Marion highlights 2024 projects in State of the City address

MARION, Iowa (KCRG) - The Marion Mayor gave his annual State of the City speech Tuesday, highlighting multiple projects taking place this year.

One change is that garbage trucks will become automated- something that will let the city pick up nearly twice as much trash each day.

This year Marion is getting two free-standing emergency departments.

Marion Mayor Nick AbouAssaly said UnityPoint and Mercy will each have full-service, 24-hour emergency departments.

He said with the growing population access to quality health care is important.

The population of Marion has grown 20% since 2010, and nearly 60% since 2000.

AbouAssaly said city records showing within a recent two-year period, more than 2,000 new households were added to Marion.

”That’s really a huge thing for our community as a part of our quality of life and the services that are available to our growing population is having quality medical services right here in our backyard,” AbouAssaly said.

Mayor AbouAssaly also talked about the library adding a mobile bookmobile. That will roll out later this year to reach senior facilities and underserved neighborhoods.

Marion is preparing to break ground on the new Central Plaza in the city square. Plans for the park are becoming a reality later this month. The date for that groundbreaking is officially set for March 28.

AbouAssaly said this project is a way for the city to reinvent the space. The project earned a three-million-dollar “Destination Iowa Award”, a significant portion of the seven-million-dollar project. The goal of the redesign is to make the park usable all year round.

”Currently it’s not really not functioning as a park, people don’t go there unless there’s a festival or a big event. So, we want that to function as a space that attracts people and the community can gather more regularly,” AbouAssaly said.

The redevelopment of that park included removing and refurbishing the old train caboose, but the caboose won’t be going back where it originally was. A new park is being created specifically for the caboose.

The park will be called Draper Park and will be solely dedicated to celebrating Marion’s railroad history.

It’s named after former city council member and history buff Paul Draper, who passed away a few years ago.

The caboose is currently getting refurbished as being in city square park since the 1990s. Once it’s completed, it will become the centerpiece of Draper Park.

”He spearheaded the relocation of the old train depot and the reconstruction of parts of it in the city square park as a pavilion and that’s been very meaningful to the community, so we wanted to name the park in memory of Paul,” AbouAssaly said.

Most of the park will be constructed this year and will be located off of 31st Street on the old railroad right-of-way path.

The 7th Avenue pedestrian bridge is also scheduled to be completed this year. That includes lighted columns, acting as the city’s front door.

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