These are challenging times for our city, state and nation. As I assume the role of council chair and mayor of the city of Bangor, I am both humbled to follow in the footsteps of the community leaders who have held this position in the past and excited by the vision of Bangor’s future we must pursue.

As I look at the people who have led and continue to lead our city – elected representatives, volunteer citizens serving on committees, and a dedicated city staff – I am reminded of a mosaic of thousands of individual pieces, seemingly arbitrarily arranged, but creating a rich image of today’s Bangor. I pledge my efforts to work with our community to brighten and sharpen this mosaic into an image of Bangor’s future that embraces not only our past but also what we wish to become.

The formula to ensure Bangor’s future vitality is closely linked to the successes of our past: serving the needs of the larger northern and eastern Maine region; challenging our people to develop and use their talents and skills to the fullest; working with our existing businesses to insure that they continue to grow and prosper; and securing the richness of time shared with family in a community with an unparalleled quality of life.

We should have, however, no illusions about the short and long-term challenges that lie ahead. Our national and regional economies have slowed, challenging our short-term ability to grow. Emerging technologies, global competition, the decline of traditional industries in our Maine, and the largely untapped opportunities to our north, east and west present both longer-term challenges and opportunities.

Today, Bangor is uniquely positioned to be the catalyst in developing a regional economic growth strategy that will build upon our past and position us to meet the challenges of both today and the future. Bangor and our region are poised for investment. We have talent, an unmatched environment, and world-class education, health, and transportation services. We must work side-by-side with all who choose to work with us toward greater investment in jobs and people – and we must work harder than those who choose otherwise.

Toward this end, we must pursue new and exciting regional relationships, undertake bold ventures, and make unprecedented commitments to strengthen our economy. Our precious quality of life is supported by and dependent upon the economic health of our city and our region.

This City Council, while valuing continuity, will embrace new ideas and continue to move forward. We will advance our vision of the Penobscot riverfront from a strategic plan to an exciting new epicenter for this region’s arts, entertainment, and employment. We will build upon the current level of unprecedented regional cooperation in all areas of common interest and particularly as we commit to replacing our region’s premiere trade, exposition, and sports facility – the Bangor Auditorium and Civic Center. We will celebrate the living history and quality of life provided by Bangor’s neighborhoods through continued preservation and improvement efforts ranging from expanded sidewalk and street programs to beautification of our extensive system of neighborhood parks. We will foster and expand our valued relationships with our state and congressional delegations to work with them as a team for the benefit of every Bangor resident as well as for all of northern and eastern Maine.

As we move aggressively to meet the challenges of both today and tomorrow, we must seek, together, ways to enhance and enrich Bangor’s mosaic without damaging the precious and individual pieces that have made Bangor the Queen City, “a star at the edge of night.”

Michael R. Crowley is the mayor of Bangor.