This meeting of the um city commission order since this is uh officially a meeting, we have an agenda um, but we do not have public comment as I see the agenda, nor do we have a moment of silence, nor do we have a pledge of allegiance.

Um so let's roll right into our first item, which is first ward city commissioner uh vacancy interviews.

So thank you, Mr.

Repert, for being first on deck, and um just briefly so that you uh uh understand the rules of the road.

Um our colleagues, uh my colleagues and I have all each come up with a question, and uh six times four is twenty-four.

Uh we'll have time to do follow up.

You can uh I think open with a statement.

Um, but we're gonna be grading you on your ability to follow rules.

So our clerk is um got a four-minute shot clock for the questions.

Now I'm not gonna cut you off, um, but you can see the clock.

So um uh but uh so you'll have four questions, and then if there's anything you want to add, uh or you know anything anything that didn't get covered by our questions, so free feel free to have a uh closing statement.

But um, yeah, thank you.

So if you want to introduce yourself, sure.

We all know who you are.

We all know who all three are.

So go ahead.

Great.

Um well today was interesting.

I walked in the building and then walked right out again after a tornado drill.

But uh, I hope that you all are finding some joy in the sun.

I've been out this week looking for mushrooms, are they out in the woods, and so it's a beautiful time in our city.

Uh I'm Kurt.

Uh I'm familiar with all of you a little bit.

Uh I live by John Ball Park.

Uh my neighbors there, I love my neighbors, they're active, they're engaged, they're incredibly vibrant people.

I live there with my partner, Mattia.

We've been married for 24 years.

She's the love of my life, and we're raising our two teenage GRPS scholars.

Uh, they attend city, city middle and high school.

Um I serve as an elder at my church, Servants Community Church, which is a uh welcoming and affirming congregation.

And I've spent 20 years doing community development on the West Side at a place called the Other Way Ministries, where Alicia Marie Belchek is uh is a board member.

Uh I worked there with families, primarily with men, uh, and served there as the executive director for five years.

Obviously, my most uh important experience is the five years that I spent sitting on the Dais as a city commissioner, one of the greatest experiences of my life.

Uh that experience allows me in this this day to be able to step forward, and if you appointed me today, would be able to get started right away.

Since I left the commission, I've been working for Wellhouse and Family Promise and about 15 other nonprofits as a consultant, raising money and supporting the good work happening around our city, staying close to the city staff that make things happen and staying close to the residents of the first ward.

Uh I'll leave that for my opening statement.

We'll leave it as that.

So I'm eager to talk with you about this appointment.

Great.

Um, since you didn't um we didn't start the clock on that.

Did you get the questions in advance or are these coming at you blind?

I did.

Okay.

Well, the the the bad news then is that your qu is that your and your opening answered my first question.

So I'm just gonna move to Commissioner Belcher.

Well, unless you want to add something.

So my standard question was just tell us your history of civic engagement.

Yes, you touched on it, but maybe um maybe since you already touched on it and you didn't know what the questions were.

Um, how about you go into how about you tell us what your most rewarding civic engagement experience is, or tell us you know, maybe something you worked on persistently that you felt was felt had value and outcome?

Yeah, the thing that I am most proud of since leaving the city commission is the the partnership that I've helped uh agencies form with the Grand Rapids Housing Commission.

So, as you know, I when I was sitting, I was sitting right where Commissioner Knight was sitting.

Um Carlos Sanchez stood up and talked to said that there were 200 underutilized vouchers in the housing commission system.

And I locked that away because that's like low-hanging fruit.

If we can activate those vouchers, we can get 200 people into housing.

Uh I've now since helped Wellhouse, AYA Youth Collective, and Family Promise get project-based vouchers, which in the uncertainty of our federal funding environment gives a little bit of certainty to those nonprofit developers so that they can move forward, and those vouchers are guaranteed for 20 years.

So they can relax, they have sustainable funding.

And so out of those vouchers, those are those vouchers are worth you know, millions of dollars over the course of 20 years.

And so those three agencies can breathe a little deeper, and it those of those units will be permanently affordable.

So that's that's something that I've worked on.

That's the thing I'm most proud of since I left the commission.

Lindsay's an incredible leader.

Um Commissioner Belchak.

Wonderful.

Thank you for that.

And thank you for all that you do to help get us avoidable housing.

Um you have some familiarity, so you know this role doesn't slow down for competing demands.

So prioritization and follow-through really does matter.

So here's the scenario.

Early in your appointment, you're juggling an urgent resident issue, a commission initiative already underway, and a request from a respected community leader to pause the decision you don't have the votes to stop.

You can only do one meaningfully to advance.

What do you prioritize?

What do you defer?

How do you work within those constraints to influence the outcome and communicate your decisions?

Okay.

I think I understand the question.

Um there are always juggling, there's always a lot of juggling, and in addition to the work of the city commission, I have my own work personally, right?

So as do you all.

I think that uh when it comes to decision making time, uh there's a leading up to the decision, there's getting all of the information.

You're gathering all the information.

I'm one who tries to be proactive and meeting with groups ahead of time before there's something hot, so that we can have some trust and understanding and relationships.

Uh then when something does come up, then we can have a direct conversation about that thing.

The if their votes aren't there, the votes aren't there, right?

And so the then there's a lot of communication in that engagement with those parties around that particular issue about what about expectations, what's possible, what's not possible, what can change, what can't change, and then there's a recalibration of the requests, perhaps.

All in all, it's it's an iterative process that uh that takes in information from as wide a network as possible, and then bringing that together for decision making time.

And then it really I make the decisions that I make based on the trust that I have in the community and what I believe the community is requesting.

And so when there's competing interests, I fall to the place where I've developed trust and for the people who I believe are advocating for the things that our city truly needs.

So then there's follow-up work with the with my colleagues.

There's follow-up work in the community depending on which way the decision goes.

Uh, and that requires some leaning in.

You can't shy away from the uncomfortableness of it.

Uh, and it also requires kind of a uh a maintenance of effort.

There's this a particular effort.

So, in terms of balancing multiple things at once, I think that one of the things that I learned if for from five years sitting up there is what's most important.

Um, and then running the decision through that rubric to try to figure out where uh I need to make a decision.

Great.

Uh Commissioner Yasasi.

Good morning.

Um, thank you, Mayor.

I'm I'm actually gonna switch my question because I think Commissioner Knights and I are two a little too similar.

Um, but I will ask the same question of every single candidate.

Um mine won't be a story problem, like Commissioner Belchak's.

Um is going to be how do you balance the needs, wants, desires of the multiple constituencies that a commissioner has to hold?

Right?

We're a city that is funded uh by our income tax, so we want businesses to be here, we want them to be successful.

Um but how would you manage the needs, demands, wants of our neighbors, um, community groups, business owners, both large and small.

Thank you.

Thank you.

One of the things I love about the work of the city commission is the diversity of the work.

Uh one day you're at a quarter improvement meeting, the next day you're meeting with a housing developer and trying to figure out what they need to get something off the ground.

The next minute you're at a small business having lunch, figuring out how you can promote their business, showing up at a ribbon cutting.

I think that uh for me, I love the full scope of the work.

And what I was committed, I showed up to all of the the places where I was appointed uh fully prepared.

And so when I think about kind of balancing the nature of that, obviously the place where I have to push myself is to meet with people that aren't in my immediate network.

I've already, you know, leading up after as soon as I put my name in, I've already met with quite a few people in the ward that I worked with before from the neighborhood associations, from the climate coalition, from my affordable housing friends.

I'll continue to meet with those people, but we already have an understanding about what we want to see happen in the city.

I think that if I was given this appointment, there would be some uh impetus on me to reach out to some of some of the people that I'm not in regular communication with.

I I don't think I would have trouble with city staff connecting with you all, but I I would have to do some outreach.

You know, I used to sit on the board of the West Fulton Business Association, but I since let that lapse since being off the commission.

You know, I haven't been attending corridor approvement authority meetings.

Those are the places where I get connected to business folks who have different concerns, different needs, different things that they want to see happen.

Uh but I think that I mean, I was I have a great record of showing up to every ribbon cutting and celebrating business in the first ward.

I would continue to do that in this interim time.

Uh as much as it, you know, a ribbon cutting maybe isn't as high priority in an eight-month period as trying to solve that policy thing that that really is gonna help activate retail in a new way.

Um but I've when I was on the commission, I had a strong partnership with Rich App and that retail specialist program.

I know that that just kind of sunseted, but uh we had a right we would have a regular communication about how we could support the business corridors of the first ward and the individual business leaders.

So, you know, I like I said on Friday of last week, I vote with my time.

I try to show up into the places where maybe commission aren't getting any love from commissioners.

Um there are some things happening right now in the first ward, very pressing things.

The amphitheater, the soccer stadium, the zoo expansion, that really require a lot of engagement, a lot of patience, a lot of understanding, and that's where I feel like I can step in right away.

Um I've got space in my schedule to be able to sit through those difficult moments, and uh, and then working with Commissioner Belchak, particularly and and advancing the things that that need to happen on those those those issues.

So I love the diversity of the work.

I love showing up for all parts of it, and I think that during the eight-month time, that would be a challenge, and I I would make a commitment to reaching out to the folks that that I don't normally interact with on a regular basis to make sure that we're building strong trust across the board.

Thank you.

Thanks.

Uh Commissioner Knight.

Thank you, Mayor.

Thank you, uh, Commissioner Sasi.

I looked down and I said, Boy, we great minds.

I know, right?

Great minds.

Um, good morning, and thank you for being here.

Uh my question is um uh how do you work with community, especially when we have uh crises that impact the safety of our community?

Yeah, as I mentioned before, the the way that I tried to do it was uh was to have proactive groups of people that I met with on a regular basis when when there wasn't something um hot happening.

So I did that with the climate coalition.

I had a group that met with me around policing policy and strategies.

I had a group that I met with around affordable housing.

I had three kind of trusted circles of people that I met with every month when I was a commissioner to talk through what was happening, and then primarily during the budget season, we would have an intensity of meeting together to figure out is there something in this budget that could be impacted.

I think that if I was given this appointment, I would approach it the same way.

Uh the most important relationships that I would form would be with you all.

The work can't get done unless we're meeting together regularly.

Uh as I mentioned last Friday, my top priority would be being a teammate to Commissioner Belchak, sharing the load, making sure that uh if she couldn't show up to something that I could, and vice versa, and making sure that we're in agreement about making sure we're getting stuff covered.

Outside of that, then it's about the work.

And so I think I would I I've got a I've done a fair amount of thinking about what could be possible in an eight-month period, but really that depends on you all and what you have cooking, what you're thinking about, what you're working on.

So in my mind, it's a one-on-one meeting with each of you right out the gate to say, how can I support you, what you're working on?

What do you see coming up in that eight months that you would want to prioritize and accomplishment and accomplish.

And then it's my responsibility to then take that out to the to the first ward residents, see what they have to say about it, see how they feel about it, uh, and then I can come back and decide whether or not I can join you in that or not.

You know, that's my litmus test.

Uh, is what is is I take very seriously what people in the community uh have to say about what's going on.

You know, public space, public parks and green spaces are as much a part of public safety as policing, as is affordable housing, as is all of the ways that these things intersect.

And so that's why I'm committed to intersectionality.

You can't just meet with people to talk about policing.

You have to talk about how that's going to impact the other goals of the city.

Same with housing as the most potent uh opportunity for intersectionality for kind of amplifying multiple goals of the city with one thing.

So I think that that would that would be my approach.

It would be very much a relational approach, a person-to-person new approach, meeting with the groups that are currently doing work, and then aligning that with work with my colleagues on the commission.

Obviously, there has to be a policy that we're deciding upon.

And so then once something is on the table to be proposed, there's a whole nother process that goes for you know how to how do people feel about it, what kind of things do they think need to change or to make it stronger?

So thank you.

Thank you.

Good morning, and thank you so much for being here.

Um I've been looking forward to hearing from you and the rest of the folks today.

Um, so you spoke a little bit about your approach to priority issues, determining them and moving forward.

Um I want to hear a little bit more about what are your top priority issues.

So a little bit more of the the issue themselves more than your approach.

So, what are your top priority issues?

And the second part of my question was how would you work with this commission over the next few months to accomplish or make progress on your goals and your priorities?

Great.

Is anybody gonna ask me a question about affordable housing strategies like that?

Okay.

Not directly.

So put it in there.

That's my time to put it in.

Yes.

I mean, obviously, so uh affordable housing became my main issue about a year before I ran for office the first time, because at the other way ministries, my neighbors were experiencing some incredible pressure.

We did some surveying in the neighborhood, some door knocking, and we found that a significant percentage of the people who lived around our ministry were a $50 increase in rent away from eviction at that time.

And so we got to work.

That's the issue that I became most passionate about, dedicated my time on the city commission to learning as much as I could about how to advance affordable housing, what works in other cities, what kind of creative strategies can we employ to get the revenue for it, what kind of policy changes we can do to free it up, both from the supply side, but also making sure that the 30% AMI housing gets built because there's no market incentive to build 30% AMI housing.

So I spent my time on the commission learning as much as I could about it.

I'm so proud of what we accomplished while I was on the commission, the affordable housing fund being the primary one, but also really changing our zoning ordinance.

Some of it happened right after I left uh to make it easier to build up to six units anywhere in the city.

I think that those were strong changes by the city for from increasing affordability in the city.

Uh I I uh I've stayed engaged afterwards.

It's been the number one thing I've worked on, primarily strategies for the unhoused population and and residents earning less than 30% of the area median income, which represents about 17% of the need of the housing units.

So if we're not directing 17% of our funding toward that part of the need, it's not gonna happen.

Last year, Mishta spent half a percent of their budget on addressing homelessness.

So we're not gonna make a dent on it unless we match those percentages.

So that's something that's important to me.

