Lansing - Mayoral candidates Tony Benavides and Virg Bernero presented ideas to local business owners Wednesday morning about how to make Lansing's downtown a desired destination.
The pair convened along with Lansing City Council candidates and local business owners at Lansing's Cooley Center, 300 S. Capital Ave., for the Principal Shopping District's "Meet The Candidates" forum.
Candidates responded to several prepared questions and addressed concerns from the almost 30 business owners in attendance.
Attracting businesses to the downtown area was among the more popular topics of discussion.
"We have businesses that want to grow and expand in Lansing that hit hurdles and roadblocks in bureaucracy, and they go elsewhere," State Sen. Virg Bernero said. "We are losing businesses."
Bernero added that a large step toward attracting business is eliminating crime in the city.
"It's hard to be hip and cool when you're worried about day to day safety," he said. "We are not going to develop and grow, we are not going to be a destination point, and we are not going to attract the businesses we need unless we do some of the basics in city government."
Lansing Mayor Tony Benavides took a service-oriented approach to drawing businesses.
"In order to have a vibrant and progressive city, we must also be a family-friendly city," he said. "You've got to have a carrot (to attract people) and the carrot is going to be that we are going to serve them with a smile and be responsive to their needs."
Other issues discussed by the candidates were developing the riverfront district in Lansing and establishing more downtown residences.
The Principal Shopping District is a collection of businesses in the downtown and Old Town districts of Lansing. Kevin McKinney, mediator of the forum and Principal Shopping District board chair, said the event was an important step toward uniting business owners and lawmakers.
"We wanted an opportunity for the merchants and business owners to have a chance to listen to some of the vision of these elected officials instead of what they read in their brochures or may hear in little thirty second sound bites," he said. " We're trying to increase the PSD's visibility and activity and provide our members with these type of opportunities."
Downtown business owner and forum attendant Camron Gnass said he appreciated the event.
"I got a fantastic idea about the energy that they all had," he said. "Primarily I'm interested in the mayoral race and I thought it was crystal clear the energy that both of them brought. That is so reflective of what their efforts are really gonna be."
