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COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO. -- The outlook for Colorado Springs is good, but it won't stay that way without some changes, Mayor Steve Bach said at his first State of the City address.

Bach addressed a record crowd of around 750 people Thursday afternoon in Colorado Hall at the Broadmoor.

"We will find solutions, we will seize opportunities and with you we will move forward," Bach said to the crowd.

Despite being in office fewer than one month, it's been enough time for Bach to figure out where Colorado Springs stands.

"I want to compliment the city's staff and the council in terms of what they've done thus far. We're in good shape, but that can erode if we don't change," he said.

Bach said compared to other cities of similar size Colorado Springs is looking good.

"I was just at the U.S. Conference of Mayors in Baltimore, and I met mayors from all across the country. I met one from Springfield Ill., I believe, and he told me they're meeting payroll on a line of credit right now, and I met with a mayor from another city, similar size to us, and they've been through a bankruptcy."

Bach said it's time to step up, work together, and make changes, some of which are already underway.

He has enacted a wage, hiring, and promotion freeze for all general city employees until the city's budget can be figured out.

"I'm thankful for our city employee's that they have a job to start. We have 36,000 people out of work, many thousands more who are underemployed, so I'm thankful they have a job," Bach said.

Bach said he is finding other ways to motivate city employees.

"Part of being satisfied in a career is financial, but part of it is also self-esteem and just a feeling of satisfaction. We're working to empower our employees by flattening out the organization by pushing more decisions down the organizational chart so people at lower levels will have more responsibility and authority," Bach said.

He said it's also time to start listening to city employees and their ideas.

"We need to recognize them when they do great things, just saying thank you to people," Bach said.

Changing the city's business appearance from "can't do to can do", and making it the most business friendly city in the nation is on the top of Bach's to do list.

"We need to improve the business climate, and what that means is streamlining city processes, being more responsive on requests for permits and approvals, shortening up that time frame, working to make sure that our regulations are reasonable," Bach said. "There's sentiment in the community that our regulations are unreasonable, and we need to make sure that the fees and charges we have are fair."

Bach said it will take everyone getting involved to make Colorado Springs what it's meant to be.

"Find more ways to help our city, engage wherever you can at whatever level you can, it's really critical. If we do it together we have, we have just an incredible future," Bach said.

Bach said during this time of change an unprecedented level of cooperation will be necessary between the city council and the mayor, something he said he doesn't anticipate being a problem.

Bach's entire address can be found at springsgov.com