Obviously, right now another thing that became important to me when I was on the city commission was public safety.

Uh, you know, when I as an uh everyday citizen, it was not something that I thought about a great deal, other than when my neighbors encountered adverse encounters with public safety.

Um, but it was it really became the thing that we worked on the most together.

It's something that I learned an extraordinary amount about uh and developed relationships with people that I I look forward to reactivating in this moment.

So in the wake of an officer involved shooting, my heart has been with you.

That's some of the heaviest things that I walked through when I was on a commission on the commission.

In the wake of an officer involved shooting, there's a lot of sensitive conversations that need to happen.

There's a lot of holding of community grief, and and at the same time, strategically asking how can we improve our policies so that we have 2026 strategies.

So public safety is of great importance to me.

Obviously, there's a police chief search happening, which is the one of the most important decisions that would get made during this eight month period of time.

We worked with them for both the last two times.

One produced an internal candidate, one produced an external candidate.

And so paying very close attention to that process is important to me.

The two areas of importance for me in that search are an in a somebody who's going to do innovation.

We need that at any department head of the city, somebody who's going to look at 2026 solutions and beyond, and somebody who's going to build culture.

So there's a lot of specific skills and experiences that I'm looking for underneath there about that.

But those two issues are the top two.

The third one would be would be climate, uh, and I've got a lot of experience with climate.

That was another one that was a passion that kind of rose in me during my time on the commission with some prompting from my 16-year-old daughter who is always asking me what I'm doing for the earth.

Uh I've got a lot of things that are hanging out there that were a little left undone when I finished on the commission around that that I would love to join you in in finishing.

So there's more to be said there about how to make it happen.

But those are the priorities that I would have coming in.

The main one being being a great teammate to Commissioner Belchak during eight months.

I heard the discussion loud and clear.

What's needed is some support and some stability.

Thank you, Kevin.

Thanks.

Uh Commissioner Codor.

Thank you, Mayor.

Good morning.

Uh Mr.

Reppard, thank you so much for being here with us this morning and taking part in the appointment process.

I know firsthand it is quite an interesting process.

Um, and although I continue to state that I believe it is flawed, I am very thankful that folks like you are stepping up to serve their neighbors.

So thanks for being here with us.

So uh my question for you is how have you worked with frontline communities such as black, indigenous, and other communities of color, older adults, people with disabilities, and residents who are often most directly and most heavily impacted by economic, environmental, and public service challenges.

And how would that experience shape your priorities and decision making as first ward commissioner?

Thank you.

It's about 2,000 people, and in our town, there's a Seventh day Adventist University with a ton of international students.

And it's a farming community.

So I was uh constantly had uh the children of farm workers in my in my classrooms together with me growing up.

My freshman year of high school, the city of Benton Harbor decided to bust their kids to places like Barry and Springs because they were having all sorts of challenges in their education system.

So my graduating class of 100 students was one-third black, one-third Latino, and one third white of all socioeconomic diversity.

And so from a young age, when I was playing basketball uh with Jamel Eddy, uh I was I've I recognized where there was gaps and where there was uh a lack of relationship and a lack of trust.

When I moved to Grand Rapids and worked for the for the other way ministries, which is where I spent the bulk of my career, the mission of our organization was to serve low-income families.

Our neighborhood is about 30 30 percent Latino, 15% black, and so uh that was the population I was working with in that role.

Um the first ward has the highest concentration of Latino folks up and down um Granville Avenue uh is uh is 70 percent even uh and South Division is is very similar.

So when during my time on the commission, it was really important to me to spend time in those parts of the ward that were often neglected by other commissioners previously.

Uh my church, as I mentioned before, is an open and affirming congregation.

We've made that decision, and we've welcomed many LGBTQ members and people who have children into our worshipping body to provide them care and support.

So the the engagement with groups is the same.

Uh my my process would be the same, is that I would be out and about in community connecting with folks from as as broad of a spectrum as possible.

And I tried my hardest to integrate their thoughts into the policy, especially when you're thinking about people who haven't been asked their thoughts about policy before.

They have thoughts.

They have opinions to share.

They have cares and concerns that are different, that aren't just intellectual, but represent a different ways of knowing and different ways of how we can make our city better.

And I think that that needs to be elevated in that in that work of reaching out to people is what intelligence is coming forward from the community that the typical way we've engaged is not allowing us to hear and bring forward to influence our policy so that we can see unintended consequences differently, so that we can see how it impacts different people differently.

So I've since an early age I've been intrigued and curious.

I try to stay curious.

I try to stay open.

When I make a mistake, I try to apologize for it.

And I try to fully understand as best as I can the lived experience of others so that I can then represent that in the policymaking discussions.

Thank you so much for your thoughtful answer.

Thanks.

Thanks.

So those are your six questions.

All right.

So feel free to tell us uh fill in the gaps.

Anything you want to say or closing statement?

That'd be great.

Well, I'm not just doing this to get my free parking pass back.

Although that would be really nice.

Uh I I see this as a really interesting moment in the city, and you're in an interesting moment as a commission.

And there's some real heavy things that you're dealing with, some real pressing things that you're dealing with.

There are things, well, I don't claim to be an expert in.

I have sat through those discussions before.

Navigated them in partnership with my colleagues, navigated them in partnership with the community, tried to do it with humility and as fully prepared as I could possibly be.

Whenever I go, I just went to Cincinnati with my son.

I'm driving around other cities.

I was just in Detroit with my daughter last weekend.

I'm looking around at how other cities do things, how Cincinnati's handling their river, how Detroit handles their river, how they handle homelessness downtown.

How the whenever I drive by an affordable housing complex, I'm always curious and I want to ask a bunch of questions.

But I'm engaged in the work currently.

That's the very first thing that would happen after this appointment.

I watched, I've been watching your meetings, and I realize it's not so bad.

I also realize that the work of a city commissioner is not very sexy, it's often very mundane and a lot of a lot of details.

But I've been watching those meetings.

I watched the quarterly budget update by the city manager, and I can tell that it's a precarious time.

And so it requires prudence when passing the budget.

Uh this is a time for stability.

Uh, it is a time for leaning into these critical issues that you're dealing with to try to make sure that those policies get as far as we can make them for the community as possible.

Um while I was on the commission, I developed great respect with my colleagues.

Commissioner Yasasi and I will we will share that experience for the rest of our lives uh with the city manager, the city clerk, the city attorney.

I'm I was a part of the selection of Phil Strom.

I think that that was an excellent choice.

Uh and John Globinsky in the back.

I can't forget John.

But I loved working with the appointed officials.

I loved working with the city staff.

I show up as a prepared person.

I shared I show up with a relational person, I'm a nurturing person.

I show up as a teammate.

The first ward has a history.

There was Walt and Dave, and then there was Dave and John, and then there was John and Kurt, and then there was Kurt and Drew.

And Alicia Marie deserves a teammate to represent the first ward.

Uh this is a big moment, and it would be a shame to leave this vacant for the time.

There's a lot of work to be done.

So I come to this with respect for you, respect for what you're working on.

I come hoping to bring some wisdom, some stability, uh, and all of this experience that I've shared with you.

There's other there's a lot more that I can talk about it.

This work is meaningful to me.

Uh, and it's something that I believe that in this eight-month time I could step in this afternoon and be ready to help you right away.

So thank you for your time and attention to this process.

Thanks.

Thank you.

Okay, so 15-minute break, you mean or 20?

So we'll be 1050 as well.

Okay.

So everyone can go off and play Grand Theft Auto or something.

We got a 20 minute break.

We'll be back at uh 10 50.

Thanks for being here, Lindsay.

Um you were you sat through the first uh round in the back, I saw, so you know uh what's up.

So why don't you go ahead and start with giving us an opening statement?

Feverishly scribbling notes.

Glad I wasn't first.

Um yeah, Lindsay Peres Pleasure.

Um I'm lifetime long resident of Grand Rapids.

Uh I'm bought my house uh in around 2008 in the first ward.

I've uh been there ever since.

Um so like uh can call myself officially a West Sider now, I think.

Uh I'm mom, I've got a 16-year-old and a two-year-old, and um my husband's supposed to be here, so we'll see if he walks in.

Um I grew up in a uh pretty blue-collar family.

My dad was a carpenter in a carpenter's union and um later worked at Steel Case.

Um, so back in the days when you could work a job like that and support a family.

Um, so my mom was a teacher, but she was able to stay home with us and plan block parties and do the things that we used to do back in the 80s and 90s.

Uh and so I don't know how long you want me to go because I know it's like kind of your first question.

Well, we had we had plenty of time.

Uh Kurt didn't even approximately hit his 45 minutes.

So six times four is twenty-four.

So I guess you can, you know, if you have 24 minutes for the questions, that gives you 20 minutes on the front end or the back end, or to split in both.

If you want to if you run out, if you want to run out the clock.

In other words, don't be worried.

I don't think you're gonna yeah, so I'll just uh kind of go right into my life then, I guess, and and qualifications.

Um yeah, blue up grew up in a blue-collar family.

Um after high school, I uh went to Guatemala and worked in a home for children where I learned Spanish and learned a lot a lot about the history of the US in Guatemala, and that kind of started a trajectory of learning about immigration and like the push-pull factors and the his how 70 years of um kind of abhorrent US policy has created the situation it has in a lot of Latin America that's um pushing people, you know, driving people north.

Um I came back to the US and got a uh bachelor's degree from Grand Valley in uh psychology with a minor in Spanish, and then I went on to Western uh Michigan University and got my master's in community-based counseling.

Being a therapist for the our in the mental health world in general, and then a therapist for the last approximately 20 years and doing community-based counseling.

I've worked with um the you know, most struggling aspects of our population.

Um, it's given me an intimate look at the factors that come together to create um to cause someone to become unhoused, um, who previously had a job and was pretty stable.

Um, all the factors that come together that cause a child to have um contact with CPS or go into foster care, uh, the factors that come together to cause someone to have uh run-in with uh law and uh contact with the police.

Um and I am a firm believer you can't solve a problem you don't understand, and I it's been very eye-opening for me over the years to like be that intimate with families and see these processes and be able to um you know put a stop there and avoid contact with the police and avoid going into CPS uh and avoid uh becoming unhoused.

So I've yeah, spent my life working with vulnerable people.

Um I've helped improve systems at places I've worked, so um I helped create a brand new program at a certain nonprofit where I worked where I was able to improve drastically improve the foster care system, um, the policies around informed consent and confidentiality, which they basically had none and were kind of almost running a foul, they were running a foul for sure of ethics at the time, maybe the law.

Um, and created a plan for kids who kids who aged out of the system who previously were just like bye, and and good luck.

Um, so we uh were able to pool resources, um, you know, find a volunteer attorneys, volunteer families, and so on, so that there was a really solid plan for kids um who aged out.

I worked with the West Michigan coalition uh for immigration reform for many years.

Um I started a support group in the Grandville area for families who lost a member uh family member to deportation.

And uh that is a big part of the first ward.

I think um former commissioner commissioner repert uh mentioned we have in the first ward the highest um population of a Latino population, and so speaking Spanish and and over the years being I've been very tied to that part of the ward.

My older daughter went to Southwest Community Campus over there and the Cook Arts and volunteered at the Cook Arts Center.

Did got child care, the Cook Arts Center, because I was a single mom with her and affordable child care is like a passion of mine as well.

And the Cook Arts Center is an amazing just little gem in our community that provides that for kids, and it's like it's safe, it's fun.

They have it's not just child care, it's like um classes and cultural classes and sewing and violin.

That was a rough point of time when she was doing violin for us at home.

But um, so I'm I have a lot of ties that I've spent a lot of time in that part of the ward.

Um, I'm also on the GR mobile uh commission and working on important issues uh like the Dash, which serves lots of people in the community, but is struggling with funding and trying um excited to start trying to find creative solutions to that.

Um I think sometimes you know we look at well, how many people use it, and but the people who do use it really need it.

Um and I had a neighbor who um, you know, her car was hit uh while parked on the street and um needed to use it for months to get to work.

Uh I also am engaged in uh stocking uh part the old stocking school that's since closed down that's right by my house.

That's a park and green space that's highly transited by a lot of kids.

It's really the only green space in that area for a big swath of the population, and I'm really excited to be um helping mobilize the community.

I go there frequently with my own kids, so I'm letting parents and so on know what's happening so that they can have their voices be heard um as the uh GRPS decides what they're gonna do with it.

Um, but I'm very hopeful that that will become stay apart um and actually improve and have uh community gardens and uh be a community hub for people.

Uh uh I talked about this a little bit in the last interview, but we're we have an epidemic of loneliness in our culture.

That's a real, it's a health problem.

It's a real public health problem.

Um, you feel loneliness in the same neural center in your brain where you feel hunger.

Older people who live alone tend to die sooner because loneliness is just bad for us as human beings.

So protecting these third spaces, these um green spaces and creating those community spaces where you know, one of the um thoughts with stocking is to have bingo night for the older population and uh workforce initiatives, um, work training programs and affordable child care and open up the um the gym in the winter for kids to have a place to go still.

Um so we also have you know issues with kids on technology too much, and so that's an and I know I'm getting to like my priorities a little here, I'm mixing it all up, but uh if we want kids off their tablets, if we want them off video games, we have to as a community provide those spaces where they can go and play and be outside and interact.

Um I've also sent my life and uh involved in local small churches and outreach programs.

Um I've led international trips um like aid trips that has allowed for um young people and some older people who've never been out of the country who've never been out of the state um to travel internationally.

So uh yeah, I think that's a lot of what I'm involved in right now.

I don't know if I missed something, but great.

So um for the second time you're exposing the flaw in my first question.

So a good opening statement often sort of gets to my question.

But um so I'll ask you what I asked uh former commissioner report, which is um if you can narrow in on some civic engagement work you've done in Grand Rapids that you're most proud of and talk about the outcomes there.

