Independent Editor,
While others talk about restoring public safety and other vital services, Owosso can take pride in the fact that we never had to cut them in the first place.
While others prefer to criticize, there are many who applaud the policies, procedures, and ordinances that were put into place, with Mayor Ben Frederick leading the way. Under his leadership, Owosso City Council was prudent in its decisions when money was tightest. There were cuts to personnel. We renegotiated contracts that saved the city money while offering non-monetary support for our fire, police, and other city employees. We hired contracted services rather than hiring directly to save money, and still we maintained the quality of service that helps make Owosso the fine town it is in which to live and work.
Among the accomplishments of Owosso’s City Council under Mayor Frederick’s leadership: We have repaved streets and developed more cost effective street repair programs, replaced sidewalks, and purchased new equipment for police, fire, and ambulance services. We have carefully maintained our water and sewer system, grown and improved our trails and parks system, decreased the number of fires and unhealthy living conditions due to a proactive inspection program, created new regional partnerships to share local and regional services, and have overseen a renewal in local economic development, including downtown renovations. All this was done keeping Owosso’s budget balanced, while costs for goods and services have risen and the State of Michigan has cut our revenue sharing by about $1 million.
Mayor Ben is a person who has lived the American dream. As a youngster he lived in a Habitat for Humanity home and worked his way through school and into government positions with the goal of making a positive difference for the common man. He has served as a consensus builder between not only the City Council and city staff, but also between local organizations and governments.
We are proud to endorse him and strongly believe Ben Frederick will take his work ethic, his humble approach to service, his dedication to the tax payers, and nine years of skills and experience at the local and state levels to Lansing and serve us well there.
Mayor Pro-Tem Christopher Eveleth, Councilwoman Lori Bailey, Councilwoman Elaine Greenway
Councilman Rob Teich, Councilman Mike O’Leary