David Anderson Deserves Four More Years
Posted: Fri Nov 04, 2011 4:37 pm
Election Day will soon be upon us on Tuesday, November 8th. Lakewood Ward 1 voters have an opportunity to retain David Anderson as their councilman to continue the fine and groundbreaking work he has done in making significant improvements that will best represent all of Lakewood as we move into a challenging future.
What do I mean by groundbreaking work and a challenging future? David Anderson was appointed to fill a vacancy on the Lakewood City Council about the same time the McDonald's acquisition of the Detroit Theater was starting to take shape, and worked tirelessly with residents to reform drive-thru zoning laws.
Back in June, I asked the following questions: Is the average Lakewoodite powerless to influence our collective development future? Do we really have the adequate tools to manage and control our future, or are we at the mercy of distant and faceless forces?
The McDonald’s plan to demolish the Detroit Theater and pierce the heart of Lakewood caused substantial concerns among residents, in particular from those like myself who reside on Woodward Avenue. Not only were many of us upset over the loss of the Detroit Theater, but we were also greatly concerned over what the future held as the next generation of development along Lakewood's commercial corridors unfolds.
I spent a few sleepless nights researching what other communities had done to stop or limit fast food drive-thru establishments as the looming specter of a McDonald’s on my corner of Lakewood became seemingly inevitable. A few nights later, Anderson met with a group of Woodward Avenue residents; he was already way ahead of us in the process. He had done extensive research on behalf of his Ward 1 constituents in response to the concerns and grievances we had with the McDonald’s development.
In response to our concerns, not just about McDonald’s but also Lakewood’s future development as a whole, Anderson called for a review of Lakewood's zoning codes to ensure our city has the best tools to help shape how its major commercial districts should look, feel, function and coexist with surrounding residential streets and neighborhoods. This has resulted in changes in our zoning codes pertaining to conditions for allowing new drive-thru facilities in Lakewood. These zoning code revisions will better regulate and limit many of the negative impacts associated with drive-thru businesses and are in place right now – for the betterment of Lakewood’s future – thanks to the work and leadership of David Anderson.
The thing that immediately strikes me about Anderson is that he is extremely authentic. When you meet with him he listens, he takes notes, he is well informed and he is one of us. My fellow Woodward Avenue residents and I feel fortunate to have Anderson as our councilman. During this emotionally charged McDonald’s process, David completely comprehended our concerns and acted upon them in a timely and respectful manner. You could not ask for more from a city councilman or councilwoman.
Anderson’s leadership reminds me of one of my favorite Martin Luther King’s calls for action quotes – “the fierce urgency of now.”
He made the old adage of something good coming out of something bad really mean something. Whereas the extreme disappointment of having the Detroit Theater replaced by the worst of the worst – a McDonald’s - will forever leave a lingering sense of disappointment to me and many others, it is in large part due to David’s work on updating the zoning code with an actual ordinance that spells out what we need and, more importantly, what we don't need, that will help limit the McDonald’s-type developments of the future.
Often times, reaching a consensus on land use issues can be as difficult as herding cats. As many voices have come out and come together on the pending McDonald’s development, Anderson has been a responsive leader, creative thinker and team member – you would never know he has been our councilman for such a short time. He is not stuck in the proverbial box; he is well outside of it. He is a well-rounded individual and truly understands housing, neighborhoods, education, diversity, how cities function and how they are funded – all things near and dear to those of us so fortunate to call the City of Lakewood our home. Anderson gets it…gets the fact that quality housing is Lakewood's top industry and is the key to a vigorous future. He has provided strong leadership and intuitive insight towards the on-going effort to strengthen our chronic nuisance property laws to protect homeowners and has worked on measures to help preserve our housing stock and historic neighborhoods as we enter our second century.
David Anderson’s actions have earned him another four years to build upon what he has already achieved.
One of the best decisions that Lakewood’s City Council made this year was to select David Anderson to fill the Ward 1 council vacancy. That decision has already reaped lasting benefits as Lakewood moves further into the 21st Century. We need proactive people like Anderson – not timid, but with a strong sense of urgency; not complacent, but candid in a constructive and forward-thinking manner.