So specifically civic engagement.

I mean, you've talked about some stuff in your field, but like more in the political yeah, or you know, community building, whatever.

Yeah.

Um I think that working on immigrant rights issues is something that um I'm quite proud of the work that I've done there and bringing people together with a common goal and giving people a voice who often don't have a voice.

And the um, you know, there's parts of the immigrant population that can speak up for themselves, and there's parts that are not safe to, and so it's really important work for people who have the privilege of having status and not being in danger, like we have to be their voices, and I think that's something that we need to think about even as a commission is the decisions we make affect everyone in the city, even people who can't vote, um, and who often get overlooked because you know, we're not pulling the we're not thinking about them for re-election, we're not thinking of them for you know those things.

Um, but they live with our decisions just as well.

Um, and so my engagement there that's been uh a staple of my life is um speaking up for people who are vulnerable.

Um, the children that I've worked with uh who are you know in abuse or neglect situations and so on, speaking up for the people who don't have a voice.

Um I've worked on other things, the campaign to end gerrymandering, uh spent my time in uh you know those like political initiatives that also create better democracy um and support you know the the all of the issues.

If we don't have a fair democracy and fair elections, then we're not gonna get anything done.

Um yeah, I think most of the things I handled earlier, so great.

Thanks.

Uh Commissioner Balchuk.

Good excuse me.

Good morning, and thanks for being here.

Um, this is a role that does not slow down for competing demands.

So prioritization and follow-through really does matter.

So here's a scenario I'm asking.

Imagine early in your appointment, you're juggling an urgent resident issue, a commission initiative already underway, and then you get a request from a respected community leader to pause on a decision, you don't have the votes to stop.

You can only meaningfully advance one.

What do you prioritize?

What do you defer?

And how do you work within these constraints to influence the outcome and communicate decisions?

Yeah, well, I will say when it comes to prioritize prioritizing things and having a lot of competing interests.

Uh like I said, I was a single mom for a long time, working basically two jobs, um, and volunteering and doing education around the the issue of immigration, uh, and engaged in that and my churches and so on.

So I am like a top-notch uh juggler of things.

I I can uh you know engage in a lot of things at once and and manage all of those priorities.

I think if you're looking at a situation where you know there's there's an initiative that I'm you know is important to me, but like you said, there's not the votes for it.

Um reality is reality, and sometimes you have to shelve things and do the groundwork for building the support for that.

Um yeah, I you know, currently I have I work full-time, I'm running a campaign, I am running, you know, for this position.

I have two kids.

Uh I have basically a job and a half also, and I'm engaged in volunteering uh for the park and immigrants' rights, and I've been going to the Baldwin Detention Center and meeting with people.

So juggling a lot of things is just my MO.

It's what I've always done.

Uh, and I think that uh Commissioner Balchak, you and I would work well together at both being working moms and understanding each other on that level, and we've you know run into each other at community events and had our kids with us because that's what we do, and it actually kind of works well because our kids can sort of entertain each other while we engage um with the community.

So, yeah, like juggling a bunch of priorities um it can be a lot, but it's something I've done my entire life, and I know how to pivot, you know, when you I hit a roadblock and move around and focus on the next thing and then circle back later um to that previous priority.

And again, you know, you know, working in immigrant rights work, it's always building, you know.

I'm always speaking to people, educating people on the issue, people I've gone to places that are very conservative and done um educational seminars and lectured at universities and so on.

And so I know what it's like to not have the votes, so to speak for an issue, but to keep um my nose uh you know to the grindstone and just keep working at building understanding and getting those votes over time.

Thanks.

Uh Commissioner Saucy.

Thank you, Mayor.

Thank you, and good morning.

Thanks for being here.

Um, my question is how would you balance um the needs, wants, desires of the differ different constituency groups that a commissioner um connects with, so thinking about um you know, constituents in the ward, just other neighbors, community groups, small businesses, large businesses.

Thank you.

Yeah, so that's um there's always uh, you know, again, as a mom of two kids real things, there's always priorities pulling you in different directions.

Um, and it can be a lot to juggle, and sometimes you do have to set priorities.

Um my priorities have always been first the most vulnerable people, the people who need me the most, but um everyone matters in the ward, or everyone matters in the city.

Um not only the the people who are most struggling.

Uh I want to create a happy, safe, um, stable Grand Rapids for everyone here.

Um, so engaging with everyone is a top priority, listening to everyone, valuing all the residents.

Um I have uh quite a bit of cultural experience in different groups around the ward, not only the Spanish speaking um population, and so I'm very comfortable going everywhere.

There's not a part of our ward where I would feel nervous, you know, and engaging with people.

Um yeah, I uh I attended, you know, I attend a small Spanish speaking church right now, and when I was in college, I attended uh largely African American church all through college, and um they were it wasn't just the church I went to, um the adults there were my mentors, they were the people that kept me out of trouble and made sure I didn't go down a bad path.

They were the people I went to when my heart got broken, or you know, I was struggling financially or whatever.

That was my main support group, and so I'm um have a lot of ties in that community, and um they have a big piece of my heart for all of those years that that was supported by them.

Uh also um I would say one of my examples is former uh commissioner Repart.

Uh, we have a very good relationship, and I admire his level of engagement in the community.

He's someone who I think um knows every project going on in every precinct, and he's been willing to support me in my campaign and not just to help me get elected, but to actually make me a good commissioner and be good at the job.

And uh I've it's been wonderful to learn from him and to have his sort of mentorship in this process.

Um so that will be a support that I uh you know I'm confident I'll continue to have moving forward.

Um, and as far as managing uh you know the needs of the community, I have, you know, like all of you, I have another job.

Um, I'm very fortunate.

My job is pretty flexible as far as the schedule goes.

My supervisor lives in my ward and signed my petition to get on and is very supportive of me doing this and has kind of said, you know, whatever it is you need, we'll arrange your schedule around um around this job so that I can actually be available and make it to those community events and engage with the community um and meet them where they are with what they need.

And like as I mentioned before, I think um Commissioner Velchuk and I would work really well together and can kind of tag team um uh community events.

She's also out there quite a bit.

I run into her wherever something's going on, and having our you know, kids get starting to get to know each other and be able to entertain each other, that also will help um me with uh being available to meet with all those groups and try and I mean the goal is to prioritize everyone, but you know, sometimes you have to make choices, and and my choice will always be like the most urgent need, uh, but not to forget about anyone.

Thanks.

Uh Commissioner Knight.

Yes, thank you.

Thanks for coming, uh Lindsay.

Um, my question is how do you work with community?

Uh, especially when we have a crisis that impacts the safety of our community.

Yeah, I think that's a great question.

And again, being in mental health, um, crisis management is something that I'm pretty accustomed to uh dealing with.

And the first thing is to uh show up and be there.

And I have to mention um a well-known community member, uh Robert Momack, Commissioner Womack, who I see wherever people are hurting.

Whenever someone's having a hard time, whenever something bad happens, he's just there and and saying pray for the family and and be with the family.

And um that's something that uh I think is important to as a community leader to just show up, to just be there.

Um, it's not always about fixing the problem, it's not always about legislating, even though those things matter.

Um a lot of it is just being present and uh uh former Commissioner Reppart said uh holding grief and just holding grief with people, uh validating feelings, uh, you know, even when there's other uh controversial issues going around, you can always validate someone's feelings, and you can always sympathize with someone's feelings.

So I have experience with crisis management.

I think another way I would support them is just using utilizing the experience of the team.

You guys have all been doing this for a while, and I respect your wisdom and your experience as well, and working with you and how to manage those crisis situations.

Also uh connecting people to resources.

That's another thing being in the social with a social work background that I'm very accustomed to doing is you know, listen to how people are doing, identify the issue, validate their feelings, and then problem solve and work to connect people to resources, decide on appropriate intervention.

And I also think another issue with crises in the community is you know, people want answers, and we're some of the most accessible politicians.

You guys, you know this people are what whether you can do something or not about the issue, people are here because we're very accessible.

And so some you know, I think a piece of being a good commissioner is just educating people on what the commission does, what we can do, what we can't do, and helping direct people in the in the right, you know, place.

Like who you really need to be talking to is a state representative, and and that they're the ones that you know legislate on this thing, and so on.

So people have a direction to go with their emotions and their energy uh from that whatever situation they're dealing with.

Thank you.

Thanks.

Commissioner Purdue.

Yes, good morning.

Thank you so much for being with us.

I've been excited to um hear from you and get to know you a little bit better in this forum.

Uh so I would like to ask about your top priority issues.

Um, what are your top priority issues?

And the second part of that question would be how would you work with this commission over the next few months to accomplish or make progress on your goals and priorities?

Yeah, so many priorities.

Obviously, I could not be here and not mention housing.

Um, as a therapist, I've had clients uh sitting in session with me where we have literally made the plan of okay, you're gonna leave here, you're gonna buy a tent, and here's an affordable campsite, and the weather's good right now, so until we can find housing for you, you know, that's where you're gonna be.

I've had clients in motel rooms for long stretches of time.

So, you know, everybody knows this.

We have to work on housing.

I do support the goals of the Affordable Housing Fund Board.

Um, and you know, focusing on uh home ownership.

I live in a neighborhood, and I think one of our frustrations is when uh large companies come in and buy up big swaths of the neighborhood and and don't leave the stock and for us.

So I do want to, I think that it would be good for the city to keep focusing focusing on home ownership using the land bank to create affordable homes, um duplexes that utilize the space well, um, so that we're creating as you know as many living dwelling spaces as possible that people can actually afford to buy and helping with the um down payments for those.

Um, I know that the research has shown we need to work on all levels of housing and that that that does the most for helping everyone, but I obviously we need to also focus on the neediest populations and the people who are closest to becoming unhoused or who are unhoused.

Uh I'm I think I believe uh Mr.

Repart brought up Wellhouse and the population at 30% AMI.

Um, that also has to be a priority and is a priority for me.

And I I would like to engage with and support places like Wellhouse and ICCF and the work that they're doing.

I'd like to help um focus on Grand Rapids growing in a way that protects our like neighborhood feel and the stability of kids growing up in a home that they can go back to.

I met a child a while ago in my neighborhood who'd moved seven times in his life, and he was like 13.

And that in itself is a trauma when you have to change schools, when you have to change homes when you don't have that stable place.

Public safety is another priority for me.

Uh being in mental health, I have had the opportunity to work with law enforcement very successfully on some cases, combining those two approaches and sometimes unsuccessfully.

Um, and I've been able to see where law enforcement can drop the ball when they're not trained well and don't have the techniques that they need for engaging with certain parts of the population.

Um, I know our co-response team, there was a study in 2005 that in their first three years, they helped uh divert 1,100 emergency room visits, 1200 ambulance, and 500 uh jail visits.

And they started out with just one person.

So the numbers coming from them are very good.

I think the time of and the enforcement only approach to public safety is passed, and we know that their um access to mental health is tremendously important.

Um, amongst other interventions.

I had a client years ago, a 13-year-old kid, um he was a single single parent family, his mom worked a lot, so he was by himself after school, he was by himself all summer long, and he told me when I took the case that he was considering joining a gang out of sheer boredom.

Um he just had nothing to do.

And as a community, we're gonna have to come together, I believe, and and this is another I'm not gonna get to all my priorities, but uh summer programming for kids, I think is really important and is a big part of public safety.

Um, what the adage is the idle hands are the devil's tool or something, but uh bored kids are not a good thing wandering around the city.

They need to be using their imaginations, they need to be engaging, they need to have like appropriate um responsible adults, you know, oversight and and investment in them.

So as a community, we need to come together and invest in our kids and provide some of that programming.

Uh the climate, of course, I'm very happy about the CAP plan that you guys passed, and I would be thrilled to help uh implement that, and we're doing a lot of things in my own home to reduce waste and trash that I think uh lot all of our residents could do relatively easily, and I would love to be part of initiatives to um help reduce waste, particularly cool.

Last but not least, Commissioner Kilger.

Thank you.

Thank you so much for being here and being a part of the process.

Um I deeply uh value you stepping up to uh serve your neighbors.

If you could uh my question for you is how have you worked with frontline communities such as black, indigenous, and other communities of color, older adults, people with disabilities, and residents who are often most directly and more heavily impacted by economic, environmental, and public service challenges.

And how would that experience shape your prior priorities in decision making as first ward commissioner?

Yes, uh great question also.

Um I've already talked at length that about I speak Spanish and I have strong ties to our immigrant community.

Um that informs how I um how I think uh about the ward and and where we should go.

Um, and I spoke about how uh my experience, um some of my experience in the African American community.

Uh I I'll tell a couple stories because being when I was part of that church um that predominantly African American church when I was in college, I had a lot of interesting, I guess you could say, experiences.

Um, and one situation I was um uh I was picked up by a friend of mine, uh young African American man, he was a cornerstone student at the time, really great, you know, going places, good good kid, and he was giving me a ride somewhere, and uh police officer got on our tail and followed us and forever until we were just almost out of his jurisdiction, finally pulled us over and said to my friend, I just need to make sure this is your car, or this actually belongs to you.

Um, and so that was one of a number of very eye-opening experiences for me, not just um that these are you know, these are the experiences of um people of color, but that the emotional and psychological impact of that.

I was um it was a sad moment, and I saw how that deflated him.

I saw how that made him feel, um, and I'm very sensitive to the fact that you know, we know expectations on children in psychology.

There's been plenty of studies on it, the incredible impact of people's expectations of children.

They live up to those expectations.

And so when we're treating our young people who have you know darker skin tones with this expectation that I know you're doing something wrong, I just need to figure it out.

That has a deep and negative psychological impact on them.

And that's something that I know there's not a quick fix or an easy fix, and something people have been concerned about for many, many generations, but I absolutely want to be part of the momentum behind how do we curb racial profiling and those practices and how they impact um communities and people of color.

