Mark Meadows, a former state representative and mayor of East Lansing, is among those candidates vying for a spot on the East Lansing City Council. Meadows said his history working with the student community is “strong” and that if elected, he would like to pick up where he left off.
While on council from 1995 to 2006, Meadows was mayor from 1997 to 2005 and had regular meetings with ASMSU. He also held voter registration drives on campus.
“It’s very important for students to realize they are citizens of East Lansing and they have a say in everything that goes on,” Meadows said.
Meadows said, if elected, he would like to re-instill public confidence in the way council operates, noting some of this confidence has been “eroded” since he left council.
Meadows said he would like to work on development of the corner of Grand River Avenue and Abbott Road. This area has come to be known as the Park District, the development of which has been an on-going process for council and the city as a whole for the past few years.
Meadows, who is a current member of the Sierra Club Michigan Chapter, said the Park District area of downtown is important because it is the first thing people see coming into town from the west. Meadows said the city needs a signature project in this area built from a community vision. Meadows also had other ideas for the downtown.
As a current member of the East Lansing Housing Commission, Meadows said we need a mixture of housing projects in the downtown area, noting that the city needs people who are here throughout the whole year, as well as partial-year residents.
“You need different types of money being spent in the downtown area in order to support all the businesses,” Meadows said.
Meadows said he would also like to take on the issue of infrastructure improvement in the city. He believes there are whole neighborhoods in the city that need their sewers and water lines replaced. The former mayor of East Lansing said his experience in council is what sets him apart from other candidates.
“My experience on City Council is one reason to vote for me. When I was mayor, generally speaking, the city moved forward,” Meadows said. “We built a lot of recreational facilities under my tenure and we had a City Council that agreed on the future of the city and were able to move forward even with a very diverse council.”
The election will take place Nov. 3 with three council seats up for vote.
