As a lifelong resident I am committed to working for our community. I am motivated by the responsibility to carry the torch for my hometown’s founding spirit with pride and progress. Pride in what makes Shawnee a unique and exceptional small town feeling place to live, work, and play and progress toward an even brighter future.
It has been a great privilege to serve the residents and businesses these past seventeen years and together, with an open exchange of ideas, we have been focused on open government - increasing transparency, communication, and relationships ten-fold; public safety - increasing staffing in both police and fire, a new fire station, police body cameras and other additional tools; infrastructure - public works has improved more roads and storm water pipes than ever before setting new records; quality of life - with new parks, trails, quieting of train horns, sidewalks, sustainability, and more; and economic development - with over a thousand new businesses and thousands of new jobs, and I am committed to continue working together and putting resources where the needs are greatest.
With my vision for ‘One Shawnee’, we will continue our momentum to build a Shawnee that works for all. It is essential to safeguard the community in ways that reflect the wants and needs of the people who live, work, and visit Shawnee.
Shawnee has a special balance of tradition and innovation and despite differences in age, background, or circumstances, Shawnee is home to all of us. A community for everyone.
It has been my experience that city government works best when citizens participate. I firmly believe that by working together, and with an open exchange of ideas we can accomplish a lot, and we have! Every decision, from the hiring of our new city manager to the potential community center has included public engagement.
I am forever invested in this city for the long run and do not view my public service here as a stepping stone. There is no place I will ever call home or love more than Shawnee, and I am excited about its future.
Every resident and business in Shawnee deserves to be involved with and build from the prosperity of this great city. We need a collaborative vision for the community's future. Mayors come and go, we need to not think alike but think together.
Some of what we accomplished during my tenure:
Community of Excellence (Only THREE cities in the entire United States have accomplished this!)
Accredited Public Works Department
Accredited Fire Department
Accredited Police Department
Accredited Parks and Recreation Department
Accredited Chamber of Commerce
AAA Bond Rating
NEW Hometown with Heart Branding!
Citizen Engagement and transparency in EVERYTHING we do
Improved Communications through multiple channels
New Fire Stations and overall GROWTH in Public Safety
Citizens Police Academy and Citizens Fire Academy
Thousands of NEW businesses and employees
Historical Tours
Beautiful New Parks
My goal as your mayor is to connect the dots between our hopes for the future of Shawnee and good planning and market demand. Vision can come from many places, but smart communities realize that engaging its citizens in the city-making process leads to better answers and a deeper pubic ownership of our future.
I’m often asked what this really means and how it can be implemented. My answer: it’s our job to figure that out. Rather than looking to other municipalities for ideas, practices and policies that work, to "compete", why not become the innovator?
My vision is to make Shawnee a unique city everyone’s talking about – so others will look to us for best practices, innovation and inspiration. Rather than working toward benchmarks, we are the benchmark.
Implementing this vision falls on the shoulders of the individuals working within the city organization, as well as our governing body. For example, how is each police officer making Shawnee the safest city in the country?
Shawnee residents and business owners share a sense of community pride and a determination that the city’s vision of making Shawnee the best city to live, work, and play is not just a slogan, but a reality.
The future of our city is bright. Shawnee will become a model of excellence, one that truly puts our citizens first, and engages them in their collective future as often as possible. Our skilled and motivated employees will be known for providing quality and value in all areas of service. We will be a platform for vital economic activity that gives Shawnee a competitive edge in the marketplace. We will partner with citizens and businesses to make this a community of choice for living, working and leisure activities.
Leadership is a collective, imperfect, and ongoing process that provides the strength and courage to follow our dreams by working with others to make them come true. Our residents are amazing, smart, and compassionate, but we live in an environment that builds roadblocks to engagements. By working together to identify and eliminate these obstacles, we create a community where anything is possible.
It's not about thinking alike, it's about thinking together.