Uh I also, as a therapist, um I work with different LGBTQ clients.

Um, I have clients who, in some cases, young people who are one of the only people in the world that know how they feel because they're not safe in their homes and they're getting, you know, they're afraid of being bullied at school.

I've had um children I've had to hospitalize with suicidal ideation because of the uh way they're received um by either their families or their um their school community and so on.

So I know that creating a welcoming environment literally saves lives, and that's also something that's just near and dear to my heart is continuing to move forward in a way that is um welcoming and affirming to all of the people, regardless of skin color, regardless of orientation of any type, um, we need to be kind to people.

It's kind of a simple message, um, but it's one that we need, you know, in a world where people are seeing things things like the problem with the modern world is empathy.

Um, those of us who understand that that's ridiculous, uh, need to stand strong and keep you know pushing for an equitable Grand Rapids and an uh a loving and caring Grand Rapids.

Um, so I will say I have not as just admit an area of growth for me would be the uh you know original people's population.

Um I've there's only 24 hours in a day, and I've been very involved in lots of things in the community and so on, but that's uh a particular population I'd like to uh work to spend more time with and create more understanding of.

Thank you so much for your answer.

Great.

So uh you have 25 minutes.

No, 15 minutes.

So you've got as much time as you probably want, and probably more.

Um but anything we didn't cover in our questions that that uh you wanted to bring up that you didn't bring up in your opening statement.

Anything you want to follow up on, or the floor is yours.

Yeah, thanks.

Um so I uh, you know, there's a lot of things with becoming a commissioner that I think all of you know when you first start, there's a big learning curve.

Um when you're first elected, you've not done the job before.

If you're first appointed, you've not done the job before.

And I'm very cognizant of that.

That uh uh if appointed and Lord willing when elected, there will be a learning curve for me.

And and I'm excited.

Um I'm excited for that.

I'm looking forward um forward to that.

I will say that one of the best things that I bring to the table is that I have a pretty rock solid moral compass.

Um, and I've faced a lot of adversity in my time in places that I've worked, I've been under pressure to engage in practices that were unethical and harmful.

Um, and during times where I was paycheck to paycheck and really needed my job and and loved the things I was doing.

Uh, and I have I've always said there's something in me that's like stronger than myself that when it comes down to it, I'm just gonna do the right thing, regardless of what the consequences are.

And I think that's the thing I most appreciate about myself.

Um in therapy, I feel like it's not that much different than engaging with the community as a whole.

Um, I listen to people, um, I help them define the issue that they want to work on.

Uh I validate their emotions.

We work on creating innovative and creative solutions to their problem, and I help connect into resources.

And I would bring that same formula to community engagement.

Listen to people, help them define the problem, come up with creative and innovative solutions and connect them to resources.

Uh, my faith does guide me.

Um, the values of self-sacrifice, justice, and putting others first.

Um, and since I watch a lot of Disney movies as a mom, I will use a line from frozen, just do the next right thing.

And when, and I know you guys know this, politics gets crazy, and there's a lot of noise, and there's a lot of um uh competing factors and interests and the you know, that can distract you from the actual work that you're doing, the good work that you're doing.

And so my way to shut out the noise is to think about just do the next right thing.

What's the thing you need to do right now that's gonna make the world a better place?

Um, I also, you know, I with my 43 years on this planet, um I've accomplished a lot of the things I've wanted to accomplish already.

And I've learned I think one of the best things I've learned is how to how to value myself.

Um I value myself because God gave made me, and that's all I need to know.

And um, when you have a solid base for how you value yourself, then you can handle everything else that's happening.

And I think there's a danger for people going into politics.

If your self-worth isn't solid, then you start to get it from oh, I got this position, well, I want this next position.

Um, and or if you don't get a position, then you're devastated and all of those things.

Um, I have a really solid self-esteem that's rooted in my faith.

And so I won't get sidetracked, and I won't get attracted to the next shiny thing.

Um, and so you know, we're all here today to a degree because someone decided to step down and go after the next thing.

I'm committed to not doing that.

Um, I'm doing this.

The pleasure I get out of doing this, the pleasure I would get out of being a commissioner is the opportunity to help people.

It's not to boost my self-esteem.

I don't have big political plans for myself.

I'm not looking at the next position.

I'm not using this as a stepping stone to anywhere else.

I want to do this job.

I want to do this job to my best ability and serve my community.

Um I'm committed to my ward, my city.

I'm committed to regular working class people.

I'm committed to the most vulnerable people and to making our community a better place for my own children and for everyone else's children.

Great.

Thank you.

All right, that leaves us as before with uh 10 surplus minutes.

So we'll be back in 20 minutes for our third one.

Thank you, Lizzie.

Interview, right?

But you weren't in for the first one, so you know the rhythm.

So go ahead and tell us whatever you want to tell us for as long as you want, uh, as long as it's less than 45 minutes at the opening, but ideally it'd be less than 30 minutes because we have six questions that we're gonna give you a four minute shot clock on.

I'm not gonna cut you off, but um you know, we will notice your ability to follow simple directions.

Um four minutes for the questions if you want to use it and then time at the end to back clean up, uh talk about anything that you know you didn't think we covered that you want to emphasize.

So take it away.

Thank you so much and good morning to all of you.

Thank you for giving me this opportunity to be here.

Uh I think I may be the most shocked person uh in this room that I am actually here.

And um, so just to remind you all, my name is Dan Cope, and I am a professor at Grand Valley State University where I teach interdisciplinary studies, which is a really fabulous program that brings together different disciplines in order to approach problems that have no easy resolution and look at them from various angles in order to try to get to some kind of some kind of resolution.

Um, not unlike the problems that many of you encounter here.

So just a little bit of background information.

I am not from here originally, I'm from Dayton, Ohio.

And uh, but I did move to Grand Rapids in 2009 and lived in the city's second ward for over a little over a decade.

Um and since 2019, um I have lived on near Coval and Lake Michigan Drive, um, up the hill, and I have a fabulous neighborhood with fabulous neighbors, and in fact, there have been many of my neighbors who have needed to move out of our neighborhood because they needed um bigger housing, but chose not to because our neighbors are so fabulous.

Um, you know, I for many years have worked in public service.

Um I worked, started by working at a library.

I've worked at several libraries, in fact, public libraries, um, worked at Grand Rapids Charter Township, doing a little bit of everything before I found a real calling in 2020 when I was deputized to work the um election, the general election.

And from there, I was able to parlay my you know love of civic engagement into the classroom community where I have focused a lot on teaching civic leadership to my students under the umbrella of the interdisciplinary program, which has allowed me to do some really amazing things.

Um I I'm just a grass uh a really proud Grand Rapidian.

And in fact, in 2009, when I first moved here, the first gift that my husband who is here with me that he gave me, and he is a native Grand Rapidian, um, East Town native.

Uh he gave me the gift of a city street map.

And it was broken down by neighborhood.

And I spent my first few months living in Grand Rapids, pouring through this uh atlas and just making my way around the city so that I could learn how to drive it without having to use GPS.

And so since I I really found that I found a home here, I feel like I'm at home here and that um this is where I want to spend the rest of my life.

So I'm really appreciative that I get to even be in this really great position to be speaking with you.

Um people uh who I really admire the work that you're doing, and I recognize that it is tough.

And for some reason, I want to do it anyway.

Thank you.

Great.

So uh first question is uh mine, and that is um can you talk about your history of civic engagement?

It's particularly maybe something that you're most proud of and the outcomes of it.

Okay, yes.

Um I have a lot of things that I'm proud of, but uh I will focus on again.

I mentioned in 2020, I I did have the privilege of being deputized to work the general election for Grand Rapids Charter Township, and that experience taught me that there is really a need for a better informed emerging electorate.

Um I saw the threat that information posed to ordinary civic participation uh in the democratic processes, and so when I did become full-time faculty that that next year, I set to work using my expanded role to provide students with the resources and knowledge that's required to become responsible and responsive community members.

So I joined first thing I did was I joined the nonpartisan coalition, GVSU Votes, coordinating and training volunteers for the Allendale Township Clerk's Office that that operates a satellite office on campus, and I've done that for every general election since 2022.

I've contributed to the annual action plan that Grand Valley submits to maintain its gold member status as a voter-friendly campus with a more than 76% student voter turnout, which is amazing.

And I also collaborated with members of our IT department to produce a voter education module that was deployed community-wide to all students for the general election in 2024.

And I'm I'm especially proud of that.

I consistently find ways to integrate knowledge of these key support systems into my first curriculum, my first year curriculum, and every course that I teach is discussion-based and imbued with themes that are related to social responsibility and informed citizenship.

Concerned with anti-democratic trends, I designed a special topics course called Sustainable Democracy that ran concurrently with the 2024 general election, and this course really came to life during that time, giving students the chance to learn about the abstract dimensions of democracy as well as hands-on experience with the with the processes.

So I partnered with the Allendale Township and Ottawa County Clerks to design high-impice projects that they completed.

And highlights included students working with GVSU votes and the university communications team to produce a series of social media stories that promoted student voter participation.

So this was students talking to other students about why voting is important and how to do so.

And they also worked as greeters for the three days that the satellite office operated on campus.

And the final project for this course was actually designed by them, and they chose to run a debate with student-determined questions centering around the concept of citizenship and really conditional citizenship.

So many of the students that I have do go on to public service roles.

And they are they often ask me about my own public service, and I I credit them for continuing to push me to take on additional responsibility in this city that I love.

And so I'm just so excited to have found myself in this space and be able to report back to them that you know, here's an ordinary person just like you who can go on to take responsibility for their community.

Thank you.

Great.

Thanks.

Wonderful.

Great to have you in our neighborhood.

And um up the hill, as you said.

Uh so as you know or may realize, this role really doesn't slow down for competing interests and demands.

So prioritization and follow-through really matter.

So here's an example or a scenario to work through.

Early in your appointment, um, you're juggling an urgent uh resident issue, a commission initiative already underway, and a request from a respected community leader to pause on a decision that you don't have the votes to stop.

You can only meaningfully advance one.

What do you prioritize?

What do you defer, and how do you work within those constraints to influence the outcome and communicate your decision?

So just to clarify the question, it is prioritizing between an urgent resident issue, uh ongoing commission priority, and a request from a community partner to pause an initiative that is underway.

Right, a community respected community leader to pause a decision.

You don't have the votes to stop.

Thank you.

Well, um I would see the first duty of this job is to partner with you, Commissioner Belchak, um to provide you with the support that's needed to represent the first ward.

And my own values really align with yours and align with the work that you're already doing, and I feel like, you know, having met you and started working on some projects with you, that we make a really great team.

And so the first thing that I would do is bring it to you.

Get your expert opinion as someone who has been doing this job and who has been elected to do this job to be responsible and responsive to community needs.

Um and get your opinion on how we would move forward as a team together.

And if I were to think realistically about what I could accomplish in any given situation, no matter what it was, um, I think that the first objective of this job is providing support that's required to effectively carry on the work that is already ongoing by the commission.

And so I am well aware of the restrictions that existing frameworks put onto an organization's ability to adapt to ongoing work.

And I've learned that no amount of wishing or armchair quarterbacking is going to change these conditions under which we work.

And so I think that relying on past tried and true methods of decision making, you know, that have helped move me through any kind of emergent situation is something that I would first rely on.

And I think that slowing down is your first step.

Slowing down is an intentional practice.

Good decisions are made deliberately, proactively, and by splitting up labor.

And I'm here to be a team player and to work with you to do that.

I would also ask questions what is the most pressing need and address that first, right?

Sometimes emergent situations require us to pivot quickly, but we must we must make sure that we do so intentionally.

Well, I think we would need to explain to those community stakeholders that you know we need to prioritize emergent situations while also following policy and doing so deliberately.

And then finally, um I would just trust my fellow commissioners.

You are doing this work, you are experts in doing this work, and the work has been ongoing, and so sticking to that process and relying on the expertise that is already in place would be my ultimate decision.

Thanks.

Um Commissioner Science.

Thank you, Mayor.

Um thanks for being here.

Nice to see you.

Um my question is how would you balance the needs, wants, desires of the different different constituency groups that exist in this commission role?

So looking at individuals, you know, sometimes have a neighbor who comes down to my door and knocks and has questions oftentimes after commission meetings, different community groups, neighborhood associations, uh, small businesses, larger business, and different um institutions or associations.

Thanks.

Thank you for that question.

Uh thinking about you know, businesses and residents and how we support both and ensuring that these various constituencies are having their needs met.

Um, I think that there's a holistic way to approach that.

Economic growth is critical to a city's success, and we must continue to be a place that is attractive to talent, um, which means working with employers that both bring that talent from outside and nurture the amazing human resources that we already have.

Um I support small business ownership and employee-owned businesses, and I think that you know the Chamber of Commerce has done a really great job at developing some of those relationships and supporting a culture of thriving local business owners.

So I would want to make sure that I'm also cultivating a partnership with that body as I make any kind of decisions.

Um, but I think that this also has to be balanced with the needs of our large-scale employers that we have, like Grand Valley, my employer.

Um, as a transplant, you know, to this city, I was attracted by the vibrancy of Grand Rapids, the robust arts and culture scene, the diversity of its people, and the restaurants that inevitably come when people move around.

Um, you know, I I love the walkable mixed-use neighborhoods full of independently owned shops, and when people make decisions about where to work, they the places where they spend their non-working hours are equally important in their decision-making process.

Um, and so I see the issues that are connected with housing, transportation, and recreational spaces as important as the decisions uh and initiatives that support businesses.

Um to provide you with an example of how we can support multiple constituencies by investing in other related issues is through public transportation.

And public transportation does help to keep the cost of living low.

My husband and I purchased our home in the first ward in part because of its proximity to the Laker line, which allows us to use only just one personal vehicle that we have.

