In addition to conducting the scheduled meetings of the City Council, serving on many committees of the city, and representing the City of Berkley at ceremonial functions, there are many meetings of a variety of organizations at which I represent the city.
Those organizations include the Southeast Michigan Council of Governments (SEMCOG), Woodward Avenue Action Association (WA3), Michigan Suburbs Alliance, the Woodward Dream Cruise Association, and South Oakland County Mayors Association (SOCMA). Other organizations that have extended invitations to their conferences include the American Institute of Architecture (AIA), Oakland County Government agencies and departments, Sierra Club, Transit Riders United, and Plante Moran. City committees include the Berkley-Huntington Woods Youth Assistance, the Tri-Community Coalition, the 75th Anniversary Committee, the Dream Cruise Committee, Holiday Parade Committee, Friends of the Library, and Berkley Climate Protection Committee. Do I attend every meeting of these groups, and accept every invitation? No.
So, why am I writing about this? I do not need to explain my attendance at meetings of our community committees. Obviously the mayor and members of council should be involved and show support for the volunteers and the many city employees who participate. The meetings of SEMCOG, SOCMA and other organizations provide speakers and discussions of issues that are shared by our city, county, state, and country. There are themes which have emerged in recent years that weren’t topics of discussion when I was first elected eight years ago. Some are issues that we would rather ignore, hoping they will go away or that someone will take care of them.
In my July message I tried to explain GASB45. Those budget implications are daunting enough! Early in September Plante Moran sponsored a forum, which I attended. The topic was the Eight New Audit Standards that are the result of Enron and other corporate scandals. Many speakers addressed the economic problems of Michigan. Shared services and intergovernmental cooperation, as well as revenue sharing have, of course, been topics of discussion. In January the AIA summoned community leaders to a gathering at Lawrence Technological University, when a major topic for discussion was the need for rapid transit in this metropolitan area. Another theme that has surfaced at many of the meetings is this: our community may prosper, but it may not affect Detroit and the area; but if Detroit prospers, Berkley and this region will be affected.
There are a couple initiatives that are taking shape to create a focus on regional planning. OneD addresses this metropolitan area. The "North Coast, a Vital Center" is an effort to bring together a coalition of Great Lakes States to forge new economic initiatives. Reality-based analyses coupled with optimistic vision are needed as decisions are made and strategies are developed. At the 109th Annual Convention of the Michigan Municipal League, held in Traverse City in mid-September, we were reminded of the natural beauty of Michigan, the trained and skilled workforce, and the prestige of our universities and colleges. There most assuredly is hope. |
