Despite a lawsuit that has drained city resources and challenges to increase revenue, Hayden Mayor Steve Griffitts sees plenty of positives on the horizon.

“The city of Hayden is focused on what we need to do to grow business and improve relations with those who serve with us," Griffitts said Thursday. "There is a lot going on."

Griffitts presented his 2017 State of the City address Thursday morning during the Hayden Chamber Networking Breakfast in the Kroc Center. About 90 attendees listened as Griffitts discussed top issues including growth, law enforcement, road projects and the lawsuit with the North Idaho Building Contractors Association.

Hayden is growing in many ways, Griffitts reported. The residential unit growth rate is the highest it has been since 2007, he said. In 2007, 111 new residential units were added to the city, while 2016 beat that number with 155 new units. Only 32 units were completed in 2011.

"We have work to do from a residential standpoint to be able to move us forward so that people are happy to live in our area," Griffitts said, adding Hayden's extremely low property tax levy rate of $1.28 per $1,000 will need some attention.

"That's an issue with what we need to do with roads in particular, and law enforcement," he said.

Hayden does not have its own police force, which contributes to the low tax levy rate, but the growing population may require some changes regarding law enforcement. Hayden presently works with the Kootenai County Sheriff's Office to handle its police matters.

"We have to figure out how to make sure that our families are protected as Hayden grows," he said. "That’s part of the reason that we’re going to look at some of the changes associated before we do."

Hayden's total value of new commercial construction for 2016 was about $49 million, Griffitts reported.

“That’s significant and important," he said. "We have to earn it because people can decide from a business standpoint where they want to be. They're not forced. We have to be an area that provides commercial and industry with the resources and rationale to want to partner with us to do what we need to do."

When new businesses move into Hayden, it's not just good for the city as a whole, it's good for the residents, Griffitts said. He used the example of allowance to explain how it works.

"If you give your children a dollar and they give you $1.17, that’s good for you. But it’s not good for your kids, and that’s what’s happening to the city of Hayden when we do residential," he said. "That’s why commercial is so vital to what we’re doing, to how we can grow. How do we keep taxes down? We make people pay a dollar to us, we provide $.27 in services and then residential doesn’t have to pay as much. Brilliant. And people just don’t get it sometimes. That’s why we need to balance commercial and industrial."

On the subject of the NIBCA lawsuit against the city of Hayden over sewer capitalization fees, Griffitts said it is in progress and a town hall meeting will be held once remedies are brought forward so he can explain the position of the city and the courts. The city has spent $750,000 on the lawsuit so far.

"We had a formula issue and we’ll figure out the formula stuff," he said. "I just wanted to let you know. Someday, I’m not going to talk about this lawsuit and it’s going to be the best day ever."

The public can expect Government Way to expand to four lanes from Hanley to Prairie avenues, as the single lane there is "just not appropriate and effective the way it is now."

Plans for a roundabout at Ramsey Road and Honeysuckle Avenue have been put on hold because of the money spent on the lawsuit, Griffitts said, while plans for Ramsey to Lancaster to alleviate traffic on Highway 95 and Government Way are in the works but will take time.

"We have to be able to spend what we have and we can’t play games," Griffitts said. "The lawsuit has been a real drain finanically on what we need to do in the city."