And so I see how vital public transit is for reducing both traffic and accidents on Lake Michigan Drive, especially that I transverse often.

And I know that every dollar invested in public transportation generates $5 in economic returns.

Public transportation also promotes independence amongst our aging and disabled communities.

And the service is aligned with the city's climate action and adaptation plan to reduce 30% of total community-wide greenhouse gas that is produced by having too many cars on the streets.

And so, in other words, and this is getting to the reason why I'm using this as an example, but in other words, providing robust public transportation options is in the interest of all city residents and business owners, whether they ride the rapid or not.

And one way that you can ensure that you are meeting the needs of multiple stakeholders at once is by looking at the larger picture and seeing how the pieces work together holistically.

And so I would always take a holistic view to see how existing services can work together to support multiple stakeholders at once.

Thanks.

Thank you.

Thanks for being here.

Thank you.

How do you work with community, especially when we have a crisis that impacts the safety of our community?

Well, I tell my students that the only thing that you can count on in life is that things will go awry at some point.

And so you follow the rules, you behave proactively, you run the tape for various scenarios so that when moments arise that require you to adapt, you are better able to meet that moment so that you don't have to rely on snap judgments that may be rooted in emotion.

We put plans in place with the anticipation that priorities will shift.

But we must also balance this with our existing obligations.

And this sometimes means when a crisis occurs and the public is left with questions that you must educate the public so that you can explain decisions or actions that may be unpopular so that people understand why the measures are being implemented, even if they don't agree with them.

I think that one of the issues that has been uh recently top of mind for a lot of people is policing and public safety.

Um the last national community survey indicated that crime prevention and law enforcement services are top of mind for folks, and that's come into even sharper focus lately.

I support preventative initiatives, speaking of running the tape, planning for eventual scenarios, um, but I put I support preventative initiatives like the Cure Violence Program and the Co-Response Model.

After speaking with several members of the Grand Rapids Police Department, uh I've also learned that some of these programs fall short when it comes to finding long-term solutions, uh, especially for folks who have severe addiction and mental or behavioral health complications.

And so I I want to explore a potential bridge between short-term actions and long-term success to better resolve some of those concomitant issues that we see, like chronic homelessness, substance abuse, and violence that can occur when people are living lives in desperation.

I see initiatives like the newly introduced neighborhood investment plan already addressing some of these root causes.

Resilient neighborhoods that people feel safe in are ones where people will build relationships with their neighbors and they'll grow their social circles.

Encouraging home ownership through down payment assistant and foreclosure intervention give people stability and optimism.

So does homelessness prevention in expanded mental health care services like those that are offered by Network 180.

When people have their basic needs met, they have a better chance at thriving and meeting challenging situations or crises when they arise.

By continuing to have robust public education programs and ensuring that people from all walks of life feel welcomed and know that when they call for help, it will be delivered.

This also happens by supporting those who are responsible for public safety.

I mentioned in my application a desire to recruit officers with college degrees, and I heard broad support for that when I met with members of the Grand Rapids Police Officers Association.

These officers also described a need for better benefits like time off and access to professional development opportunities.

Doing this will help the city retain top talent that is well trained in community care to meet that need when crises arise.

But acting chief uh Trig just said something to me the other day that I thought was really encouraging, that people don't call people they don't trust for help.

And so I believe that there are ways that we can both support community members who have been put into sometimes desperate situations that have resulted in less than desirable outcomes while also supporting our neighbors in blue who willingly step into those dangerous solutions uh situations in order to protect and serve the public.

And I'm out of time.

Thank you.

I'm we're not gonna cut you off.

It's it's a it's a guideline, right?

Um we're all grown-ups and you've got we got 45 minutes for this.

Um Commissioner Purdue.

Oh, I'm sorry, did what was who's that last question from it was Commissioner Purdue.

Good morning.

Good afternoon.

And now uh great to meet you and uh I've been enjoying getting to know you and um your thoughts on the city in this role.

Um so I want to hear more about your what your top priority issues would be um in this role.

Um so kind of a two-part question.

A, what are your top priority issues?

And then B, how would you work with this commission over the next few months, months, to accomplish or make progress on your goals and priorities?

Thank you for the question.

Um, I already spoke a little bit about my priorities around transportation and around public safety.

So uh I'm gonna speak a little bit about housing then.

The cost and availability of housing is a top concern for uh many people, and I see this most clearly amongst my colleagues at Grand Valley, many of whom live in the first ward because of its proximity to the campuses.

Um because top employers employ import so many transplants, there does need to be housing options that keep a pace of this kind of growth.

And I was dismayed to hear from a colleague in New Grand Rapidian that he paid less to rent a house in Toronto than he does on the city's northwest side.

Others describe unsustainable rent hikes and difficulty becoming homeowners because the money that they would be saving for a down payment is being spent on rent.

While I'm very impressed with the city's commitment to encouraging homeownership through the provision of fair housing education and counseling, I think that you know we could do more, including for uh including for people you know who I work with, you know, young professionals who are excluded from some of these public assistant programs that require you to make less than 80% of the median income.

I acknowledge that there are limits to what a city can do, uh especially when working under state policies that preclude rent stabilization.

Um but uh as I do think that we can explore renter-friendly policies like writing a rented uh tenants' rights ordinance.

Um as I understand it, there's little policy for protection for reliable tenants who are being driven out by um you know unsustainable rent hikes, and others may want to break a lease uh in order to buy a home, but find that they either can't because of the exorbitant fees that they would incur or because of the intricate timing that would be required to do so is incompatible with the home buying process.

Providing renters with better support in the form of protection from predatory landlords would permit more renters to make long-term investments in our community.

Um as the city anticipates the upcoming zoning rewriting process, we should prioritize actions that support both owner-occupied um housing as well as policies that support locally owned property rentals that will advantage renters and prevent many of the private companies uh from buying existing housing stock only to make a profit from exploitative rental policies or practices, I should say.

Um that's a little bit about my my interest in housing, but I also want to acknowledge that because I'm not running for election for this role, um, I see realistically the work that could be done is is the role of caretaker.

Um and so I I also don't think it would be appropriate for me to come in with too many um preconceived judgments on the existing work of the commission or ideas that may never actually occur.

Um, but rather what I can offer are my talents to critically assess the plans that are in place that are undergoing, um, to identify potential gaps and ask questions to seek perspectives uh from experts and review existing models that have been successfully implemented in the past or in cities elsewhere.

Uh I would also work diligently to in a supportive capacity to the fellow commissioners.

As everyone on this commission knows, when you're elected to this body, you're you are uh you do so with a mandate from the voters who supported your candidacy.

And so uh a caretaker really doesn't have that kind of expectation.

Um and so I believe that uh you know it would be more appropriate for me not to in a certain agenda when the work is underway, when really what this calls for is a team member who can contribute to the efforts that have been made by you who were elected to address the voters' needs.

Thanks.

Commissioner Kilger.

Thank you, Mayor.

Thanks so much for being with us, and thank you for taking part in this process.

It is commendable to step up to your neighbor for your neighbors to serve.

Thank you.

My question for you is how have you worked with frontline communities such as black, indigenous, and other communities of color, older adults, people with disabilities, and residents who are often most directly and more heavily impacted by economic, environmental, and public service challenges.

How would that experience shape your priorities in decision making as first word commissioner?

So, when thinking about the residents that I most interact with, I'm often thinking about students, uh, some of whom are city residents, uh, many of whom are not, but I'll use them as an example of populations that I do have regular interaction with to answer your question, Commissioner Kilgore.

Uh I teach a course called Diversity in the US, which studies identity, history, culture, and social structures with the aim of increasing cultural fluency in our society.

And because this course covers sensitive topics with a diverse student uh population participating in these discussions, the conversations can become tense uh often.

But what I found is that people want to have constructive conversations about these subjects that don't devolve into a vector invective the way that we often see happening around us.

Diversity of opinion, I found usually stems from diverse life experiences, what's considered normal to one person, maybe radically different to another.

And so these fixed aspects of our identity influence how people perceive and treat us.

And so I lead students to first recognize that we do have different experiences, which informs the decisions that we make.

And where we run into conflict is when we make assumptions about the experiences that are other people that other people are having and apply our own experiences on top of their actions to say, why aren't you acting the way that I would?

Um but we avoid this by learning about one another.

And so if you decenter yourself and truly listen to what other people are telling you, um, you can usually find commonality.

And a part of this is recognizing the need to reevaluate your own opinions.

Uh you know, I have a lot of experience doing this in real time in class in front of a group of people when I've come to realize that my first judgment may be wrong or that I've you know miss misjudged something or misinterpreted something.

And to illustrate, uh to illustrate this what I'm talking about, I'd like to share with you uh an example, a story about working with a student who I have come to respect as a disability rights advocate in his own right.

And for the record, I do have a signed FERPA form.

So I can talk about this.

Um the student that the class that I mentioned earlier, diversity in the US, this was the class that I was teaching, and Ben was my student.

And Ben's experienced a series of strokes as a child that left him without the ability to speak.

And because I employ a discussion-based classroom, I knew that I would have to revise my own expectations about what constitutes robust participation to ensure that Ben could still meet the requirement.

And so we worked together to devise a system whereby Ben would type into a shared document that I could monitor uh in the class in real time and then share out his opinions and ideas on things as we went through the classroom discussion.

But because I didn't want him to feel singled out by these adjustments that I was making, I reconfigured the class structure so that all students would be put into small groups for the duration of the course and have their own Google document, uh which they could use for in-class projects.

And so I found myself throughout the semester implementing more collaborative projects because I saw how much the students were learning from each other rather just than just from me.

Um and Ben even asked if he could give a presentation on disability advocacy when we got to the unit on disability.

This was not a requirement, not something he had to do, but he volunteered to do this.

He pre-recorded a speech using a text reader that accompanied the slides that he had created, and at the end, all the students wanted to do was ask him questions about sign language, about his accomplishments, and about his service dog.

In a course that was about the subject of diversity, Ben taught everyone, myself included, that when you work beside people who are different from you, you become a stronger, more compassionate, better educated and capable person than you would if you were alone or without people who led different lives than you do.

This is the value of embracing diversity.

And it's a lesson that I carry with me whenever I'm asked to work on a team, interact with a group, or lead a classroom.

Thank you for your answer.

Thanks.

So you have a lot of time, as much time as you probably want to wrap it up since we, I guess, have another 13 minutes by my math 12.

But anything you want to add, uh uh summarize, follow up on things you think we might have missed, but you have as much time as you want, I think.

I don't want to take up too much of your time, so I'll keep it brief.

The only thing that I would want to add is that one of the benefits of notes.

You have amazing choices in front of you.

Kurt Repart and Lindsay Perez Player are very talented, knowledgeable people who would do a great job at this.

And I'm just excited that I get to be up here amongst them.

And so I think that whatever decision you make in front of you, you are gonna get the best person for the job because look at this amazing talent that you have.

Um again, I don't really know why I'm here.

But I am excited um just about this opportunity and really grateful that you gave me this chance to speak with you.

And I do have one thing to say that I think should be considered when making your decision is that because I do teach, and next week is exam week, I have the next four months off, which means I could really dedicate my time to getting this work done, to supporting you in the work that's already going on and really focusing my attention on the work that remains to be done in this short seven months.

That is the caretaker role until the next elected person comes in and starts in January.

And so if I would offer anything, it is the elbow grease and the time and attention that comes with being in that uh in that lucky position that I happen to be in.

Um I think that's all I have to say.

Thank you so much.

Thanks.

Uh so given that all three of you are here, um, that leaves me not worrying about an imbalance of who's here to listen to our deliberation.

But um, so I think we can start deliberating.

And I will kick this off by saying Ms.

Cope, you you you stole my my initial um central point, which is uh thank you to the three of you.

Um wow.

Uh to to say that the three of you are rock stars kind of gives rock stars too much credit because all they have to do is like shout in a microphone.

Um you really have uh an incredible amount of wisdom and uh talent.

Uh and it's kind of stunning.

Uh even though I've been involved in public service for a while, there are I got I get moments of imposter syndrome there.

Um you all bring such a depth of engagement and compassion and wisdom, and that's really really apparent.

Um so if you know two of you vanish in a puff of smoke right now, I'd be perfectly happy with a third one.

Um so I just I could not be happier, and and I guess that means thank you to my colleagues who are on the um selection committee for getting us three brilliant finalists.

Um you clearly did your work well.

Um I'm just gonna kick off by by pointing out the the strengths that I saw, and then you know, everyone can go around.

What I'd like to do, colleagues, is essentially have us all, you know, give our thoughts um and then um when we've done a round of that uh we can have an initial vote and we'll see how that goes and we'll go from there.

But I think it's appropriate for us to, you know, uh communicate with each other uh sequentially here.

So and I don't have any particular order that we want to do it in.

But um so uh Kurt, obviously you've got deep, deep expertise in housing, which is something that you know I think is maybe I mean it's clearly one of the more important issues in our constituents' mind.

I think that's clear to anybody who spends time in the community and and spends time to spends time talking to you know, actual voters in direct contact with door knocking, and it's clear from advocacy groups, uh it's clear from all the data.

Um and you know, uh I really want to profoundly thank you for I you're not gonna stop whatever happens in this decision.

Uh so uh thank you for your work in the house in the in the housing space.

Um obviously you are one of the two people here not running, and that's um that's a consideration I think we all have to balance.

Um I you have obviously thought deeply about other the other, you know, other issues that are of concern to the community and you've and you've rolled up your sleeve and and and gotten engaged in those.

And um, you know, you could it'd be hard to find somebody more deeply rooted in engagement than the West side.

And um uh I think we all know that, and we all knew that before you walked in here.

Um and uh, you know, you're a great example of somebody who's been on this commission but um didn't didn't stop for a moment in uh caring about and working on the things that that I think should be cared about and worked on.

