Address highlights city's relationship with county

Mayor Mark Kruzan poked fun at County Commissioner Joyce Poling's short stature at the first-ever state of the community address at Fountain Square Ballroom Thursday night.\n"I'm a Democrat, she's a Republican ... I'm 5-foot-12 and she's ..." Kruzan said, drawing laughs from the crowd. Poling, meanwhile bragged about the county government's victory in a blood drive against city employees.\nThe back-and-forth banter between the two government leaders symbolized the relationship between their respective governments. Although the county and city squabble like siblings about certain issues, they come together to help each other for the betterment of the community, both leaders said.\n"There are natural frictions between the city and county government, but sibling rivalry doesn't prevent us from being a happy family," Kruzan said.\nThe two governments came together Thursday night for the address, which highlighted collaborative efforts between city and county departments to save money, strengthen emergency preparedness and improve the economic viability of the community. \nPoling and Kruzan spoke from separate podiums in front of the festive, standing-room only crowd. A cake the shape of Monroe County was served following the event. With the festivities came the announcement of two new committees that will include members from both governments. One of the newly formed committees will look into opportunities for both the county and city to save money by making cooperative purchases of items such as vehicles.\nThe second committee will focus on the public health and safety of the community. The first result of the effort will be a panel about the bird flu in the coming month, Poling said.\n"My job is to worry about the risks to the community at large -- to worry about your worries," she said.\nBoth governments are also focusing time and money to improve the economic vitality of Monroe County. Part of those efforts is turning technologies developed in the area into businesses to provide quality jobs for residents. IU and the Crane naval base develop technologies that could be commercialized, which would bring tax dollars and jobs into the community, Poling said. \nMany collaborative efforts are already in full swing, saving city and county taxpayers money, Poling and Kruzan said. Examples of these improved efficiencies include working together to prepare economic and development packages, sharing a dispatch center to field emergency calls and even combining the sheriff and city police tests to save money, according to a release handed out at the address.\n"City issues and county issues are, in fact, community issues," Poling said.