On Tuesday afternoon, Mentor City Manager Ken Filipiak addressed the city with his annual State of the City Address. Detailing the happenings in the city over the past year and announcing future plans for 2025, this event serves as a crucial update to the community on the present condition of the city.
This year’s event occurred in Mentor High School’s Paradigm, with community members from various businesses and leadership positions gathering for a lunch catered by local business Food for Thought and franchise Nothing Bundt Cakes. With a full house in attendance, Mr. Filipiak began his speech addressing the city, focusing his attention on a few main areas, including the police and fire departments, internal improvements, international connections, Mentor’s manufacturing business, and community building. This year, Mr. Filipiak labeled his theme as legacy building, creating a community that will continue to last for generations, just as it does now.
Police and Fire Departments
Nothing can quite last if certain people are not there to protect others and the community. Those people who protect and serve the Mentor community are the police, fire, and dispatch workers stationed throughout the city. The first topic Mr. Filipiak covered acknowledged just how much these service officers get down throughout the year. With over 20,000 calls for service from the police department in 2024, criminal arrests are down 21%, adult arrests are down 40%, drug arrests are down 64%, and OVI arrests are down 27% since 2023. With minor offenses occurring less and less, the police department is able to divert more attention to serious offenders who may be posing more of a risk to the community.
With the current size of the police force, it is expected that three officers will retire each year. To get the staff back to full capacity, the city has taken to hiring eleven new officers, the largest hiring event in Mentor Police Department History. With fewer people wanting to go into criminal justice and law enforcement, Mentor has taken up new recruitment efforts to help boost interest in such public service fields.
To help stimulate interest, the first Jr. Police Academy was held for students in 6th, 7th, and 8th grade in 2024, where students learned the basic functions of a police department such as crime scene processing, K-9 handling, and some self-defense techniques among other helpful skills for a potential future career. As for adults, the first-ever citizen’s police academy will occur in 2025, where they will attend weekly classes and training activities, learn de-escalation techniques, attend ride-a-longs, and go through mock exercises. Overall, both of these programs offer better transparency and insight for the community and give an understanding of what challenges officers face while they serve.
The Department of Homeland Security awarded the Mentor Police Department a grant for mobile security cameras in 2024. Over the past year, 29 mobile security cameras around the city have led to 113 arrests and have returned 5 missing people. Also helping to locate missing people is the Police’s Drone Team, utilizing their skills to rescue missing individuals and act as surveillance for major events, such as Mentor Rocks. For the Swat Team, Mentor has purchased a police armored vehicle for around $500,000, offering greater means of protection for the Mentor Police in carrying out dangerous missions.
For the first time ever in Mentor history, the fire department received over 10,000 calls, 77% of which were EMS-related. This number has unfortunately been steadily rising by 3-3.5% each year. From 2000 to 2025, there has been about an 80% increase in calls for service, even with Mentor having just 3,000 more residents living in the city than in 2000. To reduce this, the city is looking to take more preemptive action to give residents more knowledge on fire safety and prevention. To meet the needs of the community, six new full-time firefighters are being added to the Mentor Fire Department, including the newest Fire Chief, Ron Zak, who has been with the city for 33 years and has served in every position in the Mentor Fire Department.
Finally with the Mentor Fire Department, the other newest addition to the force is in the form of a new 2.2 million dollar Pierce Ladder Truck which will join the fleet in 2027. The size and height of a lot of buildings around Mentor make this a necessary purchase, and this also adds flexibility to the fleet as it can also be used as a front-line engine. Another new addition is the new Rigid Paul vessel for Lake Erie rescues, replacing a 25-year-old inflatable rescue boat. Last but not least, at the intersection of Plaza Boulevard and 84, the 2.7-acre lot, which used to be home to the Sears Auto Center, will be the home to the new Station #3. This project is expected to begin the design phase soon and will hopefully be opened by the end of 2026.
Internal Improvements
Comprising the majority of the State of the City address, internal improvements to buildings and roadways, among other things, were a major focus for Mr. Filipiak’s presentation. Many of his announcements in this sector dealt with 2025, with many planned construction plans to begin throughout the year.
