Vincent Villegas has two big plans for the summer.
One: Receive his diploma from Lansing’s Eastern High School on June 16.
Two: Try to win a spot on Lansing’s City Council.
But to do that he will have to defeat one of two council incumbents - Louis Adado or Larry Meyer.
Adado, 41, was elected to the council in 1997 and wants to stay on board to help improve Lansing’s budget process by maintaining payroll costs.
“But, my number one concern is the neighborhoods,” said Adado, Michigan Licensed Beverage Association’s chief executive and city council president. “We’ve come a long way in improving them, but I would like to see more homes become owner-occupied.”
Meyer, 58, also won his council spot in 1997 and is the council’s vice president. The chief executive of Michigan Retailers Association said he wants to continue revitalizing the state capital.
“The reputation of your city lies in your downtown,” he said. “We’ve worked to clean the river and have improved recreation opportunities. Our record has been extraordinary but I want to do more.”
However, Villegas, 17, also is no stranger to the city council.
In January 2000, he co-founded the city’s junior council, a parallel of the real thing made up of area high school students who provide recommendations to the council from a youth perspective.
“My motto is ‘Working to create,’” he said. “The government needs to create incentives so that we all can get involved in community service. Together, we can make this a true world-class city and people can then have pride in their city too.”
Lansing resident Bill Brown, 53, said he hopes to spend the next four years of his retirement lending an ear to city residents who feel a distrust with the administration.
“There seems to be lots of frustration and suspicion between Lansing and the council,” the candidate said. “I feel I can use the position to alleviate some of that.”
Jerry Heathcote, son of former MSU men’s basketball coach Jud Heathcote, said he wants to improve the city’s parks and recreation.
“I’ve seen some changes to places like Grand River Park that I haven’t liked very much,” said Heathcote, 40, a chiropractor and competitive rower. “Like, in 1997, when they paved the parking lot that was dirt. It used to be a lot more rustic and natural - you almost felt like you were in the country. Green space should come first.”
Four of the five at-large candidates will move past the Aug. 7 primary, and in November, the top two will be awarded the two open spots.
