this year, the FBI ranked Santa Clarita as the 10th safest city in the nation.

Livability.com ranked Santa Clarita as one of the 100 best places to live, and the 2013 California Retail Survey rated Santa Clarita as one of the Top 100 Retail Markets in California, with a retail market above $2 billion.

The League of California Cities awarded Santa Clarita with their highest honor: the Helen Putnam award for excellence in the category of Enhancing Public Trust, Ethics and Community Involvement for the city’s Granada Villa Neighborhood Committee. This program saw a turnaround in gang and crime issues through the partnerships formed among residents, city staff, local service agencies and law enforcement.

But awards are just part of our story for 2013. This year, the city received nearly $12 million in grant funding; saw more than 900,000 patrons at our three library branches; synchronized 43 traffic intersections; and realized more than $26 million in revenues from location and studio filming.

In the area of events, Santa Clarita was the host stage for both a start and a finish for the Amgen Tour of California bike race. This year was the 20th anniversary for the Cowboy Festival, and our free summer concerts series entertained thousands at Central Park.

For me, a major highlight this year was our many partnerships in the community. Whether it is our award-winning school districts and colleges, our nonprofit agencies, local special districts, the business community or the excellent leadership provided by our City Council, Santa Clarita is blessed to have an engaged group of leaders who truly care about the high quality of life in our community.

Thank you for your interest in our city. I am always delighted to receive your emails, please send them to me directly at kstriplin@santa-clarita.com.

Ken Striplin is city manager of the city of Santa Clarita.