Still, Mr. Filipiak highlighted the number of accomplishments in terms of internal improvements that already occurred in 2024. Namely, Mentor added 115 parking spaces to the Mentor Senior Center, nearly doubling available space. This space also serves for additional parking for Civic Center events, such as Mentor Rocks or the annual 4th of July festivities. Mentor also saw the opening of various businesses, including Ken Ganley Jeep Ram Dodge Chrysler, Caliber Collision, Brush Boutique, Dnd Meadery, Clean Express Auto Wash, Human Bean, Chali Fresh Tea, Tropical Smoothie Cafe, Jets Pizza, Rally House, YTM Sushi, Federales, and Tommy Boys Pub. In 2025, restaurants coming to Mentor include Lynns Garden Cafe and Kearneys Public House, among more.
In terms of future projects for 2025 and beyond in Mentor, it’s hard to count. As for road improvements, Mentor is allocating $7 million for over 40 roads and sidewalks, up from $4 million last year, with roads such as Hoose Road receiving improvements. For sidewalks, a full-length sidewalk on Tyler Boulevard will be built to allow for greater accessibility for those traveling on foot between businesses, also offering additional opportunities for people to get involved in such businesses. Additional handicap-accessible walkways will also be placed in Wildwood Cultural Center, with a 2-mile trail being built in 2025. For Wildwood, the improvements do not end there, as the back patio will be replaced for full handicap access, and a bathroom accessible to all from the outside of the building will be built. The Mentor Cemetery and Rec Center can also expect additional roads and walkways to be built or improved upon in 2025. Perhaps the largest project for the roads this year will be a $15 million project to expand the overpass at 615 over Route 90 from three lanes to four, including turning lanes bringing an additional 4,000 cars every day for the next 15 years. This also benefits the new hospital, which noted 60,000 patients this year, 60% of which are Lake County residents. Their performance also highly surpassed expectations with amazing results, including 9% more surgical cases than expected.
At the Mentor Marina, parking for 22 boat trailers will make its way in the near future, as will improvements to buildings in the area for kayak rentals and other activities. Mentor is also working to improve the Mentor Harbor Channel, updating the 90-year-old border walls in the entrance and installing new docks throughout the channel. The city is continuing efforts to preserve its shoreline.
The Mentor Civic Center is the area perhaps receiving the most attention in the upcoming year, with multiple large projects in the final stages of planning. Two million dollars will be put into an additional 158 parking spaces alone, offering greater access for events such as Mentor Rocks and the Ice Arena. The Civic Center Pool is also to be drastically changed late this year, as the buildings surrounding the water will be completely redone in a modern style, offering concessions to both swimmers and pickleball players. Pickleball enthusiasts will be receiving three new courts in the upcoming year, replacing the basketball court aside the existing ones. For basketball lovers, two additional modern courts are to be built near the current site. For the pool itself, three unique 42-foot tall water slides are set to be built to enhance the visitor experience.
Blackbrook Golf Course is also set to undergo major improvements, especially along its own parking lot. The overhead electrical wiring plaguing the roads will be moved underground, with parking islands built, including fun decorations. A building to house golf carts at the course will also be available this year, with 16 new golf carts being purchased.
At the Mentor Public Library Main Branch, two additions will be completed along with an open pavilion, walkways, and more parking. There is also movement in beginning projects at the old Sears and Macy’s store near the mall, as well as at another large property. More, a four-story 73,000 square-foot building titled “Uptown” is to be constructed this year, with the first floor dedicated to commercial space and the remaining floors to house 45 residential living units. In the same vein, Mentor conducted its own housing study, finding the need for additional affordable homes, especially for families.
For economics, Mr. Filipiak noted that this year saw a 10% increase in income tax collection from 2023, also earning the city their 10th consecutive Auditor of State Award with Distinction for a clean audit report. A 95-foot tall observation tower in the Mentor Lagoons overlooking the Mentor Marsh is also set to appear on the 2025 ballot, necessitating voter approval to begin construction.
International Connections
Next, in Mr. Filipiack’s address, he spoke on the Mentor International trade initiative, which allows companies in Mentor to grow or export their goods to other foreign nations and international buyers. Last year, Mentor sent representatives to Roscommon, Ireland, to speak with the Halcyon Group, which is the largest hygiene service company in the country. These visits have led to an agreement that will take the initiative this year and offer more opportunities for the restaurant business as Halycon will be producing vegetable oil reconditioning units. Another Irish group that has decided to possibly do business in Mentor this year is Amtheyst Care, a company that uses voice technology to help people with mobility-related illnesses. More of this deal will be decided in March, but Mentor citizens can expect both of these companies to offer more opportunities to the community.
