Comments on: City Admin Finalist: Steve Powers

By: Rick Cronn

Rick Cronn — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 17:54:31 +0000

I think that Powers shares more of our local and regional values and to his credit seems to have stuck it out in Marquette longer than most administrator types. He’s not a name dropper like Oppenheim nor is there much bureau-speak or many ear candy buzzwords. His county experience seems to respect collaboration and conciliation far more than recent Ann Arbor administrators and in these ways he presents a real change.

The questions I have is will he not only work with council but stand up to them as well?

Is he willing to say no to unnecessary projects instead of incurring long term public debt?

Will he defend the Master Plan and zoning not seek favor with developers just for the sake of padding his resume or make career connections?

Would he encourage us to work with the assets we already have and not remake Ann Arbor into what it isn’t just to “compete” with other municipalities?

Will he live in the city and drive his own car or use one from the city motor pool?

We need to see more candidates.

By: Vivienne Armentrout

Vivienne Armentrout — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 17:53:17 +0000

I think that Powers is both from far enough away and close enough to our system of government to bring a good balance to his perspective. Having to operate a county government in the State of Michigan would make him acquainted with many of the vagueries of Michigan law and local government (home rule) practices. I like his apparent humility, too, and his emphasis on collaboration.

By: Tom Whitaker

Tom Whitaker — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 16:10:35 +0000

@1: …And the vehicle allowance.

By: Alan Goldsmith

Alan Goldsmith — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 14:08:27 +0000

“He pointed to the long tenure of former Ann Arbor city administrator Roger Fraser and said he felt Ann Arbor would be a great place to live for him and his family.”

Fraser didn’t live ‘in Ann Arbor’. Apparently he loved the lower township taxes.