PWIR: The Importance of Last Tuesday's Elections
If only we could replace the members of Congress with 2011 Michigan voters, Uncle Sam might still have a better credit score than me. Despite rabid shouts from Congressional Republicans decrying new revenue of any kind, dozens of Michigan cities and townships watched with relief Tuesday night as their citizens voted in favor of a host of local ballot initiatives, votes that basically preserve essential services with new taxes.
The importance of those decisions, and more, in this week’s Political Week in Review:
- Ballot questions succeed, raising new ballot and non-ballot-related questions for future elections.
- The next battle in the fight to preserve the Saugatuck Dunes gets underway.
- A special guest announces plans to visit a Holland advanced battery plant. (Hint: He lives in a big white house and recently turned 50…)
- Why “place” matters.
A Somewhat Sneaky Election Day
There was no presidential election, no gubernatorial primary, no state senate race… but last Tuesday was an election day. Cities, townships, and villages across the state voted on all manner of local tax increases, a great many of which passed with wide margins. Not many of them had direct conservation impacts, so you may ask, “why is this leading the PWIR this week?”
Because of what it says of voters’ willingness to support the things they care about.
Voters demonstrated their priorities on Tuesday by voting to increase their taxes in support of important services, such as public safety, schools, and parks. Now, I’m hardly advocating raising taxes just for the sake of it. That makes no more sense than cutting them purely for ideology. The real issue, rather, is what Michigan residents want to spend our all-too-limited funding on.
If Michigan legislators want to survive the upcoming 2012 state elections, they would do well to listen to the August 2011 message. The budget passed by the Legislature and signed by the Governor this year posed a similar dilemma to the one that voters in various municipalities faced last Tuesday. In Lansing, however, legislators chose a major corporate tax cut over programs like state parks, cleaning up leaky underground storage tanks, and monitoring hazards to the Great Lakes and our drinking water.
Last week, Michigan’s voters spoke through their ballot: they are willing to support the services that make their communities worth living in. Our state Legislature would do well to figure that out…and quickly.
The fight continues
On Wednesday, several property owners in Saugatuck Township filed papers with the U.S. District Court to oppose the Township’s recent settlement with Oklahoma City billionaire Aubrey McClendon. McClendon’s development plan for the Saugatuck Dunes includes building condos, a nine-story hotel, a golf course, and a marina. I could summarize their complaint, but I think it’s easiest for both of us if I simply pull one particular sentence from their press release:
“Not only does the proposed settlement do away with the zoning amendment Mr. McClendon is challenging in the lawsuit, it is far more expansive than the zoning that was in place for the dunes prior to the enactment of the zoning amendment being challenged in the lawsuit.”
I know I said just one sentence, but I think this one hits it right on the money…
“The Property Owners believe that the only reason the Township has capitulated to Mr. McClendon's demands is that the Township is out of money to continue the legal fight”.
As I have noted in other PWIR’s, this fight is not only about preserving the ecology along one of lake Michigan’s most scenic stretches of shoreline, but also about preventing the undue influence of a single individual’s wealth on the political process.
This lawsuit carries on the good fight, and demonstrates the dedication Saugatuck property owners have to preserving their place.
Click here to read up on some of the back story from other PWIRs.
President Obama prepares for trip to Michigan
Who can blame him for wanting to get out of Washington. It’s hot, muggy, and filled with members of a Congress that 82% of the country can’t stand. Or, he may have just seen some Pure Michigan® commercials.
Whatever it was, the President will be visiting Johnson Controls in Holland on Thursday to tour their advanced battery plants. The administration says he plans to highlight their connection to the newly announced fuel efficiency standards, and the fact that Holland was the largest project of its kind funded by the Stimulus Bill. This visit, coupled with the package of bills that Senator Stabenow is championing, underscore the leadership that Michigan is demonstrating in the advanced battery sector.
This innovative industry is creating thousands of new jobs in Michigan, with hundreds coming from Johnson Controls alone. We, at the Michigan LCV, applaud the progress this project makes in creating more efficient vehicles and storage for wing energy. Please take a minute to sign the Built by Michigan petition to show your support for even more expansion of the electric vehicle and advanced battery jobs here in the Great Lakes State.
Why “place” matters: The North Coast
In closing, I’d like to highlight what should be a source of pride for all Michiganders.
This week, the New York Times travel section showcased a gem of Northern Michigan: Traverse City. There are plenty of wonderful places to eat (and drink) there, but what really separates it from so many other nice places that have microbreweries and cherry pies is the lakeshore. It is the proximity of Sleeping Bear Dunes State Park. Old Mission State Park. The best highway in the state, M-22, that begins in Traverse City and slips along the shore of the Leelanau Peninsula.
There is a reason that we made the full funding of the Pure Michigan® ad campaign one of our first post-election advocacy campaigns. The campaign advertises the remarkable and unique places that we have in Michigan to other states and nations, but also to ourselves. Why spend time and energy voting on conservation issues if we’re not proud of what we are conserving?
It’s Pure Michigan and it is ours to protect.
Until next week,
Ryan Werder
