District 4 Leelanau County Commission candidates Wessell, White address housing, clean energy, broadband
Photo, l-r: Ty Wessell (D), Jim White (R)
From staff reports
The Nov. 5 election will determine which party controls the Leelanau County Board of Commissioners (BOC), and which policies and initiatives they pursue next year. The Commission is currently deadlocked between three Democrats and three Republicans, with one seat vacant.
In District 4, which serves Northport and Leelanau Township, incumbent Democrat Ty Wessell faces Republican challenger Jim White.
The Glen Arbor Sun reached out to all 14 candidates for the BOC and asked about their positions on issues or initiatives that are key to Leelanau County citizens: namely, affordable housing, renewable energy, broadband access and services for both seniors and families with young children. Our questions, and their responses are below. Today we’re featuring Wessell and White, who are vying for the District 4 seat.
1) What can the county government do to increase the availability of workforce or affordable housing? How would you work with townships or villages to educate them about zoning issues? Would you establish a housing commission that could attract state or federal dollars? Would you consider tax-exempt bonds, or a millage, to create more affordable housing?
2) Do you support the effort to secure grant money for solar panels at the county governmental center? What renewable energy or environmental initiatives should the board of commissioners pursue?
3) What are the next steps on bringing broadband to more Leelanau citizens?
4) Do you support early childhood services for young families? How can the board of commissioners support both early childhood services and senior services?
Ty Wessell (Democrat, incumbent)
Affordable housing: Housing is a complex issue that cannot be solved by government alone; A solution requires collaboration, public-private partnerships, advocacy, and creative solutions. The County can advocate for need, work with local municipalities toward becoming ‘ready for housing’ as outlined in Housing North’s ‘Housing Readiness Checklist.’ The county can promote and support partnerships with non-profits and use the tools provided by the Land Bank and Brownfield Authorities. The County can work with the local planning commissions to promote TIFs and PILOTs and it can work with legislators to direct more of the downstate MSHDA monies to rural areas. We must seek opportunities to qualify for state and federal grants. Because the cost of developer fees is passed on to the home buyer, the county’s permitting, and inspection fees must be kept as low as possible. I do favor a Housing Commission because it could assist the County in qualifying for State and Federal monies. I would also support using the Leelanau County Land Bank to issue tax-exempt bonds to finance affordable housing.
Clean energy: Absolutely! Climate change is real and ecological debt is something to worry about. We must be responsible. We owe it to future generations to be good stewards of our environment and we must reduce our reliance on fossil fuels. Local government must model practices that are environmentally-sound. I voted to support the solar project grant and I fully support initiatives to promote renewable energy. I was also a strong supporter of our successful efforts to promote a septic ordinance and I look forward to possibilities to find additional opportunities to work with lake associations, FLOW, Watershed Center, the Grand Traverse Band, and others to promote clean water and control invasive species. I also favor an expanded materials management plan, county-wide composting. and other possibilities for protecting all that makes Leelanau County such a wonderful place to raise a family, work and visit.
Broadband: The Point Broadband project is nearly complete and will provide access to almost 97% of the county’s residents by the end of 2024. Primarily funded by ARPA funds, we have made it possible to provide fast, reliable and affordable fiber to most of the unserved residents in Leelanau County. I am pleased that the Spectrum project will connect 700 homes in the Southwest portion of our county, and I believe the remaining 200 unserved residences will be connected if Point and/or Spectrum are successful with the BEAD application. We will continue to work on this issue until Leelanau County is 100% connected.
Early childhood and senior services: I believe one of the ‘points of pride’ for Leelanau County is our voters’ overwhelming support for both our early childhood (Parenting Communities) and Senior Services programs. Funded by two separate voter-approved tax levies, these programs support both our youngest and most vulnerable populations. The overwhelming voter support for these two programs speaks volumes about what makes Leelanau a great place to call home, work and raise a family.
Jim White (Republican)
I am running for County commissioner because I dissatisfied with the way the BOC has been managing taxes and spending, and their oversight of the county administrator and the government in general. When I remarked to a good friend of mine early this year about the apparent incompetence of the board on those particular issues, he asked me why I wasn’t running for County commissioner. I told him I had never run for political office and had no desire to get involved in politics beyond voting and contributing money. When he replied that I could hardly complain if I wasn’t willing to get into the game, I had to admit he was right and registered to run for commissioner.
My priorities are simple but critical: 1) Stop or reduce the steady increase of taxes on the residents of this county; 2) Stop wasteful spending on vanity projects and personal crusades by the BOC; 3) Develop and implement a coherent organizational structure for the county government with clearly delineated responsibilities and duties and then follow that blueprint to ensure coherence, transparency, and efficiency in county government; 4)Develop a process for evaluating capital projects and other spending requests to ensure that all commissioners have input and understand what metrics should be used to evaluate the merits of spending proposals and how success will be measured. The next BOC will be in Office for four years. If it can accomplish these four priorities in that time, Leelanau County will be become a model for county governance in the state of Michigan.
