Lively City Council Candidates' Forum
The Chamber of Commerce sponsored a City Council Candidates Forum on Wednesday, October 21, from 7 – 9 pm. at the Washington Street Education Center. Those candidates participating in the Forum were: Cheri Albertson, Jason Lindauer (running for mayor unopposed), Ann Fenney, Richard Steele, Frank Hammer, and Kent Martinez-Kratz). Three seats are available, and only Steele is not currently serving on Council Cheri Albertson introduced herself by saying she guides her service to the city using the “five ethical principles” that are incorporated into the city charter. The five principles are: public office is a public trust; independent objective judgment is required; principal accountability is to the citizens; democratic leadership honors citizen input; respectability and fitness for office are required as stewards of the community.
Throughout the Forum, the topic of saving the livery from demolition in preparation for the Downtown Development Authority's Plan B was a frequent topic for discussion. When asked if the five ethical principles had been realized by the city's response to the appeal of the Save the Livery Coalition, Albertson answered “no.” Both Lindauer and Fenney said, “yes.”
When addressing the merit of working with the Chamber of Commerce to list the downtown on the National Register of Historic Places, Albertson explained that there were definite protections afforded the city with no restrictions. For instance, should MDOT decide to widen M52 that would remove street parking on Main Street, a National Designation would be useful. Lindauer claimed to be ignorant of the benefits and would want to see how such designations have affected other communities. Fenney said she had tried this approach some time ago, and it didn't happen due to building owner resistance.
Candidates were asked about their response to Joe Merkel's proposal to the City Council made Oct 13 and to the DDA on Oct 15 for one year stay of demolition of the livery to pull together a group of citizens to work in partnership with the DDA and city to find funding for adaptively reusing the livery. Albertson said she saw no reason that the DDA cannot work with Save the Livery Coalition; Hammer thought that substantial progress would need to be demonstrated by June 1; Martinez-Kratz thought a one year stay was reasonable before a decision is made that can't be reversed. Fenney replied that she didn't think the DDA would grant a one year stay; Steele is unfamiliar with the issue but thought the deadline should not be extended past spring. Fenney suggested that the Save the Livery Coalition buy the Longworth property for $425,000 from the city.
Hammer commented that he thought heritage tourism might be a market niche for Chelsea. Organizing packaged tours where people came to learn about the history of Chelsea and the historic buildings, perhaps have lunch and shop were suggested as possibilities. Albertson added that since Chelsea has motels at which tour people could stay, historic tours could go on to Dexter. Martinez-Kratz encouraged the Chamber to be flexible and open to all options for marketing Chelsea.
Steele believes a parking problem exists in some places. While Hammer agreed, he said he didn't think the destruction of the livery was a way to solve it. Martinez-Kratz commented when identifying places to create more parking, we need to ask, “At what cost?” He feels the true need for more parking is in the Purple Rose area, and that building a two storey structure should be considered.
In terms of the composition of the twelve member DDA, Fenney reported that eight members must have a business interest in the DDA district. Four can be non-business owners who live within the district. There is an application process, and the DDA members are appointed by the mayor. Criteria for appointment include a demonstration of working for the improvement of the community.. In addition to economic development, the DDA's mission includes enhancement of the historic character of the district.
The full two hours of the Forum can be viewed on channel 18.
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I agree with the current Mayor. "Save the Livery" needs to put the cart on the horse, and that cart should be full of money. Otherwise, you have no strength.
ReplyDeleteI fully agree that saving historic buildings is an important consideration, but ultimately it needs to make economic sense. It takes more than loud voices to rehab a building. The process takes materials and time - both of which cost money.
The whole Longworth Complex has been for sale for YEARS.
I am curious what work the "Save the Livery" coalition had done prior to the purchase by the DDA. What I have seen from this group is an entirely REactive stance; waiting until a property is purchased after years of being on the market. This is happening with the Livery and it's happened with the Screw Works. This wastes the time and money of individuals who are working to make our city a better place for commerce and for our CURRENT residents and business owners.
I would respect this coalition much more if there would be more pro-active stance from this group. I request that as you continue your current mission to save the livery, that you look forward and begin to identify the next "livery" or "Screw Works" and scrape together the funds to save it before it needs a "coalition."
Work to PREVENT these situations rather than reveling in the conflict you create after someone else has "ponied" up the funds.
I am choosing to post this anonymously because I do not wish to get personally involved in this situation, but I can't stand by without voicing this opinion.
Dear Anonymous,
ReplyDeleteThank you for your opinion. I don't know if you're aware or not, but there was an effort ten years ago to PREVENT these very situations. Unfortunately, the building owners petitioned the state preservation office to block the request for historic preservation. This is exactly why we are in a reactive mode. We are a group of citizens who have been trying to work collaboratively WITH the DDA and city--not against it. We are willing to research funds, do fundraising, etc., for the rehabilitation of the livery. The money that was used by the DDA to purchase the Longworth Property is taxpayer dollars. The DDA is not a private developer as is the case with the Federal Screw Works owned by Rene Papo. Should you wish to discuss this further, I'll be happy to speak with you. We need residents to work with us in putting the horse before the cart--including the DDA and the city. 475 5753