CRESWELL – Creswell Mayor Nick Smith reflected on a year of notable achievements and ongoing challenges as he navigates his inaugural term, noting the importance of community development and infrastructure improvements for the town’s future.
Smith said a top priority of his this year was getting a city manager in place and ensuring they were the right fit for the town.
“Creswell, being a small town, is actually still like a business,” Smith said. “Using that platform or that idea to really focus on better decisions for Creswell financially, that was probably the top one.”
He said that Vincent Martorello, Creswell’s city manager who started over the summer, has been a great fit.
“He’s taken an approach that I really appreciate and is running with. He’s really ingratiated himself in the community. He and his wife have done a great job. I’m super proud to have him on board right now,” Smith said.
National, local brands
He also noted the opening of Taco Bell and McDonald’s, as well as local businesses like Humble and Bumble Nutritionals.
“It was another big bullet point to welcome in some new economy and hopefully expand Creswell in a good way, by opening up some jobs and ultimately getting some money flowing through Creswell,” Smith said. “People stop at McDonald’s. Generally, they’re in and out. But ultimately that’s Creswell dollars, and hopefully that will lead to more prosperity for Creswell.”
Smith said an achievement he was proud of was the recognition of groups like the Creswell Middle School and Creswell High School FBLA team that competed at Nationals in Anaheim, Calif., and the CHS girls’ state track team that earned its first title in the program, its first school track team title since 1962.
“It’s key for me to recognize those who are in Creswell and represent Creswell now in other ways, and what they’re doing, and how we can all be so proud,” Smith said.
He mentioned the win of securing a $30,000 grant through Lane County’s Community & Economic Development Program to create a façade improvement program within the City’s 12-block Downtown District.
“We can take that money and work with businesses to put on some new awnings, or some fresh paint,” he said. “It’s a short trip through downtown, but I think, especially when we have the lights all lit up, it’s really quite beautiful, and it’s ours, and something to be proud of…and then establish again the pride of Creswell.”
First-year lessons
He reflected on some of the challenges this year held, noting that this is his first time in the role of mayor.
“I’ve never been a mayor before. Being a councilor, I didn’t really have the responsibility to organize the committees and meet with the city manager so much. So for me, personally, as a mayor, it was understanding the job. And I’ve had two city managers in my first year,” Smith said.
“It just really helped guide me, kind of give me some parameters, some boundaries to work within, but allow me to be me and do it my way, but ultimately, make sure I didn’t leave any details out or do any harm to Creswell whatsoever,” he said.
Overcoming challenges
Aside from the personal hurdle of adjusting to a new position, Smith also talked about the burdens of infrastructure costs.
“Major projects like the wastewater that we are short on funds, but kind of got a boot on our throat where we have to get it done by this arbitrary time, that’s some of the toughest as mayor to try and navigate,” he said.
“Creswell is an affluent community, but the tax dollars still aren’t there, and we still have some community members who can’t afford certain things. We want to try and fix that and keep it in-house, if we can. Creswell helping Creswell,” he said.
Next year, Smith hopes to continue, if not finish, the wastewater system plan project. He is looking forward to getting another basketball court built in Creswell that will be used at the Creswell Clubhouse, and to fixing up Garden Lake Pond.
“It’s a beautiful area, so we really strategically need to develop it to where we can have some fishing derbies, and we can also get citizens outside more,” said Smith. “If we can really make the fishing better and make it a little more attractive, then we get people outside, especially kids. It’s important for me. I have my own young kids.”