Overall, international trade can be highly beneficial for businesses because it allows them to reach customers beyond their home country, increasing their sales and profits. When companies expand into global markets, they can sell their products to a much larger audience, which helps them grow faster. This exchange between Mentor and Ireland can have many positive effects, and the community can even expect more future foreign countries to also begin production or businesses here soon.
Manufacturing in Mentor
Mentor manufacturing, the largest business sector in Mentor, continues to boom. Mr. Filipiak noted limitations in available green space and general vacancies, with only 1.9% of manufacturing buildings being vacant. While this means that many businesses are thriving in their Mentor environment, it also presents challenges for businesses looking to migrate to the Mentor area, like the aforementioned international groups.
Component Repair Technologies was specifically noted to have seen major and unprecedented growth over the past year, recently being acquired by a French company, and maintaining its status as a world leader in aviation technology. On Hendricks Road at Heisley, eight acres of land was officially sectioned off for future business ventures for the city, placed in an ideal location near a community hub at the Rec Center.
Community Building
The city saw numerous opportunities brought to residents over the past year, with countless more on the way for 2025. In 2024, the senior center was a large focus, with senior residents being offered over 6500 programs. More, the Mentor Farmer’s Markets at Garfield Park brought in over 30,000 people and a Birding Festival at Headlands Park brought tourism from states around the country. Mentor was even fortunate to host two famous keynote speakers, including Greg Miller, from whom the movie Big Year starring Jack Black and Owen Wilson was based.
Another large focus came at the Mentor Rec Center, which celebrated its first anniversary in 2024. Since its opening, the Rec Center has sold over 3000 memberships, hosting over 240,000 visitors just in 2024 alone. The building also began offering over 1700 different programs, including 250 swim classes, 83 adult pickleball teams, and 162 youth soccer teams.
Aquatics was also a major focus at Tuesday’s address, with care made to highlight new facilities being built across Mentor benefitting summertime activity. The since-demolished pool at Garfield Park will be turned into a $4 million splash pad to open in 2026. In addition, a Goldfish Swim school is set to begin construction at the intersection of Mentor Avenue and Center Street, making use of a long abandoned gas station. The school is set to host children from four months to 12 years of age, teaching swim techniques. The exterior of the building will include vegetation and decorative fencing, brightening the Mentor landscape.
Mr. Filipiak also took the time during his address to honor World War II veteran Bob Zonneville, who was in attendance at the address. Mr. Zonneville served during the Invasion of Normandy, earning two Purple Hearts among various other awards, meriting a standing ovation from those in attendance on Tuesday. Mr. Zonneville turned 100 years old this year.
For Mentor Rocks, 2024 was the biggest season to date, experiencing great success despite storms that threatened its function. In 2025, Mentor hopes to top the records once again, bringing in numerous tribute bands for Lincoln Park, Journey, Bryan Adams, Maroon 5, and Queen, among others. Special performances from Gavin Degraw, Uncle Kracker, Sophia Scott, and Eli Young Band are also set to occur this season, as well as an unnamed and confidential specific performance, according to Mr. Filipiak.
On April 8th, Mentor was in the perfect position of complete totality for the Solar Eclipse. The event drew tourism from across the nation, with consistent coverage from national news outlets, the National Park Service, and high-level science officials. An official broadcast from NASA was also a major point of coverage, bringing along NASA geologists and meteorologists.
Why Students Should Care
Though all of this information may remain daunting, here’s what students should take from it. Mentor is in a great place for your future. Whether you plan to move away as an adult or remain in or around Mentor, the numerous benefits for residents are endless. As students now, the additional spaces for pickleball, basketball, and swimming, as well as the frequent concerts at Mentor Rocks, will provide excellent opportunities during the summer months. Moreover, the excellent job opportunities throughout the city in manufacturing and many other industries offer lifetime careers for students, which can be facilitated through the MHS Career Academies offered to high school students. In schools, students should feel protected thanks to the well-trained police officers in many school buildings, and Mentor High School’s close proximity to the police station. The Alliance for Working Together has also engaged with students on tens of thousands of occasions over the past year, working to resolve issues and promote community development. Largely, students should be comforted knowing that their city cares for them and has the means to offer successful paths forward, setting systems in place to last generations.
