After a stormy month of economic news in Colorado Springs, Mayor Yemi Mobolade took the stage for his State of the City speech Thursday morning with a much more upbeat tone.

About 900 people filled a hall at The Broadmoor to listen to this year’s presentation, which marked the halfway point of Mobolade’s four-year term in office.

September began with the Trump announcement that U.S. Space Command would relocate its headquarters to Alabama. Less than two weeks ago, the city announced $31 million in cuts and reductions because of plateauing tax revenue. The belt-tightening forced the city to eliminate 38 positions and close Meadows Park Community Center.

Mobolade largely steered clear of the recent challenges to celebrate all the ways the city had improved in the two years since he was elected. Mobolade began his presentation wearing a customized Notre Dame jersey — partly as a nod to his fandom of Fighting Irish football and partly to drive home the feeling that the event was a motivational halftime speech for Colorado Springs leaders.

“Halftime is when coaches and analysts, they step back and look at the first half, review key plays and their targets, and make adjustments needed to finish staying strong,” Mobolade said.

City Councilmember David Leinweber, who was also elected in 2023, agreed with the mayor’s focus on the city’s achievements instead of its issues. Leinweber said he was excited about upcoming business projects across the city.

“There are housing shortages here because people still want to be here. Some of the issues we are facing are because people want to live here,” Leinweber said.

Mobolade said he wanted his legacy to be defined by public safety, so the longest section of his speech was spent on the city police and fire departments. The 911 Call Center has the highest number of employees since 2018. The Police Department surpassed more than 800 sworn police officers for the first time earlier this year, and Mobolade said the department was now on track to reach its maximum capacity by the end of his term.

He said the Fire Department responded to 618 fires at homeless encampments this year. The number of homeless people in El Paso County rose from 1,146 in 2024 to 1,745 people this year, a 52% increase, according to a federally required Point-in-Time and Housing Inventory Count.

Mobolade said he was expanding the number of public works crews to fill potholes. He also highlighted the city’s ability to respond to emergency road failures, namely the flooding in June that collapsed a segment of North Cheyenne Cañon Road and closed the area for 10 days until repairs were completed.

“Their quick action supported Cañon residents, kept emergency routes open and preserved summer adventures,” Mobolade said.

The speech was held in partnership with the Colorado Springs Chamber & Economic Development Corporation. Chamber CEO Johnna Reeder Kleymeyer called on the business community to get more involved with state politics and getting pro-business legislators elected in Colorado. Kleymeyer cited a recent report by the Common Sense Institute that found that Colorado added more government jobs than private-sector jobs since last August.

Mobolade said the city had been a strong partner to small businesses over the last two years. He highlighted the incoming arrival of the space and missile defense company Mobius as an example of the private-sector military partners that were still investing in Colorado Springs despite the announcement that U.S. Space Command would relocate its headquarters to Alabama.

“What we’re losing is largely symbolic. What matters most is the opportunities that remain here,” Mobolade said. “While the Space Command headquarters may be moving, many of its critical assets remain here in Colorado Springs.”

Ann Koeningsman, a CPA partner at Sorren, one of three associate sponsors of the State of the City event, said she was inspired by some of the city’s achievements in mental health services in the last year.

A report earlier this month from the El Paso County Coroner’s Office found that in 2024, the number of deaths by suicide in the community had dropped 18%. The rate of deaths by suicide for minors had been cut in half.

At the beginning of the event, Mobolade gave the Spirit of Colorado Springs Lifetime Achievement Award to David Lord, who served as business manager at Colorado College, helped found the Pikes Peak Housing Network and has been a longtime board member and volunteer for Silver Key Senior Services.

The video tribute for Lord highlighted the quiet and consistent way he had given back to Colorado Springs for decades. Moboalde and Lord both mentioned his service alongside Mister Rogers, as the two had both attended Rollins College.

“Mister Rogers believed life is for service, and that real strength lies in helping others. He emphasized kindness, seeing it as a form of ultimate success and a way to build connections,” Lord said in his acceptance speech.