2023 State of the City
2022 State of the City
2021 State of the City
2020 State of the City
Proclamation - Mayor Michelle Distler Day
It has been a great privilege to serve the residents and businesses these past seventeen years and together, with an open exchange of ideas, we have been focused on open government - increasing transparency, communication, and relationships ten-fold; public safety - increasing staffing in both police and fire, a new fire station, police body cameras and other additional tools; infrastructure - public works has improved more roads and storm water pipes than ever before setting new records; quality of life - with new parks, trails, quieting of train horns, sidewalks, sustainability, and more; and economic development - with over a thousand new businesses and thousands of new jobs, and I am committed to continue working together and putting resources where the needs are greatest.
With my vision for ‘One Shawnee’, we will continue our momentum to build a Shawnee that works for all. It is essential to safeguard the community in ways that reflect the wants and needs of the people who live, work, and visit Shawnee.
Shawnee has a special balance of tradition and innovation and despite differences in age, background, or circumstances, Shawnee is home to all of us. A community for everyone.
It has been my experience that city government works best when citizens participate. I firmly believe that by working together, and with an open exchange of ideas we can accomplish a lot, and we have! Every decision, from the hiring of our new city manager to the potential community center has included public engagement.
I am forever invested in this city for the long run and do not view my public service here as a stepping stone. There is no place I will ever call home or love more than Shawnee, and I am excited about its future.
Every resident and business in Shawnee deserves to be involved with and build from the prosperity of this great city. We need a collaborative vision for the community's future. Mayors come and go, we need to not think alike but think together.
Some of what we accomplished during my tenure:
Community of Excellence (Only THREE cities in the entire United States have accomplished this!)
Accredited Public Works Department
Accredited Fire Department
Accredited Police Department
Accredited Parks and Recreation Department
Accredited Chamber of Commerce
AAA Bond Rating
NEW Hometown with Heart Branding!
Citizen Engagement and transparency in EVERYTHING we do
Improved Communications through multiple channels
New Fire Stations and overall GROWTH in Public Safety
Citizens Police Academy and Citizens Fire Academy
Thousands of NEW businesses and employees
Historical Tours
Beautiful New Parks
My goal as your mayor is to connect the dots between our hopes for the future of Shawnee and good planning and market demand. Vision can come from many places, but smart communities realize that engaging its citizens in the city-making process leads to better answers and a deeper pubic ownership of our future.
I’m often asked what this really means and how it can be implemented. My answer: it’s our job to figure that out. Rather than looking to other municipalities for ideas, practices and policies that work, to "compete", why not become the innovator?
My vision is to make Shawnee a unique city everyone’s talking about – so others will look to us for best practices, innovation and inspiration. Rather than working toward benchmarks, we are the benchmark.
Implementing this vision falls on the shoulders of the individuals working within the city organization, as well as our governing body. For example, how is each police officer making Shawnee the safest city in the country?
Shawnee residents and business owners share a sense of community pride and a determination that the city’s vision of making Shawnee the best city to live, work, and play is not just a slogan, but a reality.
The future of our city is bright. Shawnee will become a model of excellence, one that truly puts our citizens first, and engages them in their collective future as often as possible. Our skilled and motivated employees will be known for providing quality and value in all areas of service. We will be a platform for vital economic activity that gives Shawnee a competitive edge in the marketplace. We will partner with citizens and businesses to make this a community of choice for living, working and leisure activities.
Leadership is a collective, imperfect, and ongoing process that provides the strength and courage to follow our dreams by working with others to make them come true. Our residents are amazing, smart, and compassionate, but we live in an environment that builds roadblocks to engagements. By working together to identify and eliminate these obstacles, we create a community where anything is possible.
It's not about thinking alike, it's about thinking together.
2023 State of the City
2022 State of the City
2021 State of the City
2020 State of the City
Proclamation - Mayor Michelle Distler Day
| proclamation.pdf |
