Compared to meetings of the recent past, the East Lansing City Council’s Nov. 21 meeting was hardly recognizable.
Shifts had taken place in two leadership positions, and a new council member faced the audience to voice his opinions and concerns for the first time.
A communitywide Nov. 8 election and the following election of a new mayor and mayor pro tem shook up the council landscape.
Diane Goddeeris became East Lansing’s new mayor with a 3-2 vote that shifted then-mayor Vic Loomis into a general council member seat. Nathan Triplett won the position of mayor pro tem, a seat formerly held by Goddeeris.
Don Power replaced Roger Peters in a general council member seat, and only Councilmember Kevin Beard stayed put.
As the new council moves forward, some community members have expressed optimism while others are not so sure of the council’s future.
A new dynamic
With a difficult budget situation, a new city manager to choose and other major decisions on the horizon, Goddeeris said it is important for the new council to take charge of change.
“We can’t keep doing the same old stuff — we need to be looking to the future,” Goddeeris said.
The council shake-up likely will be beneficial for the city, she said. In the past, Goddeeris said it has been common to rotate council members into new positions to give them different perspectives, and a shift in the seats could highlight new skill sets.
“We all bring different perspectives and different expertise — that’s what makes it a well-rounded council,” Goddeeris said.
As Power adjusts to the shift from public commentator to community representative, he wants to focus on clearing the air and making city council more accessible to both students and residents.
Power said not everyone on the council is going to agree with each other on various issues, and as people adjust to new positions, there could be divisions and disagreement — something that wouldn’t be a bad development.
“Everybody has to get used to each other,” Power said. “Will the council be looking like Kumbaya? No. It’s going to take a different kind of effort and a different kind of dynamic.”
Changing leadership
In the minds of residents such as Alice Dreger, Goddeeris has some big shoes to fill.
Dreger said Loomis was a great influence on the city, despite some disagreements she had with his policies.
“He was an extremely popular mayor,” she said. “My neighborhood is so much better off because of (Loomis).”
The council’s decision to choose Goddeeris for mayor instead of Loomis was an unfortunate one, Dreger said.
“Frankly, she’s a weak leader,” she said. “I’m frustrated and disappointed.”
Now is not the time for the city to install a “figurehead mayor,” Dreger said. With the ongoing search for a city manager and problems with the City Center II development project on the horizon, Dreger said East Lansing needs an experienced leader like Loomis.
Loomis said he has received communication from countless members of the community expressing their displeasure with the final decision since the mayoral elections and is uncertain as to why the election turned out the way it did.
Support student media! Please consider donating to The State News and help fund the future of journalism.
“There was no objective reason given as to why I should not continue as mayor,” Loomis said. “I literally cannot move in this city without someone approaching me about it.”
Triplett said his decision to vote for Goddeeris was based on her critical thinking abilities and problem-solving skills she demonstrated during the years he worked with her on council and was not meant to be a slight at Loomis.
“It was a vote for Diane, not against Vic,” Triplett said. “She displayed commitment to public engagement and showed … critical thinking when she solved city problems.”
During his tenure as mayor, Loomis said the support he’s received from community members has been tremendous — a feature that made his job quite a bit easier.
As he finishes out what he said will be his final two years on the city council, Loomis plans to focus his efforts on best representing a community that continues to support him from another perspective.
“I will be there to represent the constituency that gave me the opportunity (to be on council),” Loomis said. “I’ve really been touched by the communications I’ve received in the past couple weeks.”
Moving forward
The city’s new leadership drew mixed reactions from students and residents around East Lansing, with some disapproving the council members’ final mayoral vote, and others maintaining the transition won’t impact city-community relationships too drastically.
ASMSU Community Liaison Paddy La Torre said changing certain positions on the council shouldn’t affect the relationship between the city and ASMSU, MSU’s undergraduate student government.
“They’re still working as a cohesive unit with us,” she said.
Susan Woods, an East Lansing resident and the director of the East Lansing Film Festival, said changes to council might signify a shift in the city’s policy regarding businesses and development.
With Loomis as mayor, Woods said the city was “aggressive” in pushing for downtown improvements and development, but she said that isn’t feasible anymore.
“It’s going to be a period of probably a little pull-back until we reassess the economic times and everything else,” Woods said. “Right now, I don’t think we can economically afford (much new development).”
Bill Mansfield, the president of the Downtown Development Authority, or DDA, said he expects the working relationship between the DDA and the city will remain strong despite the transition.
“I’ve always felt like, through various city councils, that we’ve had very good lines of communication,” he said.
Goddeeris sees the near future as an opportunity to work on relationships and stick true to the goals of the city while making necessary changes to best suit the residents.
“I’ll continue to interact with students, continue to try my hardest and continue to ask the community to support what we do,” Goddeeris said.
