A speaker at a recent Mackinac Island convention spoke to city leaders from across the state about the long-term costs of big infrastructure investments like big-box stores. Chuck Marohn said they usually create impressive short-term financial gains for cities but almost always ends up crippling them with long-term debt.
On November 6, Traverse City voters will have a chance to take a crucial next step on one of the most important transportation challenges facing our city: Division Street.
Young people and young families want to live where they can bike downtown, walk to schools and parks, and shop at a nearby grocery store. But high rent prices are forcing them to the outlying areas where they have no choice but to drive to meet their basic needs.
Trains soon could be chugging along to northern Michigan, connecting Michigan families to large metropolitan areas like Detroit and Chicago. That is, of course, if the case can be made to upgrade the already state-owned tracks between here and Ann Arbor for freight rail, first.
Last October, Governor Snyder called for some bold new ideas about how we invest in Michigan’s transportation system, from roads, bridges, bicycles, buses and trains. And next Thursday at 4:00 PM, here at the MLUI office, folks around the Traverse City region can weigh in on some of those ideas.
When Michigan citizens have a chance to raise their voices to make their communities better, they usually heed the call. And, once again, it worked.