And so I really um appreciate that.

Um and and I thought I think you uh you did a great job of highlighting those concerns.

Um Lindsay, lots of fun to hear you.

Um and and again, I for me, some of this is feeling like resonating with parts of my own life.

I mean, your your focus on and your skill in the mental health uh space and your your ability to zero in on the concerns there and practical ways in which your n your skills can be used in the community there is exciting.

Um your work uh in the immigrant space is also exciting and um you know a credit to you and and uh I'm I'm you know you've really obviously spent a lot of your time and in your life trying to make the world a better place for people besides yourself.

Um and that's amazing to hear.

And and your resonance with and your and your grounding in concerns about children is great too.

I mean I think that uh we all know and you probably know too, like maybe the number one uh thing that we get asked about that we don't have great answers on, uh maybe sometimes this commissioners is what are you gonna do about the education system or what are you gonna do to help kids?

And you know, we're not running the school systems in Grand Rapids, and so um but but I think that you you have ideas there and you have you have you know uh you focus in on some things that you know we I think we I think we could we could grow into things that will actually help uh children in our community become healthy civically engaged people, and that's so so important.

Um Dan, um, you know, you're singing my song and s at civic engagement, as you probably know.

Um, you know, I've said a lot in public that I'm worried about whether our republic is gonna hold together.

And um, you know, a lot of you, and I don't mean that you know you all share this.

I mean, Lindsay, you talked about, you know, the epidemic of loneliness and it's related to like whether we can build a strong enough community in this city to survive the storms of hyperpolarization, of people dropping out of cynicism, of uh, you know, disengagement generally.

And and those are things that, you know, even as we're trying to run a city and pick up trash and plow streets, we're also trying to keep the republic together and uh our opportunity to be a city that can do uh and and Dan, I I loved your your conversation.

I mean your your you went right to the thing a thing I talk about a lot, which is intellectual diversity is important.

Like often when we talk about diversity, we don't really want to hang around with people to disagree with us.

Um and the talent to do that is absolutely necessary for us to keep democracy going.

So again, uh I know all three of you are gonna keep doing all this stuff.

It's so it's it's just sort of fun to hear reports from your lives and your engagement and and all the great stuff you're doing.

Um I um and again not to be too personal here, but man, um uh uh some of uh some of you know my daughter is uh my youngest is born is blind and so and she's in college now and she is constantly dealing with that question of like does she have teachers who give a darn who are willing to figure out how to like if you got things up in charts that she can't read, how do you deal with that?

Or you know, do you just gently try to get her to take another course or do you just uh or do you actually include her in the curriculum?

Um and so I loved your example.

Could hardly have been better.

Um it's the um uh so that's that's space I could talk about all day.

And it's not uh and I I don't I mean, you know, you can say two things about diverse about disability.

One is we're all gonna be disabled eventually.

We can we can hope.

Um and uh we can all hope to live that long.

Um I was on crutches myself two weeks ago, so I was temporarily disabled.

Um but the other is uh how we you know how approaches to those to that population are emblematic of you know how we want to really instantiate how we live as a community generally.

So um I appreciate I appreciate so much all of your thoughtfulness.

Um I think it's fair to say I'm shocked.

Um I mean I know I've I've spent time with two of the three of you substantial time, so maybe I shouldn't have been shocked, but I'm still I'm still just like beyond impressed by all three of you.

So really really love you all.

Hope you're hope you're continue to stay engaged in the community.

Um, you know, we're gonna pick one, but I could not be more grateful to all three of you.

Um who wants to go next?

Show of hands.

Commissioner Knight, you won.

Hey.

Um, thank you all for uh your time and your energy in in putting yourself out there.

It is it is no easy feat.

This is not easy work.

Um and I I don't think people really understand the depth of um selflessness that goes into uh this work.

Um Kurt, I appreciate your knowledge and your wisdom.

And one thing that I said to people when um I ran for this position that it wasn't like putting on a new hat, because these are the things that we're all already doing in community, engaging with community, advocating on behalf of others, and really putting yourself out there to really see how we can make a difference in community.

So I'm I'm grateful for uh what you bring to the space, um, the open mind that you have to it and then and then the the knowledge.

I mean, we can't we just can't get past that, right?

And so um I'm really appreciative of the gifts and talents that you bring into this work.

Um Lindsay, um, you're you're very heartwarming um in the work that you do in community, um having been engaged in foster care, being an adoptive and foster care parent.

Uh I understand that work that goes into uh working with our young people and working in community, and it it takes a lot of heart uh to continue to do that and be able to see things uh in a different way to be able to bring greater impact into our community and really impact change, lasting change that affects lives of people uh very very deeply.

And so I really appreciate uh what you bring as well.

Um and Dan, I was um I was I was like, wow, um thank you for what you you brought.

You were you were slick because you was at the end, so you knew how to you know I'm just gonna say that you were real slick, and that's great.

I love it, I love it.

You were able to pivot and move.

Um, but I I really appreciate uh the thought process, especially with your your education in the civic space and and teaching and educating our young people on what it takes to live in community, um, to work together and to really think about uh how their lives impact the ones around them and how what they will do in the future will impact everyone.

And so I'm really grateful for what you all have brought.

This this has really been enlightening today.

Um I echo what our mayor said in just the wow.

Um thank you all because you are the seeds that will continue to uh sprout roots that will go deep in this community and help us to continue to grow and change and be vibrant in the things that we do and how we impact the lives of others.

So um again, my my deepest gratitude to all of you um for stepping into this space and and the work doesn't end tomorrow, you all.

There's still more to be done, and so we're grateful however you're connected with it.

Whether you're chosen today doesn't mean that you're disconnected from what we do here as a as a community and as a body, and and I hope to continue to stay connected with all of you.

Thank you.

Any other hands?

I'm gonna wait for volunteers here, so I'll pick on somebody.

Commissioner Yasasi.

Thank you.

Um thank you everyone.

Thanks for people who are watching.

Um, I have been pretty clear and transparent through this process, sort of what my choice was, and um some may say, well, gosh, you've already made your mind up.

Yeah, I am.

I'm a pretty decisive person.

Um kind of seeing some of the stuff up here, the time frame.

Um, and so you know, I used to work in HR, so when you get to this point, you could hire or appoint all three of you, um, as was said by my colleagues.

Um, and so colleagues, I um you know would say thank you.

Uh lots of good things.

I think that there is a commonality of what people want to see, which I think is a commonality amongst many of our neighbors.

Um but for me, I um intend to continue to support Kurt Repart as I have said before.

Um, you know, I think that we have now three candidates in this first ward race, so there will be a primary that occurs um August.

What day is it?

Four fourth, August 4th.

So um uh Lindsay will be on the ballot and Steve will be on the ballot, and uh now Jordan Eatman will be on the ballot.

So um that you know changes up the race even more.

And so for me, I think uh even more so would like somebody who is not gonna be running, which Kurt has not filed.

I don't see him mounting a writing campaign.

Um, and that's why we really framed it around this time because I think you know, for me, Kurt's word was enough, but I understand if that was not enough for others.

Um, and then I think if Kurt wasn't here, I'd probably pick Dan.

Um, and that's no nothing against Lindsay, it's just mostly because Lindsay's running.

Um and so I see the merits in every single one, um, but that will be the decision that I'll be putting forth.

Thank you.

Colleagues.

Alas, okay.

And thank you all so much.

Um, this was uh I I agree, uh a wonderful morning, wonderful time well spent getting to know all of you and also just want to commend you for your willingness to step up and serve and to bring your talent and your passion to the table.

Um what I noticed about everyone is that you all take a uh interdisciplinary approach, which I think is so key when we're discussing public policy and local leadership, and you all clearly bring your professional and personal experience to show up in community with your family and in many realms of service to date.

Um I also took away that all of you are really hard workers, uh, and will roll up the sleeve and and do some hard uh work that may or may not be sexy or always exciting or even always uh very public, uh, but is important to move things forward.

Um and I think that those those qualities are so critical in local leadership.

Um so I thank you all so much again for putting yourself out there and sharing that with us, and it it's an indication to me of exciting times in terms of the bench that we're building for elected leadership in the city.

Um the idea of a learning, I mean we've we've talked about that dynamics of this year with the election and wanting someone to hit the ground running and um the pop the learning curve that will happen no matter how much you have or haven't engaged um in this particular what role at this time, there's going to be a learning curve.

Uh that being said, I think we have a very unique opportunity that I'm excited about to work with someone who is well supported on on in the first ward, um, who knows the city uh and city business and policy and opportunities really well, and who that has been impactful and can hit the ground running.

So I am excited to have learned and got to know each of you, and I commend the good work of the appointments committee.

Um, and after today's interview would uh also be supportive of appointing Kurt uh in this interim time.

I think he would be an amazing support to Commissioner Belshack.

Um, I know he has been in informal capacities uh to date.

Um I will look forward to personally working with you and uh continuing to learn our time on commission didn't overlap, but I've always thought that you are uh such a heartfelt, um thoughtful but also strategic leader that's important when you're serving people, but also looking to push specific policy.

Um and both of those are really important uh parts of this role, and so I think we could collaborate really well and with so much happening, um, particularly to your point in the first ward with these huge new assets and what that means for everything from transportation to parking and special events, uh, that your depth of knowledge um in all of the work of the city and those projects haven't been at the table when they were first initiated, and now uh would just be really really valuable in terms of specific representation for our first warders, but as well as I think um contributing really well to this body in full uh during the budget process, during some key hiring, um, and a host of other issues that we can't even anticipate will happen between now and the end of the year.

So, thank you all again, really appreciate getting to know each of you in this forum.

Um really excited that the first ward will have three amazing choices uh this fall and would um really really want to work with Kurt for the rest of this year in this uh in this interim interim seat.

So thank you.

Okay, um well, thank you everyone.

Um it'll be interesting to see who the last person uh I do have some thoughts and notes, but first of all, um I am beaming with pride right now.

I am so thrilled and happy to know each of these individuals in different capacities, to see their strengths come out, to have seen them grow in this um appointment process.

So I I cannot state enough how I'm just so proud of what we are doing here for the city.

Um I also want to acknowledge that this is not an easy process, that this is a different difficult process for all of us to be in.

Um you guys are amazing, you're balanced, you're credible, you're each bringing different experiences and perspectives and approaches to service, and each of you have demonstrated significant and visible professionalism, care, and genuine commitment to this community.

And like I said, I would be proud to have all of you.

I actually feel like I have a team right now just having you here.

Um, so I want to be clear about that up front because the this this process needs to be fair, balanced, and transparent for our community.

This is not a perfect process.

This is a flawed process by appointment by definition asks us a small group of people to make a decision that would ideally be put to the voters.

And that creates a pressure that creates perception challenges that um takes a responsibility that that each of us carries here up here on the dais in a very real way versus an acceptance of what the electorate would say.

So that tension is real, and I think it's important to name it.

It's certainly something that I'm naming here in my decision making process and thinking about.

Um we are working within the structure that none of us really fully designed, and it is a system that creates winners and losers sometimes.

And as noted by my fellow commissioner in the past colleague, uh Commissioner Kelgore, that's a framework that we're under it under because of our current charter, and that's law.

So there may be opportunities to improve that in the future, but in the meantime, this is what we're dealing with today.

And um, another colleague here, Commissioner Ysasi talks all the time about we have to focus on what's in front of us today.

So I also want to be very um open about something that's personal to me.

That not only is this a difficult decision, but not only because I respect all of you, but because it's a weighty responsibility that comes for me, knowing that this appointment has real consequences for the people of the first ward and for how this body functions.

And I want to say it clearly here that I am not approaching this as any one person's or group of people's proxy.

I was elected by the residents of the first ward to exercise independent judgment on their behalf as one of them.

I take that responsibility very seriously, and I am not going to be just a stand-in for anyone else's preferences or influence.

And the pressure these last few days has been incredible.

A pressure that each of you would face being in this role.

There are people who have very strong opinions in the community, in leadership, in uh people who may have business interests in the community, and I have had a lot of stretching to do to absorb all of that.

So it's a significant amount of engagement, like I said, input from colleagues and former and current elected officials and many, many residents and business owners across the community.

And I actually am really genuinely grateful for that and appreciative of it because it really reflects how much people care and how much this role matters to making our city a better place and a functional place for us to make good decisions for people.

So I've had to stay grounded in something that is my truth and is important.

The decision ultimately rests with the people.

And for now, I am the only direct responsible person to the people of the first ward.

So I will speak on their behalf, and I will continue to try to hold that responsibility both with humility and with clarity.

Because in the end, we are all in this together, and it does matter that we get to know people and function well.

So in practice, what it means is that I did not approach this decision by trying to mirror past expectations or past office holders or assumptions about what the experience should look like.

I did not prioritize prior to prior service, prior titles, or whether someone has or has not held this seat before.

And I've been thinking very, very deeply, even as I listen to each of you about these things.

I was listening for how you would be thinking about things, how you would be approaching a problem and working, and where would you be in your process of partnership with the community and with me to be so we can have a great first ward.

Because I believe the readiness that you all demonstrated isn't about just your history, but what you can actually, the potential you can give to the future.

It's not divine, it's defined really here in this present moment, um, but it has to face the demands of the role that exists today, which are emerging, changing, evolving, and rapidly being confronted by things that we haven't yet even fully imagined as the national landscape changes in this political year.

So I want to be clear that uh the first what I what I believe the first ward needs right now.

The first roward needs representation that is grounded in people first.

That means understanding that every decision we make here affects residents' everyday lives, housing, safety, opportunity, stability, belonging.

It also means being able to hold two truths at the same time.

We must provide stability and continuity in governance while also looking at the future and what innovative things we should and could be doing.

And that must also be balanced with responsive and emerging changing conditions.

