Mayor Bruce Teague released his State of the City address in a video at the Iowa City City Council meeting on Tuesday night, touting the city’s plans for transportation, furthering racial equity and social justice, and improving infrastructure.

Teague looked at categories including social justice and racial equity, climate action, transit, infrastructure, and more.

Over the next year, Teague said he and the City Council will focus on the next phase of their transportation plan. This phase includes Sunday service, free fare for low-income riders, and late night, on-demand service.

Teague began his address by thanking his city council colleagues, calling them, “dedicated, caring, and courageous.”

He also thanked the more than 600 city workers across all departments.

“The work of our city staff is quiet and humble, but essential to our lives,” Teague said. “We cannot recognize, nor thank them, enough.”

He said he felt inspired by the community around him, both in city government and throughout Iowa City.

“I’m feeling inspired – inspired by what we’ve been able to achieve together and inspired by the opportunities before us,” Teague said.

Teague touted murals unveiled throughout Iowa City and new positions created to address inequities, like the mental health liaison and the immigrant and refugee outreach assistant.

“The committed $1 million to social justice and racial equity initiatives, and the work of the Truth & Reconciliation Commission, are a few things we’re all anticipating [that] will impact all of us systemically,” the mayor said.

Looking toward the future, Teague said in 2022, the city will look to prepare the most vulnerable residents from extreme weather and improvements will be made to the prairies at multiple parks across Iowa City.

Teague brought the topics of climate action and transit together, and he said advancements have already started with the introduction of four electric buses.

Teague concluded by discussing the potential benefits of local infrastructure funding from the 2021 federal bipartisan infrastructure plan.

“I am fortunate to lead in a time when the federal government sees the value and the strengths in investing directly in our nation’s cities,” Teague said. “The [infrastructure bill] has provided our city an unprecedented opportunity to make transformational investments that may never again be possible in our lifetime.”