David always ends his written correspondence with the phrase – “Yours in Service.” I, together with the residents of Woodward Avenue, encourage Lakewood Ward 1 residents to step up and return the service of our exceptional councilman by voting for David Anderson to retain his seat on the Lakewood City Council – he has earned and deserves four more years.
What do I mean by groundbreaking work and a challenging future? David Anderson was appointed to fill a vacancy on the Lakewood City Council about the same time the McDonald's acquisition of the Detroit Theater was starting to take shape, and worked tirelessly with residents to reform drive-thru zoning laws.
Back in June, I asked the following questions: Is the average Lakewoodite powerless to influence our collective development future? Do we really have the adequate tools to manage and control our future, or are we at the mercy of distant and faceless forces?
The McDonald’s plan to demolish the Detroit Theater and pierce the heart of Lakewood caused substantial concerns among residents, in particular from those like myself who reside on Woodward Avenue. Not only were many of us upset over the loss of the Detroit Theater, but we were also greatly concerned over what the future held as the next generation of development along Lakewood's commercial corridors unfolds.
I spent a few sleepless nights researching what other communities had done to stop or limit fast food drive-thru establishments as the looming specter of a McDonald’s on my corner of Lakewood became seemingly inevitable. A few nights later, Anderson met with a group of Woodward Avenue residents; he was already way ahead of us in the process. He had done extensive research on behalf of his Ward 1 constituents in response to the concerns and grievances we had with the McDonald’s development.
In response to our concerns, not just about McDonald’s but also Lakewood’s future development as a whole, Anderson called for a review of Lakewood's zoning codes to ensure our city has the best tools to help shape how its major commercial districts should look, feel, function and coexist with surrounding residential streets and neighborhoods. This has resulted in changes in our zoning codes pertaining to conditions for allowing new drive-thru facilities in Lakewood. These zoning code revisions will better regulate and limit many of the negative impacts associated with drive-thru businesses and are in place right now – for the betterment of Lakewood’s future – thanks to the work and leadership of David Anderson.
The thing that immediately strikes me about Anderson is that he is extremely authentic. When you meet with him he listens, he takes notes, he is well informed and he is one of us. My fellow Woodward Avenue residents and I feel fortunate to have Anderson as our councilman. During this emotionally charged McDonald’s process, David completely comprehended our concerns and acted upon them in a timely and respectful manner. You could not ask for more from a city councilman or councilwoman.
Anderson’s leadership reminds me of one of my favorite Martin Luther King’s calls for action quotes – “the fierce urgency of now.”
He made the old adage of something good coming out of something bad really mean something. Whereas the extreme disappointment of having the Detroit Theater replaced by the worst of the worst – a McDonald’s - will forever leave a lingering sense of disappointment to me and many others, it is in large part due to David’s work on updating the zoning code with an actual ordinance that spells out what we need and, more importantly, what we don't need, that will help limit the McDonald’s-type developments of the future.
Often times, reaching a consensus on land use issues can be as difficult as herding cats. As many voices have come out and come together on the pending McDonald’s development, Anderson has been a responsive leader, creative thinker and team member – you would never know he has been our councilman for such a short time. He is not stuck in the proverbial box; he is well outside of it. He is a well-rounded individual and truly understands housing, neighborhoods, education, diversity, how cities function and how they are funded – all things near and dear to those of us so fortunate to call the City of Lakewood our home. Anderson gets it…gets the fact that quality housing is Lakewood's top industry and is the key to a vigorous future. He has provided strong leadership and intuitive insight towards the on-going effort to strengthen our chronic nuisance property laws to protect homeowners and has worked on measures to help preserve our housing stock and historic neighborhoods as we enter our second century.
David Anderson’s actions have earned him another four years to build upon what he has already achieved.
One of the best decisions that Lakewood’s City Council made this year was to select David Anderson to fill the Ward 1 council vacancy. That decision has already reaped lasting benefits as Lakewood moves further into the 21st Century. We need proactive people like Anderson – not timid, but with a strong sense of urgency; not complacent, but candid in a constructive and forward-thinking manner.
David always ends his written correspondence with the phrase – “Yours in Service.” I, together with the residents of Woodward Avenue, encourage Lakewood Ward 1 residents to step up and return the service of our exceptional councilman by voting for David Anderson to retain his seat on the Lakewood City Council – he has earned and deserves four more years.