Xenia's 2025 State of the City: rising revenues and rapid housing growth, with education, streets and health care flagged as priorities

City Manager Brent Merriman delivered a State of the City report to Xenia City Council on March 13 that highlighted stronger revenues and accelerating residential and commercial development in 2024, while flagging education performance, street rehabilitation, public safety capacity and local health-care availability as priorities for 2025.

Merriman told council that income tax collections rose "by about 6 and a quarter percent" in 2024 and property tax collections rose "by a little over 20 percent," contributing to a positive cash flow for the year. He said the city ended 2024 with roughly $692,000 more cash than expected and that the city's utility and operating funds remain solid. Merriman noted, however, that voters did not renew a long-standing 3.5-mill property tax levy in 2024 that had generated roughly a half-million dollars a year; that loss offsets some of the recent revenue gains for items such as street rehabilitation.

Why it matters: Merriman framed the numbers as a mixed picture—strong revenue and rapid housing growth alongside structural service and infrastructure needs. Those needs include tens of millions of dollars required to address the city's streets, rising demand on emergency medical services and law enforcement as the population grows, and a local health-care and education environment that, he said, requires community-wide attention.

Economic and development highlights. Merriman reported roughly 200 housing units completed across the prior two years and estimated about 1,600 housing units in some phase of development (planned or under construction). He described the Xenia Market District as a cornerstone redevelopment project, estimating the full mixed-use project at about $140,000,000, and noted other commercial entries into the market, naming national and regional chains and a downtown AV building new owner as signs of momentum. On the industrial side he cited a local firm, WCR, choosing Xenia to consolidate and expand operations, bringing "several hundred jobs" to the community.

Public safety and service capacity. Merriman said EMS and law enforcement call volumes continue to grow and that existing staff have absorbed rising demand to date but warned that ongoing growth will likely require additional staffing or alternative service models such as paramedicine. He recommended council consider investments to maintain response capacity as the community expands.

Streets, recreation and budgets. The city manager described street rehabilitation as an expensive, multi-year problem requiring tens of millions of dollars. Council has asked staff to develop funding options and the city is exploring them. Merriman also said the city will increase recreational programming and amenities to meet diverse resident expectations as housing grows. He said the city is reviewing contributions to some shared services (municipal court, 911/dispatch) where Xenia currently subsidizes a disproportionate share.

Education and health care. Merriman singled out education performance and local health-care capacity as strategic concerns for economic competitiveness. He noted recent declines in graduation and standardized-test metrics and urged a community-wide conversation—including schools, faith groups and businesses—about support for students and families. On health care he said the city will engage providers to explore ways to improve local services and reduce nonlocal transports for emergency care.

Operational notes and public information. Merriman reminded residents about an upcoming Neighborhood Night Out (March 25 at McKinley Elementary) and said staff will share severe-weather preparedness information, including how the city's tornado siren system now uses polygon warnings from the National Weather Service and can be triggered automatically. Finance Director Ryan Duke reminded residents of municipal tax filing deadlines and noted that federal tax extensions apply locally.

Merriman concluded that despite challenges the city is experiencing notable private-sector investment, a growing residential base and renewed interest in the downtown area, and he urged continued focus on the priorities council identified: streets, public safety capacity, homelessness and nuisance behaviors, education outcomes and healthcare access.

Provenance: City Manager Merriman's State of the City presentation and discussion are recorded in the council transcript during the March 13 meeting.