Good leadership is not choosing between those things, it's being able to hold both of those things, and being able to hold a room that can be full of pain, grief, anger, fear, frustration, uncertainty, and a myriad of other things.

This is why for me, this decision has also been about looking into your forward-facing leadership.

Not just who can continue what's been done, but who can do what's coming next.

Each of you can do those things.

We're governing, as I said, in a time of complexity with housing pressures, economic and uncertainty, infrastructure needs, and broader national dynamics, and it requires us being able to be leaders to navigate that tension and not avoid it.

To listen broadly, not narrowly, to be someone who can hold empathy and clarity.

So within that framework, I was looking for partnership and mentorship, not someone to guide me, not someone to manage my role, not someone to assume a hierarchy of experience that does not reflect the right reality of this body or my election to it.

I'm fully capable of stepping into this and bringing someone on board in a super fast fashion, no matter what experience they've had in the past.

And I am confident each of you would be able to work alongside me as an equal, but I really want a governing partner that's working with all the needs of our community together.

So, simply put, it's not about hierarchy or mentorship, it's about partnership.

And as I approached this decision, I have been consistent in four things.

Not just your immediate readiness, but are you resident-centered?

Are you ready for constructive governance for the future?

And what would you be doing to bring more people into this process so that we can have a strong coalition?

So, people first, not institution first, not process first, a people first role.

With that in mind, I would also like to acknowledge that the strength of the candidate I'm choosing brings, I think a grounded community-centered perspective, a professional background, um, being able to work in complex situations in reality, uh, real-world situations, demonstrating an approach to rooted that's rooted in listening and engagement and practical problem solving, and most importantly, being a hundred percent ready to work with me now and with this body.

It's not an easy decision, and it should not be, but that's what we're doing.

We're filling this seat today and shaping how we're going to function going forward.

And it might not be what we always expect.

So, with that, I would like to say that I would like to acknowledge, I believe, uh Lindsay Perez Pletcher as my preferred candidate in this process.

And I really do want to thank my colleagues for the seriousness and care and the call, the kind conversations that we've had, the thoughtfulness that each of you have brought to this process and making sure that we all see things differently, um, but with good intent, always assumed, and the responsibility that we are sharing together.

So thank you, and I will hand it off to the next person.

Yeah, thank you.

I want to be really concise here.

Um thank you so much for everyone who's here, my colleagues and the applicants.

Um for the folks who I continue to say that because that's exactly what this is when you boil it down, which is standing up for your neighbors and going above and beyond and saying I'm not only gonna do what we're all trying to do, which is survive out here, uh, but I'm gonna step up and I want to speak up and I want to do uh what's right.

So I really commend you all for doing that.

I know firsthand how grueling this process can be.

It's public, uh it's awkward, and it's uh like a really um uh uh interesting dynamic.

And a part of that dynamic is the flawed system, as I continue to say and will continue to say to public, because I am hopeful the next time we have a vacancy on this commission, we do a special election.

Now, the current uh the current charter does not allow for that if it's under a year, but folks can change that.

We can change it as this uh uh our charter as a body and the people of this community can speak up to that.

So that's my hope.

I want to continue to put that out to public so people know firmly where I stand on this.

But as I said in the first round, flawed systems are as American as Apple Pie.

And you know, democracy itself is a flawed system and can always be better.

So I want to first thank my colleagues for committing to making the appointment process better.

We are deliberating and deciding after the filing day.

Our colleagues I thank my colleagues for being intentional and thoughtful about that, so we know who we would be giving an upper hand.

And that is my challenge and why on principle, I believe not only does this process circumvent the voice of the people, the electorate, yes, we are elected by the people, but I believe in the power of the ballot box, and that is how I got here, and I believe that's how everyone who sits in this these seats should get here.

And um, so not only does this process circumvent that voice and that uh democratic process, in addition, it seems to get the same class of people.

People who are established, people who have been supported by businesses, are independently wealthy, um, previously ran for something, didn't win it, um you d uh and and then are now put into a seat.

I think on its face that it is incumbent on us to not continue to prop up and support uh a certain class of people as we are elected to support every person uh in Grand Rapids.

So I want to thank all of the applicants for uh just highlighting with us and going with us through this process.

Um and uh I I just really appreciate folks stepping up for their neighbors.

All of you all talked about the most pressing need.

We uh represent different groups of people, we have different backgrounds and opinions, but this body really is fighting hard for housing.

So I really felt like all three candidates had the pulse of the community, and I appreciate that.

Um and yeah, I I really feel as though um the person that I moved forward, uh, Miss Dan Cope, uh in the first round is who I will continue to support.

I think who better to navigate a flawed system than someone who teaches on democracy and those systems that I'm discussing that continuity work.

Um, and so who that that's who I continue to plan supporting.

Um and I think it was evident here that Ms.

Cope uh did her homework uh is well versed, has the focus, even though I always challenge it.

I heard that a lot through my appointment process of like can you balance work and being elected in this in a campaign, and it's like if you can't do that, then maybe you shouldn't be coming out for this role.

Like I think the juggling is just a natural part of this, and that's not as uh pressing to me.

I think so many people, so many of our neighbors and constituents who represent are juggling so much.

So we should be able to do the same thing.

Uh but as I said, I don't want to continue to support uh the same type of person in class and established class that we continue to uh appoint these seats.

I don't want to put my finger on the scale as I was proud to work arm in arm with community to finally stop the over a decade of the appointed official in the third ward, then becoming the elected official in the third ward.

Um so you you know I've been very clear throughout this process that the best way forward moving forward would be for the one applicant who not hasn't previously held power and knows everyone and isn't running.

Thank you, Commissioner.

Um so uh we uh the we all notice that the dynamic there shift a little bit in terms of people indicating their preference uh during the course of that.

So there's two ways we could handle this.

One is we could uh let Commissioner Knight and I have another bite at the apple, uh which is something that I've discouraged, or we can simply vote with explanation.

Um if you're okay with if everyone's okay with Commissioner Knight and myself having uh having a second bite at the apple.

Um Commissioner Knight, go ahead.

Um I didn't I didn't know I didn't know how we were going when we did that so out of the gate, and I guess I should have said that then.

Um my choice is for for Kurt Repart.

Um I believe that um he can come in and run.

Um there is a lot to learn when you come into this position, and three, four, five months just doesn't do it.

Um and that speaks nothing to the the skill set and the um wisdom that people have, but I do believe that he has that nook um that we need to just continue to move things forward effortlessly and flawlessly, and um all of those who have put their name in and filed petitions and went out and got people to sign and support them uh have an opportunity to really get their uh feet on the ground and their hands in the dirt and allow this community to um support them and back them in this race.

So that's where my decision will lay.

Great.

Uh and I will say um, so let me let me uh conclude the uh or or follow through what I think is the implication of my first statement, and that is to say, um, given that I think that all three of you would do a an excellent job, and I have very very high level of confidence in that.

Um and uh to gently disagree with my colleague Commissioner Belchek, um she's not the only representative of the first ward.

Um I am a commissioner at large.

And so the question is whether the first ward has uh a commissioner at large and two and two designated representatives, or uh one designated representative and a commissioner at large.

And perhaps I've been not doing my job well enough that she hasn't uh remembered that that's that's part of my job.

But um I um I will say that for me uh uh the the question if I've got three excellent candidates moves me to a next order of operations, and that is uh to echo some of what Commissioner Kilgore said.

My question then is how do the voters voters get the clearest most uninfluenced opportunity to express their voice and their agenda in October and pardon me, November and August.

Um and uh I think that because that's the question, um they I'm very reluctant in a in a race where there are three going to be three candidates, and one of them is our finalist um to do anything which would have an influence on the on the voter outcome um much as I admire Ms.

Pleasure.

The um but then uh the I think that for me um frankly what Ms.

Cope said was was compelling, and that was the question of simply actually not having um she pointed out that to get elected is to have a mandate, and to get appointed is not to have a mandate, um, but simply to be in a supportive role.

And um I understand and and Commissioner Belchik's articulated the need to have support.

Um, but I think that uh because I really really view our relationship as a fi as elected officials um with the people who elected us as a sacred duty.

I sometimes analgize it to marriage.

It's it's our it's a really really powerful obligation to let the voters um express themselves as fully and completely as they can.

Um that for me tips the scales uh and I will be voting for uh Ms.

Cope.

So um I I guess I'd uh then call for a first round of voting here.

Um and uh if we can just start it, uh Commissioner Belchick.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

Uh so I will make a motion to how do yeah, Clerk, please help us out.

Please, please, Mr.

Clerk.

Let's let's get some parliamentary um framework here.

Um so what would need to happen is how we have the how I have this drafted in uh in one meeting or for for the agenda is a resolution um appointing.

Whatever name, yeah as um as a city commission, first ward city commissioner to fulfill the term to December 31, 2026.

That would be right, that'd be the motion second.

The way and then the way the and then the the motion needs a second, of course.

Um then you have discussion and then in order for a vote to per to prevail or a question to prevail, it would need four votes.

So just make sure we're all on the same page.

Okay.

Okay.

So do I have any motions?

I'll make the motion to um move forward, Kurt Repart as the appointee for the first ward to fulfill the term through December 2026.

Second.

Okay.

Discussion.

Commissioner Kilgor.

Yeah, I have continued to uh really appreciate uh the commission former commissioner's work uh throughout community, but as stated in my previous comments, I think it is incumbent upon us to not continue to lift up a similar class of people.

Um in addition, what do we have a process for?

So that his name was raised very early on in this process, and I think it is inappropriate to the public to move forward with a name that we it just feels like what we're doing is smoke and mirrors if we have said that we are going to appoint this person.

Why have our neighbors put in their names?

Why have them go through a very public process if we're just gonna select who we may be friendly with?

I agree with so much of the awesome work that he's doing uh without our within community, and like you said, has never stopped, that is commendable.

Um, but I think it we would be better off not doing, and then this is not only this body's decision, but um we've done that in previous uh uh appointment processes where someone who did not win um an election then is appointed.

And so once again, trying to break us out of some of these flawed systems that this body continues to put forward to the public.

I think that our community just deserves better than uh than something that looks like smoke and mirrors.

Um before you could Commissioner Sassy, I'll just legislate I want to be clear, like I don't see uh former Commissioner Repert as part of any particular class.

Um I I've stated my reasons for uh and and I and I stand by them, but um I don't see them as as part of a uh favor or uh or uh our powerful class in the community.

Um and that's that's not part of my decision making process, but Commissioner Nassosi.

Thank you.

Thanks for saying that, Mayor.

Um I don't uh this is this is so funny in the sense that when we say what we want out the gate, we're villainized.

Um honestly, Commissioner Belchak, you talked for 10 minutes.

I really didn't know where you're going.

Um, and I really think that's the need to have somebody who has a strong understanding of all the things that we are trying to work on.

Um Kurt Repar understands all of the issues that we have in front of us very deeply.

Um I too agree.

I don't know, Kurt, if you're hiding a beach house somewhere or a particular class of person, I'm not a wealthy person.

Am I a comfortable person?

Have I gone to school?

Have I built my career?

Am I 46 years old?

Yes.

I I'm just like what are we doing?

Um this is just unfortunate.

And I'm sorry, Dan, I think you should have ran personally.

I don't know why you didn't put any petitions in.

I was kind of like, you should you should put in.

And so here we are.

So I'm not a believer of smoke and mirrors.

I always say exactly what I feel.

Um I don't hide behind people who are telling me to do stuff or parties or institutions, even if they've given me money.

And so, you know, I I'll just say I will be voting only for Kurt Repart, so I second that.

Um again, no offense to to anybody else.

Um I just think that this is this was not a setup, it's never a setup if you're talking about it beforehand, if you're talking about it publicly.

And um, yeah, I I this is exactly what we're what we're doing right here, is exactly why I would appreciate somebody like Kurt coming in.

Thank you.

Yeah, I think I'll add um thank you for that.

Um I'm disappointed in how some of this conversation is going as well.

I think there's a lot of uh signaling, and I think you know, priority here is who are we serving and how do we how do we take advantage of the next eight months to move the work forward to not pause it um but to actively move it forward.

Um I've talked about the merit of each of the candidates um and also a thought that we would see uh wondered if we will see all the finalists uh on the ballot, and we know um only one of them is.

But listen, here are some things that I'm specifically thinking about.

Um I've made it clear I want someone that can come in and know our systems.

That that is my preference right now.

Um it's not you know what the opportunity about this role is not just value signaling, but it is trying to find a path to get things done in a context in which we do have limited power to influence.

And whether that's preemption, where the state won't allow us, is a federal decision, it's a city manager's decision, so on and so forth.

And so when I look at some of the challenges in the first ward right now in our city, um the experience and the thoughtfulness that uh Mr.

Rat Barr brings, I think is is bar none and it's undeniable.

Um his work in affordable housing, his work uh supporting emerging developers, um, his intersection approach between housing and economic stability and crisis and public safety.

Um, these are all the things that are top of mind for all of us, and we've all been expending a lot of energy on.

And as we have this conversation, um, we are governing, we're not campaigning, we're not coming with headlines, we're not coming with slogans, we're coming with what is a tactical thing that we can vote on, what is the budget allocation, what is the policy change that we can make um make uh happen here, or that we need to advocate at higher levels.

And um I want someone that can come in and help us do that right away, as opposed to I don't think that the the first ward deserves um or need someone to just sit and listen for a few months or just sit and keep a seat warm and learn.

They need someone that can get in there and help actually solve problems as we go into an aggressive uh in a new budget season, um, and all the many things that we have on our docket that are known and are unknown.

Another specific issue that has come up in the first ward is um a lot of a lot of tension and uh lack of clarity around um and a and a lot of um disappointment in some of the the decision making and the engagement that the zoo is engaging in on the west side.

Um everything from the millage to the Lantern Festival to the events, and that is a really sticky issue because we're talking about county versus city jurisdiction, and that's not something that I am best positioned to help with.