What’s the Takeaway?
Mr. Filipiak ended his presentation today by sharing the story of a tavern opened in 1815 on the then “Buffalo Road” in present-day Mentor, which eventually became various buildings such as drug stores and medical offices. This example highlights the transformative nature of Mentor and its continued pursuit of building a long-lasting legacy for generations. Mentor is in a good position to cater to its residents, offering countless opportunities for careers and leisure. These opportunities are in pursuance of Mentor’s goal to drive capital support, becoming appealing to investors wishing to seek further opportunities in the region, just as many foreign businesses have already begun to do. From Tuesday’s address, the hope is that, with resident support, the city can continue to build Mentor into a destination hotspot for businesses and families alike, forming a generational city that continues to grow and prosper year after year.
The Cardinal Nation Scoop
Mr. Ken Filipiak – Mentor City Manager
Cardinal Nation: Last year, your theme for the city was adaptability. Is this still ringing true today, and what would you say is the theme of this year’s State of the City?
Mr. Ken Filipiak: So the theme of this year was, what are we doing in our city, within the community to establish a legacy for the future? So what are some of the fundamental things that we’re doing that will resonate not just today, but generations from now? That’s why I use kind of the image of the of the American revolutionaries to start that off. You know, they didn’t know that what they were doing then would become the country that we have today. And so the things that I talked about with both the people, the organizations, and the public and private servants of our community, all the things that they are doing our things that are not just relevant for today, but they will provide benefit to our city for generations.
Cardinal Nation: Cardinal Nation is a school student newspaper. What do you think is the biggest thing from your presentation impacting the schools and, to put it plainly, why should students care about what you had to say today?
Mr. Ken Filipiak: Well, I would say a few things. Number one, the one example that I gave was one of the students that engaged in the EMT program here. So, you know, some of what you’re learning, especially the vocational training directly benefits the community. I talked about the robust economy that we have here. There are job opportunities galore within this community, and, a lot of the vocational work and just general education that is so significant and done so well here, in the city provides opportunity for the students. We have a lot of positive outlets for kids to be able to do things in the community that are constructive in nature through our parks and rec system, you know, through the concert series and just all the things that we provide at every age level in the community from, you know, very young kids to the oldest seniors. We provide positive outlets for them to be able to express themselves and, you know, make positive use of their time. And opportunities to contribute to their community, to volunteer and, you know, lots of the agencies that were mentioned here and that support the Chamber and support this event are non-profit organizations that, you know, hopefully, our students will be the leaders in the future.
Cardinal Nation: What can you say about the breakdown of funding for these numerous programs and projects for the city, whether largely from income tax or grant money?
Mr. Ken Filipiak: So the city receives several million dollars every year in grant programs. We have a really, really good, staff of people, that write the grants for us, and we’ve had, a lot of success. We have success every year with that. But the bulk of the investment in our community comes through income tax revenue. So, you know, you heard me mention that our income tax revenue set a record last year. We had the city has the largest carryover balance that we’ve had in our history. A lot of those big programs, I mentioned Civic Center Pool and all the buildings that were in place. That’s over $7,000,000 worth of work by itself there. So the city is doing very well financially and the main reason for that is the success of the business community. People work, they pay local income taxes.
Mr. Kevin Malecek – Mentor Director of Economic Development & International Trade
Cardinal Nation: Are you satisfied with the growth of the city over the past year or are there things you wish could have been accomplished?
Mr. Kevin Malecek: Well, I think we’re always looking to look at redevelopment opportunities. I think we’d all like to see potentially like the great, like small redevelopment projects move a little bit quicker, but there’s been some updates and some status improvements on those. But in general, the city is doing very well, We have a tremendous financial carryover, and I think by what you can see today with all the projects that we have in place, a lot of good things are happening.
Cardinal Nation: Are there any upcoming budget cuts or increases that will impact schools, libraries, or community programs for students?
Mr. Kevin Malecek: No, I mean, obviously, there was a bit in the presentation about what Mentor Public Library is gonna be doing to improve, but in terms of the city, no, I don’t anticipate anything that would be any cuts, it would only be improvements. Now, what happens to the state and federal level? Completely different story.
