Dear Friends,

As Mayor of the City of Cleveland, I am committed to providing more and better service to all who choose to live, work and play in our great city. To do this I must balance the need to provide high quality service with our ability to pay for those services. It was very clear to me that the "business as usual" mindset in City Hall would not allow me to reach that goal.

In order to effectively balance my revenue with my need to provide service, I formed the Operations Efficiency Task Force (OETF) early in the first year of my Administration. OETF is designed to create a model of how good government can and should operate and brings together key staff from within City Hall and external experts to engage employees at every level of City government to affect change.

This initiative is about doing what it takes to make Cleveland a City of Choice. It is about doing what ought to be done in government and about ensuring the future of this great city that we call home.

We have made significant progress already. By implementing many of the recommendations generated by the OETF, we have saved $16.5 million dollars Citywide and have begun to change the way we think and the way we provide services to our citizens.

The health and vitality of the great City of Cleveland and the northeast Ohio region depends on our ability to change how the City operates. This change cannot occur without the commitment of everyone, from City workers to City residents, from those who do business here to those who just come to visit.

We thank you for your belief in our great city and for your commitment to making Cleveland a City of Choice.

Sincerely,

Mayor Frank G. Jackson City of Cleveland