Allen recaps first 100 days in office by Joey Martin - posted Wednesday, October 10th, 2012 @ 12:30 pm  E-mail Story |  Print Story  As promised during his mayoral campaign, Mayor Gene Allen gave a "State of the Town" address Tuesday marking his 100 days in office. His "Let's Talk" address was given at the Delta Music Museum Arcade. "I just want to thank Ferriday for allowing us to serve you," Allen said. "I want to keep the lines of communication open. We've come a long way, but promise you we have a long way to go. "There are 30,000 cars that come through Ferriday every day. We need to capitalize on that. We need to be effective and efficient. We need to enforce ordinances and make the right decisions." He said safety meetings are held monthly and that he meets every Monday with department heads. "One way we can change the community for the better is through communication," he said. Allen said he has downsized town hall from 10 employees to three and cut the Ferriday Police Department from 11 full-time and four part-time workers to nine full-time workers and no part-time workers. "We've put in a new filing system and made sure anybody can come in and ask questions," Allen said. "We want all our employees to be certified in what they are doing and everyone to be cross-trained." Allen said the town is talking with a restaurant business, convenience store and deli. "We are excited about things coming to our area," he said. "We are finding tax breaks and using enterprise zones to make sure we can bring businesses to our community." Allen said he supports public schools, private schools, the magnet school and the charter school. "Everyone needs to have a choice," he said. "We have put security and resource officers in our public schools. Everyone should have an environment they can learn in." He said it is important for the town to take a Miss-Lou concept for growth. "We support things that are happening in the parish and in Natchez," he said. "We have to work together." For the full story, subscribe to the The Concordia Sentinel's NEW E-Edition!