Cardinal Nation: How is the city working to create more jobs and internship opportunities for the high school students in Mentor?
Mr. Kevin Malecek: Well, so first of all, Ken highlighted in his speech what Alliance for Working Together is doing out there, tremendous opportunities that are there. We’re always talking with our employers here.. Component Repair Technologies is a great example today and they’re working with the Chamber of Commerce to try to find different types of opportunities that might be available for students.
Mr. Craig Heath – Superintendent, Mentor Public Schools
Cardinal Nation: How will the information regarding city security impact how you go about policy changes to school safety?
Mr. Craig Heath: Well, actually that’s interesting because obviously last board meeting, we passed a resolution for a contract to get some school safety officers in our schools here. We’re waiting for a city council to approve that as well. So that hiring of those new police officers really is what’s the impetus to try and get across the finish line. We’ve been working on that initially for probably about seven or eight years now, you know, well before me. And one of the issues has always been that they didn’t have enough police officers to allow us to kind of move forward with that. So I think that’s a huge thing. with them hiring those additional officers, they have several officers that going to be retiring somewhat soon and our hope now is with this contract will be able to take some of those recently retired officers, put them in our, schools as school safety officers. And it’ll be a nice collaboration with the city.
Cardinal Nation: How will the information regarding city finances impact our school district?
Mr. Craig Heath: It’s funny you know, we’ve got some additional meetings that have taken place here with with our board of education and the city in regards to some of the economic development projects that they have going on around the city. and we’re we’re just trying to make sure that, you know, we’re able to leverage some of the increased property values that will take place to some of those economic development projects. So, looking forward to working with the city, getting those things hopefully squared away here soon so that, you know, it’s a win-win-win for the developer, the city, and the school district.
Cardinal Nation: What was the major takeaway positive or negative? What was that feeling for you today?
Mr. Craig Heath: Well, I think obviously the positives are some of the references that he made to some of the students that we’ve had in our district that have come through. I know, with the increase in the fire department employees, for example, one of those came out of our EMT academy. one of the other highlights that he had with our EMT student that was actually a Euclid student in that Mentor EMT academy, he was able to help save the life of a citizen over in Euclid which, you know, just amazing that the stuff all the guys do in our schools have immediate impacts and the immediate, embraces to what it is that’s going on and you know, to help in the community itself. so I think that was one of the biggest positives, just seeing those connections that we have with the city that really positively impact our students.
Mrs. Maggie Cook – President, Mentor Board of Education
Cardinal Nation: What was the main point of discussion from today that stood out to you in general?
Mrs. Maggie Cook: Really, what a wonderful place and how fortunate we are that as a matter of fact, we have so many opportunities here. One of my main reasons for coming to the State of the City is to really see how our schools can fit in to partner with the city. I mean, it’s really important to partner for job opportunities for students, and we’re creating programs like our new academies. With our new academy programs, we do talk to our city officials and we talk to them about what kinds of things are they looking for when they’re bringing companies in. You know, like, when they go to Ireland and they need manufacturing. So anyway, that’s just some of the things that stand out for me is how they’re building partnerships, and we want to partner with them. But overall, it’s just a wonderful place to be.
Cardinal Nation: With the numerous police and fire advancements made in the past year for resident safety, how do you feel regarding student safety in all of our Mentor Schools?
Mrs. Maggie Cook: Well, I’m really excited about the partnership that we just did with the city of Mentor. Now it will be on them, it’s up for the city council to approve. But at our last board meeting, we approved the SSO contract, which is bringing retired police officers. So if they’re retiring from Mentor, they’ll be deputized by the city of Manor. They’ll continue their training and we’ll partner with them for enhanced security for our school. But just like you saw, when they’re building things like they have their armored vehicle and they’re, you know, doing their bomb, equipment and things like that, that’s all definitely a benefit for us. We want top-notch individuals here because they walk through our buildings with us. And I’ve sat on the safety team since its inception for the last four years here in the district, and we sit and we do talk with Chief Gunsch, and it was previously Chief Searles, but we have a new fire chief now. And they point out to us what our weaknesses are and what we need to improve. So it is really important that we’re partnering with the city for those things for safety.