That is best positioned to be led and advocated from the first war commissioners, Commissioner Belshack and whoever would um be in this role.

And so again, someone who doesn't need to take several months to learn, and again, you all I'm not uh meaning to uh downplay um particularly the uh the need that there will be a learning curve, right?

There always is.

I was engaged in local politics and policy making for 10 years before I ran, and it still is a learning curve.

So please understand that me saying this is not to downplay or villainize that, but to recognize that if we have a short runway, someone that can get in and find the pathways to get things done.

And it's a bit incredulous because Kurt in particular has a track record and has a track record on the issues and alignment on the issues, as far as I could tell, with the folks who are not ready to support him right now.

Climate, affordable housing.

So he could be a strong ally, not just to Commissioner Bellshack, but to all of us in terms of putting forth the new agenda.

I think this commission is very unique and diverse in terms of our backgrounds, um, in terms of how where we stand in the in the community and our situatedness.

Um and we are a young commission, both in terms of service uh as well as average age, and I think there's a lot of strength in that, but I also I won't say but and uh I think Kurt uh will be well amongst that number and bring a robust uh robust amount of experience, uh maturity, focus, level headedness that will benefit all of us, and that will benefit specifically um I think all of our shared priorities that we've communicated as a commission as well as our individual priorities that uh so many of you all and all of us advocate on it on an individual basis.

Um so again, let's keep the main thing the main thing.

The main thing is let's make sure that we can deliver for this entire city as well as the first ward.

And though we are all represented or voted from our wards, we still represent the entire city.

And so any first ward issues, A, they're probably being shared across the city, B, you are not alone, right?

How many times do we talk about all the things policy constituent engagement because there's a through line?

And so we are obviously all allies in that, and I think you have a unique opportunity, Bell Shack, Kilgore, especially to gain another ally on your individual agendas and to help move work forward, not just from a semantics and values and language base, but somebody that can come in and say, I actually know what levers to pull to get that done.

And I think that is invaluable and a very unique opportunity that we have, and I don't think that we we should FOIL it.

Thank you.

Point of clarification, Mayor.

Um, just in terms of the I think uh I heard some uh ambiguity with the word class, so I was more speaking towards um social class or peers, as he is someone who's formerly elected, so it's not to talk about uh anything in terms of wealth.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Um any further deliberation colleagues, otherwise I'll call for the vote.

Mr.

Clerk, call the vote.

You want to roll call vote on this?

I think so.

And can you repeat the resolution?

Yes, yes.

So the resolution is appointing Kurt Repart appointed to the position of first Ward City Commissioner for the remainder of an unexpired term ending December 31, 2026.

Commissioner Sasi.

Yes, Commissioner Purdue.

Yes, Commissioner Belchak.

No.

Commissioner Kilgore.

Nay.

Commissioner Knight.

Yes.

Mayor Le Grand.

No.

So we have three we have three votes in the forum.

That motion does not pass.

Okay.

Um any other motions.

May I um have a comment or qu comment?

I think so.

Um, I wait, I would any further motions.

Sure.

I'll move to have Misty and Cope fill the uh remainder of the unexpired uh the uh unexpired term.

I'll second it.

Any discussion, colleagues?

I think we've made our positions fairly clear, but any additional comments or clarifications?

No.

Um, call the vote then.

Since you made the second, I'll be calling you not last this time, just so you're aware.

Okay.

Um Commissioner Kilgore?

Yes.

Mayor LeGrand?

Yes.

Commissioner Knight.

No.

Commissioner Asassi.

No.

Commissioner Purdue.

No.

Commissioner Belchak.

No.

Okay, so that motion does not pass.

Uh, Mayor, I'm wondering, I mean, I mean, clearly, right?

Um, I think.

You know, I think one of as we as we led up to this process, I think, Commissioner Sasi, you know, you were very clear to say this is this is this is what I'm thinking.

I I echo that sentiment.

I have since then.

Um, but I just think there was a there's a missed opportunity here for folks to advocate for who they wanted to see in this role, right?

We had all the the um interview, public interviews last week.

I have not heard from um really anyone who was thinking something differently than we have already discussed publicly, and so I think too, like the lack of I we we need to work more as a team.

We need to communicate uh both on dais and off dais so that I mean gain support, gain support.

We said from the beginning, this is also about getting you support and the commission support, and this is your opportunity to advocate for who you wanted, and we didn't hear that until today.

And so, and and same thing goes for folks who um are supporting other folks.

Um I I just want to name that.

I I mean we can keep putting up motions, but I think um I will recommend um and I've I um I don't know if we need to make a motion to recess or to to end the meeting, but obviously we all need some time to sit with this to have conversations to uh maybe uh hear from our three finalists, um, but it feels very deadlocked, and I just want to acknowledge that and not not continue to waste our time or keep them on edge.

No, I appreciate it, Commissioner.

Um I will point out that uh there's the uh if I could um a couple things.

First of all, um, you know, if we were to reconvene in two weeks, uh Commissioner Belichick would not have a colleague for two weeks, but uh there is an eight-month period here, and so obviously we have the capacity to adjourn today and and re and continue to consider.

Um the obvious uh thing that's on the horizon in the near term is a primary in August.

And uh if following that primary uh there is a clear mandate from the voters, I think that I will be very much open to reconsidering my position uh following that primary.

So that's something we can continue to discuss, but I I do if if you want to make a motion to adjourn, I think I would support it, although I'd like to give anyone else who wants to be heard an opportunity because I saw a couple hands.

Uh so Commissioner Velchark.

Yes, thank you.

Um I just I just I just want to make some make sure that I'm heard because sometimes we're trying to accomplish a lot, and I'm processing a lot, and I'm trying to be clear.

And I'm feeling like some people are saying I'm not clear.

This is a process.

And I have been very clear that or tried to be clear that there's a lot, not only at stake, but on my plate, and I have the uh the a full-time focus on the city work already.

And I've taken on a lot of extra appointments as our former colleague left.

And I there are real heavy issues that we know we all are facing.

And I have children at home, and we have other issues in business and life to deal with.

Those things should not have to be mentioned here at the dais in order for me to say that I wasn't available to communicate, or nor did I have a decision fully locked in that I needed to communicate.

I was out of town entire weekend.

I've been fully, you know, invested in a lot of things and a lot of appointments, a lot of things, uh back to back to back yesterday.

It is not that I can't run at this rate.

I went to Columbia University Journalism School, which throws you into the fire and not the pan, and you are hit in the road, whether you know things or not, in New York City.

I can do this, but there are trade-offs.

Just like we're always making decisions in our larger context about if this, then that adds to that, but takes away from here.

You can't, there has to be a subtraction.

You have to be able to multiply.

I'm working to build coalitions and teams, and I believe every last one of the people who have been through the vetting process through the interview process with our wonderful appointments committee last week to get to here today, are a team already.

They are already people that I will continue to work with and already have support.

So when we use the word support, I do want to be clear.

It is about managing the day-to-day intake that we have as commissioners, and that the first word in particular has.

So I want to be able to put forward the real tensions that are out there.

And if that takes time to be able to say those things, then we should be allowed in our deliberation process to have the time to say those things.

The tension isn't just here or out there, or you know, but it's between issues, it's between solutions, it's between the trade-offs of give and take.

And so I want to get I want all of us everywhere to be able to work together.

That's us up here and uh them out there, we're all gonna have differences.

But I am very clear that I am a hundred percent radiating pride in the people that are representing our first ward here today.

And I would be happy to be their colleague in any way, shape, or form, and already consider them in one shape or form already that.

So I didn't I felt like the process needed to be followed, and I didn't need to build support per se, and I kept my mind open no matter what, to being able to evaluate their answers today.

I have three pages of notes from each one of them.

So I did it's not like I came prepared to go one way only, and I'm a hundred percent open to adapt, to be flexible, and to accept the will of this body.

So I just want to respond to that so that people don't think that it's like one way all the time.

So does that mean you're my agenda?

I would be willing to move forward with whatever needs to be done, but I do think it should be addressed.

And yes, Mayor, I forgot that to mention that you're a commissioner at large because I think of you as mayor.

Um, but it this process feels not only is it fundamentally flawed in a lot of ways, it feels for lack of a better word, unfair, unfair to the people, unfair to the the candidates, unfair to us and unfair to me uh as for as a representative of the first ward, because this is a hard thing to say, and why I went rambly, I suppose, in my other comments.

Um it is not an easy decision to feel like the other parts of the community are making the decision for people that I represent.

Thank you.

Commissioner Knight, I saw your hand.

Um yeah, I I think we've gotten a little off track on what we're here to do right now, and it's disrespectful of the people's time who have put their time and energy to come in here and do this interview.

Um to your point, Commissioner Belshak, you just said that um you did not come with one particular idea in mind or choice in mind, but are willing to um uh reevaluate.

There have been three of us now that have put forth an uh um a motion that has outweighed every other one that has happened so far.

So I'm just trying to figure out how much time we need to continue to do that.

If you have not heard enough that convinces you to change, then what is our move from here so that we can be respectful of everyone's time in this room and not hash out dirty laundry that can be taken care of in the back uh commissioner Sasi.

I'd like to make a motion to put forth Kurt Rappart as the candidate to fill the opening for first ward commissioner until the end of uh December 31st, 2026.

Sorry, didn't we already have that motion?

Yes, I'm putting it back up.

But you can have you can have a reconsideration.

Um just you can have a reconsideration.

Uh sorry, I'll wait till you get a second yeah.

All right.

Point of information, clerk, I thought of the reconsideration is designated by the chair.

It's not a well, technically it's not a reconsideration.

It's a it's a brand new it's a brand new motion made by a new mover.

Um so for just give an example.

This is this isn't this isn't labeled right just to this group.

Um I'll just give a uh a quick quick little story.

So uh I served on the Kent District Library Board for years, and so they had a vo it was an A-member board, so every vote had a potential of a four-four tie.

Yeah.

For every single vote is not it's very frustrating to be on an A-member board.

Um so when we had a a vote up for a um library director, so executive director of Kent District Library.

Um, four of us liked one candidate for like the other candidate, and we had about I can't remember what about 15 votes and motions until one member changed their vote.

Um in we did it all in one one session.

So that's one that's one option of the of how this could go.

We could keep doing this.

Um or so that so you have a motion on the floor.

But I'm um so this is how how it could could play out.

Another thing is is if if we have the same situation, we we could we could go have another process, but um which would have to be discussed by this body of what that would how that looks going forward.

Thank you.

Yeah, I just want to let you know that's really helpful, and I think the uh the other going off of Robert's rules and our standing rules.

Uh the but what's very helpful for that explanation is it was a different person who posted the resolution.

Correct.

And it wasn't a per yeah, it wasn't a per what it's not technically a reconsider, it's a new motion.

Exactly.

The reconsideration would be somebody from on the opposing side asking for it.

Thank you very much.

Thanks.

So it's been moved in second and yep.

Call for a vote.

Well, we have oh Commissioner Belchak, you want to deliver?

Oh, I I apologize, and I just I'm feeling like I need a break right now.

I feel like that would be very helpful.

So if I could make a motion to to have a moment to think and have recess.

We have one on the floor.

That would be my preference at this time.

Okay, Robert's rules.

We already have one up the floor.

Right, that's what I was afraid of.

Motion on the floor.

So yeah, um we have we have a recess after.

So uh call for the vote then.

Uh Commissioner Asassi.

Yes.

Commissioner Purdue?

Yes.

Commissioner Kilgore.

Nay.

Commissioner Knight?

Yes.

Commissioner Belchak.

I really am not prepared to at this moment.

And I would like to just abstain.

And Mayor Le Grand, no.

So we the motion does not feel due to lack of it has the only three EA votes.

Okay.

Then I will um ask uh call for a five minutes.

Point of information.

Yes.

So how is the abstention counted?

So it would so she abstained from the the vote.

It doesn't, but she's still a a member, so it would be three three two one.

That's what I want to.

Yeah.

So it's not it's not a four-vote.

She's not absent from the vote.

Yep.

Okay.

Um, I'll we can have a five-minute adjournment for bathrooms and so on and so forth.

Thanks.

Um, I think our options according to the clerk are essentially what either adjourned since this is a city commission meeting, and uh this can reappear on the agenda at some future date, or we come up with an alternative process or you know, go back to the drawing board or whatever.

Uh Commissioner, pardon?

Oh, we can make a new motion.

Right, or we can have more motions.

Okay.

Um so since I was the one that requested the recess, I kind of feel like compelled to say thank you.

And thank you for letting that me have some time to think and compose myself.

Um I would be willing to put a motion forward for Lindsay, but I do feel like it wouldn't pass.

So I think that again, because of respectfulness and um people's time, I'm not gonna do that.

I uh also would be willing to support Dan, you know, the interests of changing my mind.

Um I think that that she is a fantastic option and again a wonderful support for what is needed.

She said it straight up when she in her interview.

Um and uh that's where I'm at at this point.

I have uh some projects that I'm working on that are very critical that I think she would be uh she's already invested in in um uh so that would be really really helpful um as a partner and uh so that would be what I would do, but I I hear that if people are not willing to change their minds, then we're probably are in a situation, and that made part of the in addition to the pressure, uh, you know, feeling like you know, there is a there is a a real need for a gap there to be filled.

I would still like to see it be filled, if possible.

Okay.

Uh well that leaves us to um if anyone else wants to enter uh make a motion.

Uh Commissioner Covar.

Uh motion to adjourn.

I'm I'll be willing to second that.

Okay.

Right on.

Then uh I think we do it it's not debatable.

So we're we're simply up for a mo or we're simply up for a vote on the motion to adjourn.

So all in favor of adjourning.

Aye.

Aye.

Aye.

Aye.

Aye.

Okay, thank you.

Thank you, colleagues.