Mayor to give state of city address Friday

Mayor Paul Finley will give his State of the City Address, where he will discuss how the quality of life has improved for Madison and its residents.

Connect2011 – State of the City will be from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m., Friday, Jan. 21 at the Davidson Center for Space Exploration in Huntsville.

This is Finley’s second city address.

“Connect2010 was the first event where a mayor in Madison was able to give a presentation in this type of environment,” Finley said. “It will be televised and have an audience of about 400 people.”

It will be telecast live on Knology Channel 199.

He said this is a big change from previous years where the address was given in city council chambers where maybe 20 people would show up.

“What I’d say is my biggest challenge is narrowing down the focus of the accomplishments of the department heads have made throughout the year,” he said. “We’ve stayed on target and let our action speak louder than our words, but Friday night, words come into play in documenting the actions that have made an improvement for our citizens.”

The Madison Chamber of Commerce will host the gala.

Money from ticket sales to the gala goes toward the mayor and chamber’s scholarships and to the Chamber of Commerce.

“It helps fund the chamber and helps make sure we can reinvest that money back into the community to support business,” Finley said.

The mayor said he is hoping to be able to announce a major economic development project Friday night.