Reporter-News Archives Thursday, June 26, 1997 McCaleb encouraged by president's speech By ANTHONY WILSON / Abilene Reporter-News President Clinton's insistence earlier this week that federal and local governments work together on cities' ills encouraged Mayor Gary McCaleb. McCaleb returned to Abilene Wednesday after attending the U.S. Conference of Mayors' annual meeting, at which Clinton spoke. During the conference, about 325 mayors met with Vice President Al Gore and three Cabinet members - a sign, McCaleb said, the federal government wants to cooperate with municipal leaders. "City government must be partners with and work with the federal government," he said. "That's been our central message since we started our anti-mandate campaign. "The overall impression was that cities are coming back," he added. "For awhile, people were saying cities were decaying. The president put cities in a positive light. In the same way we're seeing an upbeat feeling in Abilene, cities across the country seem to have the same feeling." Andrew Cuomo, the new secretary of Housing and Urban Development, impressed the mayors by conceding to criticisms of his department and vowing an overhaul. While HUD has historically concerned itself more with housing, it's time to focus on urban development, Cuomo said. But the biggest news was Clinton's speech on Monday. In it he announced a plan for HUD to sell 2,000 homes to police officers in low-income, urban neighborhoods, an offshoot of the community policing philosophy in which officers develop relationships with the citizens they serve. The plan won't benefit Abilene. The president also unveiled a plan to reduce closing costs on Federal Housing Administration mortgages for first-time home buyers in 525 cities. McCaleb doesn't know if Abilene is among the targeted cities. While news reports detailed initiatives that will aid metropolitan areas, McCaleb said Clinton touched on themes important to mid-sized cities: encouraging downtown residency, ensuring affordable housing, fighting crime, and converting industrial "brown fields" to usable property. The mayor recalled he once reminded Clinton not to overlook the concerns of medium and small cities. "He said he totally agreed and that he has a real interest in smaller towns, having grown up in Hope, Arkansas," McCaleb said. "In his speech, at least four times he made the statement, 'This is important for all cities.' He's increasingly aware he doesn't want to talk only about large cities." Send a Letter to the Editor about This Story | Start or Join A Discussion about This Story Send the URL (Address) of This Story to A Friend: Enter their email address below: texnews.com Reporter OnLine Local Sports Texas Sports Copyright ©1997, Abilene Reporter-News / Texnews / E.W. Scripps Publications