CUYAHOGA FALLS: The city has weathered the worst economic storm in recent history and is looking forward to a year filled with promising projects and a bicentennial celebration, Mayor Don Robart told a crowd of 200 at a Cuyahoga Falls Chamber of Commerce luncheon Wednesday.In a State of the City speech that was one part reflection, one part pep talk and one part forecast, Robart said the city’s healthy financial condition is the result of years of careful budget considerations.“You see, unlike the federal government that continues to run up massive deficits, cities are required to balance their budgets,” Robart said.Through attrition, retirement incentives, department mergers and the transfer of some services to the county, the city has trimmed its full-time work force to 397, an $8 million savings from when it employed 519 people in 2006. For the next two years, the city’s six unions have also agreed to wage freezes.Losing the municipal court to Stow a couple of years ago has been a financial boon, he said. Where the city once supplemented the court at a cost of about $250,000 a year, the mayor’s court that Robart put in place when the municipal court moved generated $723,000 last year and is on track to make $1 million this year.“Given the fragile state of the economy, our goal has been to reach a 15 percent carryover balance in our general fund. As a result of our proactive reining-in of spending and our aggressive cost cutting, we have ended the last two years with a 19 percent carryover,” Robart said.The city is stretching its dollars with the help of state and federal grants.Almost $1.9 million from state sources will contribute to $9 million in road improvements this year, including portions of Portage Trail and State Road.Robart commended the police department under its new chief, Tom Pozza, for having “a very successful year.”Traffic fines were up 34 percent last year over the previous year, assaults and thefts were down, and the city’s “war on drugs continued to be a top priority in 2011,” Robart said.Police also had to enforce the city’s new juvenile curfew ordinance last year to handle “troublemakers along the riverfront. … The plan worked perfectly,” Robart said.Meanwhile, the fire department attended 7,871 calls last year and collected $1.54 million in fees for transporting patients to the hospital, “one of the best generators of revenue” for the city.Robart said Portage Crossing, the plan to replace the former State Road Shopping Center, is still set to break ground in the spring.The project has grown from an original plan of 279,000 square feet of commercial space with a price tag of $40 million to a 470,000-square- foot center valued at $60 million.“This is by far the largest project the city has ever undertaken,” Robart said. “And of course, the market conditions over the past few years could not be any worse. But despite the conditions, the progress toward launch has been excellent.”There are also signs that the residential market is recovering. Robart said the city saw 45 houses built in 2011, compared with 14 the previous year.The city is also continuing with its own Neighborhood Stabilization Program. After the mortgage crisis led to so many foreclosures and vacancies, the city bought, refurbished and sold six homes. Three more are under renovation.Several buildings on Portage Trail that had “withstood years of neglect and an absentee landlord” were purchased and demolished using Community Development Block Grant funds, and a developer has tagged the property for a future medical office building.The mayor plugged several new or growing businesses. Downtown Akron’s Diamond Deli has opened a location on Front Street, the Cuyahoga Falls Acme store has announced plans to double its footprint in an $8 million investment, and longtime North Hill business Liberty Harley-Davidson is moving into the former Circuit City building off Howe Road.He also encouraged residents to enjoy a year full of activities and festivals associated with the town’s bicentennial.The celebration will be punctuated by the demolition of two downtown dams on the Cuyahoga River, which will create Category 5 rapids for kayakers and white-water rafting.“We anticipate some sort of public/private partnerships will be formed to capitalize on this rare opportunity,” Robart said.Paula Schleis can be reached at 330-996-3741 or pschleis@thebeaconjournal.com. Follow her on Twitter at http://twitter.com/paulaschleis.