Editor's note: This is the first of a two-part series on Mayor Edward D. Hozza Jr.'s address.

Whitehall Township Mayor Edward D. Hozza Jr. recently delivered the seventh annual "State of Whitehall Township" report. In the report Hozza looked back at the accomplishments of 2014 and outlined a vision for the future in 2015. He also brought up a milestone in the township's history, the 50th anniversary celebration of the township's municipal building

"For 50 years this building has stood to remind us that together we are one Whitehall Township," Hozza stated.

The mayor said the township never had a central government building for 212 years of its existence. From 1752 to 1964, public meetings were held in schools, fire stations, post offices and banks in Whitehall.

In the early 1960s the first township manager and the Board of Commissioners took steps to build the municipal building, which was erected in 1964, followed by additions in 1974 and 1994.

Addressing the 26,738 residents who Hozza said call Whitehall home, the mayor highlighted cost savings in all departments over the past seven years:

· Reduction in staffing saved over $2 million to date since 2008.

· Joining Benecon, a health care consortium, returned nearly $1 million in favorable claim rebate funds to the township while keeping township health care increases to a minimum.

· Outsourcing payroll to Jet Pay improved the finance department efficiencies.

· Bidding a new refuse contract in three separate categories will save the township an estimated $2 million over the next five years.

· Shopping for electric generation rates for township street lights resulted in savings of thousands of dollars annually.

Hozza noted the following highlights of the township's three-year strategic plan to make critical investments in Whitehall's infrastructure and technology which he says will create additional cost savings in the future:

· Plan for the conversion of all 2,300 streetlights to Smart Interactive LED technology, paying for the conversion from the 40 to 50 percent reduced electric consumption. The savings will be used to pay for the installation of the LED fixtures over a seven to 10-year time frame. Hozza cited similar Bethlehem and Allentown plans as examples.

· Plan for the conversion of the entire township municipal complex from electric heat pumps, propane and kerosene heaters to natural gas. He cited three nearby locations that gas lines could be extended from Lehigh Street, the former Arlington Cemetery or South Ruch Street.

· Plan for the installation of "smart technology" at all township public buildings, especially the community buildings, to be able to remotely monitor building temperatures, security cameras and other functions.

· Purchase and install new software for the township's general ledger, accounts payable, receivable point of sale, purchasing, planning, zoning and development that, for the first time, will allow systems to talk to each other.

Hozza said he took office in 2008 under the worst economic recession since the Great Depression.

The mayor continued, "I had many sleepless nights those few months in office thinking what would happen if the U.S. banking system totally collapsed, how high would the unemployment rate increase and how all of this national turmoil would filter down and eventually affect our township government," he said. "While our economy today is not booming like it was before 2007, we have seen a steady recovery as seen by our positive township balance sheet, our improved reserves, our credit rating and the ability to rehire staff."