GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — As the clock ticks down to Election Day, Grand Rapids mayoral candidates Senita Lenear and David LaGrand faced off at the Wealthy Theatre in a debate presented by The Rapidian.
The debate took questions through a community survey. The night touched on housing, the environment, transportation, diversity, public safety and education just to name a few.
ECONOMIC GROWTH AND HOUSING
First, moderators asked the mayoral hopefuls on how the candidates would balance downtown economic growth while supporting the surrounding areas.
Lenear said it starts with tackling inequities in developments between the wards, something she says led to the Third Ward equity fund.
“One of the ways we can reverse underfunding is by funding the Third Ward equity fund fully to be able to do some of the programs that exist within,” she said.
LaGrand said his approach would focus on capping the amount of tax increase that stays within downtown.
“We’ve had decades and decades of letting downtown spend its own tax dollars and that gives us all kinds of distortions in the end of the day. We are not in the building business, we are not in the corporation business, we are in the human thriving business,” he said.
The question led up to how to they would handle community displacement as the city grows.
LaGrand said his plans address rental increases and building more housing.
“Historically, we have been very good at subsidizing people who need help. We have not been good enough about building more places and that’s one of the reasons Grand Rapids isn’t growing as well as it needs to,” he said.
Lenear stressed the need for ensuring new developments benefit the people who already live there, as well as educating people how to retain their properties and understand how to use that property’s value.
“These community benefit agreements contributed to allowing people to have a voice in the development that’s happening in their neighborhoods and I believe that’s how we can address some of the gentrification,” she said.
TRANSPORTATION
Community questions also revolved around transportation services within the city.
Lenear said her plan consists of talking with The Rapid transportation officials as well as pressing for a robust transit system that includes a shuttle service between business districts to the heart of downtown.
LaGrand said his policies would focus on creating a core pedestrian and biker-friendly community. That would include 1,000 flashing signals at pedestrian crossings and converting two-way stops to four-way stops.
ADDRESSING HOMELESSNESS
The candidates were also asked on the their strategies to address homelessness in Grand Rapids.
LaGrand said all efforts need to come from a place of empathy and then addressing underspending in programing in services.
Lenear said there’s the issues of distrust in current systems by the unhoused community that needs to be fixed first. That could be done by changing polices that nonprofits have for their shelters. She said there’s also a need for accountability within the nonprofits in the area to ensure there’s a tangible benefit by those services.
PUBLIC SAFETY
The topic of public safety touched on how to tackle crime while increasing public trust in policing.
Lenear said that work will need the cooperation across the communities and that needs a community approach like the SAFE task force.
“People who are part of the task force that’s made of the police department, prosecutor’s office, grassroots and nonprofits all coming together to find solutions to address violence acts,” she said.
LaGrand said he would take a holistic approach, as well as changing when armed police officers are sent to what calls.
“It’s time that we actually focus on defining our policing as peacekeeping and problem solving and not as coercion and domination. That’s cultural transformation that is going to take some but it’s an important conversation to have,” he said.
The mayoral seat is an open spot this year as the current Mayor, Rosalynn Bliss is leaving office in December after eight years on the job.
When asked about how she is feeling nearing the end of her term, Bliss said she’s ready to pass on the torch.
“I feel like I’m leaving the city in a really good place and I hope the next mayor can continue on that momentum and move us forward,” Bliss said.
Election Day is Nov. 5.