Mike McMillan is running for Leelanau Township supervisor. He’s been visiting the area for 41 years when he first worked at Sugar Loaf.
Since moving to the county in 2019, he has been active, appointed to the township supervisor post for the past 17 months. He is also the chairman of the Northport-Leelanau Township Utilities Authority; president of Northport Pickle Ball and race director of the Northport Run for (cancer) Fund.
His Top 3 priorities for the township are:
• Affordable Rents: For the past 17 months I’ve engaged the topic of housing as the #1 strategic need for the Township, with a emphasis on solving for affordable rents. Partnering w/ the Village Manager, we now have the makings of a Joint Housing Committee, a unprecedented occurrence for the Township & Village but one that is long overdue. We have identifi ed a number of potential sites, some requiring approval from the DNR which we have engaged over the past seven-months. The goal is to have a viable solution, not more words, in the next 12-18 months.
• Fiscal Responsibility: Contrary to past years, our Township seeing a windfall of tax revenue. I have led the Board to find a balance between funding Essential Services/ Parks while finding relief for tax payers. Over the next four years we will fully fund Essential Services/Parks while recognizing $1.2 million in tax payer relief by lowering or suspending millages. We can and will do both!
• Vision 2034: Working w/the various functional groups, develop a 10-year strategic plan for the Township that addresses the current needs, i.e. Affordable Rents, Roads, Parks and future needs not limited to already mentioned priorities that include the Library, expanded bike & walking trails.
This is a corrected version of a response that appeared in the Oct 10 paper.
