GLADSTONE, Mich. (WZMQ) – Tuesday, November 4 is Election Day. In Gladstone, three City Commission seats are up for grabs.
Sitting Commissioners Joe Thompson and Steve O’Driscoll are hoping to retain their seats. The ballot includes their names, as well as two other candidates looking to join the board—Whitney Maloney and Joe Thompson.
Maloney has lived in Delta County for nearly a decade, following the completion of her degree in molecular biology at the University of Wisconsin. She worked at a local brewery for about six years before opening her own business, Superbloom Coffee House, in Downtown Gladstone.
Having run a small business for over a year, Maloney says she has seen Gladstone’s recent growth firsthand. If elected, her top priority would be to keep that momentum going.
“Gladstone’s having a moment,” she said. “We’ve had really an influx of small businesses, and small businesses are the backbone of a small community. Not only are we offering jobs to the community and a service, but we’re the ones supporting our youth sports, robotics teams, LEGO clubs. I see an increase in small business really being the answer to a lot of our problems because it increases the tax base. With more money, you can provide more services.”
A mother of three and a member of the Delta Regional Child Advocacy Center Board, Maloney wants to create more jobs, housing, and other opportunities that allow young people and families to move to and stay in Gladstone.
“The perfect way to do that is to build these relationships with other organizations and even government agencies and school districts to figure out what we need to do,” she said. “Where are the gaps in supporting kids and younger families? Affordable housing, that’s going to require a really creative approach utilizing a lot of different ideas—the North Shore Development, rehabbing existing buildings, accessory dwelling units, and meeting the needs of the young, elderly, single families without overdoing it. What we don’t need are $500,000 condos on the lakeshore. That doesn’t help our community.”
O’Connor, a retired electrical engineer, has also lived in Gladstone for ten years. Prior to moving to the area, he lived in Wisconsin, where he started a consulting company that helped hospitals acquire federal funding for software.
As the director of the Gladstone Citizens Council, O’Connor successfully advocated for a ballot proposal to eliminate special assessments last fall. That effort followed the Commission’s decision to pass a special assessment, allowing the City to collect a millage for public safety needs.
“The commission was filled with people that said, ‘No, we want to vote on this,'” said O’Connor. “That’s how the American way is supposed to be—you vote on any tax increase. The Commission voted unanimously to ignore the people. The police and fire special assessment, every year it has to be renewed, and they’ve renewed it again for another year. That’s quite a burden on the citizens. At the same time, they’re hit with a double whammy with increases in utility costs.”
If elected, O’Connor aims to keep utility costs down. He also wants to find ways to maintain the City’s roads more efficiently.
“Even if I don’t use any water or any electricity, it still costs $100 a month just to be connected to the services,” he said. “That’s one thing I want to find out. Can we cap those fixed costs so people can be assured that in the future, it’s not going to be any more than a certain amount per month? To maintain our roads, what I’m hoping to do is to get a committee formed and go out and actually ask the road commission to come in with their experts and help us. There needs to be a list so all the citizens know when we’re going to get to their streets. We know the ones that are in the worst shape, and those need to be put on the list first. If we need any extra millage, we should earmark it and know that’s what it’s going to be used for, and that will be it.”
Both candidates say they want the Commission to better engage with Gladstone residents and keep them involved in City decisions.
“People are making decisions whether you tune into them or not,” Maloney said. “I’m involved in so many different things, and I love the opportunity to talk to people that come into my shop. I see so many different people day to day and really have a good feel for where people are at on things, how they’re feeling, what they love and what they don’t love about our community. I’m uniquely positioned to have my thumb on the pulse of this community in a really authentic, genuine way. I think that we have this opportunity to get a different perspective in our City Hall.”
“It appears the voice of the people is not being heard by the City Commission,” said O’Connor. “It would be nice if more of the public could be involved in different committees. One thing I was hoping to do—-I’m not sure if it’s possible—could we save money by combining Parks and Recreation with the Department of Public Works? Instead of having two separate departments, have one with one manager. That’s what I’m thinking. How can we consolidate to save money, which would also help the bottom line of the budget?”
WZMQ 19 reached out to Thompson and O’Driscoll for interviews, but they did not respond.
