INDIANAPOLIS — It was a big start to 2024 as Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett and the City-County Council were sworn in Monday morning.
There are seven new councilors this year, and Council President Vop Osili said this was the first time the 25 people on council became one. He said no matter what the councilors' political parties are, every person sworn in has come together to improve the lives in Indianapolis.
The biggest priority of the council is to look at what the community wants them to work on. Osili told 13News he hopes the city trusts their new council on what they are going to do in this next term.
"I hope that they will have a sense of promise and hope for the next four years," Osili said. "You have a group of people who are committed to working on their behalf collectively with all the tools we have available."
As Hogsett was sworn in for his third term, he focused on health care rights, education, the growth of downtown and crime.
He talked a lot about his last term and how resilient the city was during the COVID-19 pandemic and other hardships that came its way.
In this term, Hogsett said he will continue to fight for health care rights, especially for women. 2024 will be a big year for Indianapolis, and he hopes the city will not just be a tourist spot, but a place people will stay and start their families.
Hogsett also said many children in the city are behind in their education, so he wants to go into the schools and find ways to make sure every child succeeds.
"This generation of children in our city have been through more than most and yet they seem to be the last to complain," Hogsett said. "Instead, each morning, they wake up and believe."
The mayor also touched on the violent crime the city has seen for the last few years. He says while crime numbers were down in 2023, there has been an uptick in youth gun violence.
13News was unable to talk on camera with the mayor or other city leaders about the recent shootings on New Year's, but in a statement to 13News, officials said there is more work to be done to improve public safety.
Hogsett mentioned in his speech that the city needs to focus on ways to stop youth gun violence and to do that, the city needs to have quality education.
13News was also told the city will provide a public safety update soon that is a part of the mayor's $150 million violence reduction plan.