In his 11th annual State of the City address on Tuesday, St. Paul Mayor Chris Coleman continued the theme of his previous status report: Expanding success to more residents is key to the city's future.

"We are strong," Coleman said from the stage of the 40-year-old Penumbra Theatre. "We will be at our strongest when everyone is strong in this community. Let us work together to reach that goal."

Coleman touched on several city accomplishments, including the success of the Central Corridor light-rail line, new housing and development on Snelling and Selby avenues, and progress on redeveloping the old West Publishing and Ford plant sites. Investment in the city, property values and population are all rising.

The welcome population hike has come with changing demographics. Today, about 40 percent of St. Paul residents are people of color, compared with closer to 30 percent a decade ago. And higher percentages of those residents live in poverty. That's why Coleman is wisely urging a focus on equity and creating opportunities — especially in economically distressed neighborhoods.

Enter the Midway-area soccer stadium plan. Building the stadium and redeveloping the 35-acre site at Snelling and University would help revitalize a long-blighted area and provide business development that will generate jobs.

To that end, the 2016 Legislature should approve St. Paul's modest request for state help to seal the stadium deal. Lawmakers should grant the proposed home of the Minnesota United soccer team relief from the sales tax on construction materials — only a $3.5 million break through 2018 — and its request that the property continue to be exempt from property taxes. The team's owners would put up the rest of the facility's projected $150 million cost, making this the least-expensive stadium deal for taxpayers in recent memory.

To promote equity in city government, Coleman is setting some ambitious hiring goals. Currently, only 19.5 percent of the city's 3,000 employees are people of color. The mayor wants to increase that number to at least 23 percent by the end of 2017. He should also continue to urge St. Paul's private employers to emphasize diversity in recruiting and hiring new employees.

Coleman also addressed police-community relations, promising better training for officers, more outreach to young people and an improved civilian review board.

In response to recent shootings, Coleman joined with Police Chief Tom Smith and African-American leaders to call for an end to the "explosion in gun violence'' in the city.

St. Paul is moving forward, leaving behind the dark days of the Great Recession. With the renewed focus on growth and equity outlined by Coleman — along with a recommitment to strong public safety efforts — the city's future is bright.