Governor Whitmer signs City Charter. Now, for the facts.

The question — village or city — will be decided by village residents on November 7, now that the Governor has signed off on the City Charter.

by Marsha Chartrand

On Tuesday, April 25, it became “officially official.” The letter from Gov. Gretchen Whitmer arrived at the Village of Manchester attorney’s office:

“Based on the review by the Attorney General’s Office, I am notifying you that I approve the proposed (City) Charter pursuant to the Home Rule City Act, 1909 PA 279, MCL 117.1 et seq., for submission to the voters at the general election to be held on November 7, 2023.”

But those who have worked hard to make this process happen say the job is far from finished.

“It’s just another step to check off,” says Jeff Wallace, retired Village Manager, who also served as chair of the City Charter Commission that was elected last November. “Now the real planning and work all begins.”

Wallace explained that the governor had been waiting on the final approval from the Attorney General’s office to make sure all the legalities were in order before signing off on the Charter. Now, the next step for Village administration, Council, and the City Charter Commission as well as members of the Citizens Advisory Committee that began its work in 2019 to investigate whether cityhood was the right step for Manchester at this time, is to prepare for the election, which is set for November 7.

“At that election,” Wallace added, “Village residents will not only vote whether to become a city, but they will also need to elect a new City Council. If the vote for cityhood is affirmative, the new City Council will be seated. If not, the current Village Council remains until the next election cycle.”

Current Village Council members have the option to pull a petition for a City Council seat, along with new candidates who have not previously served on Council. The City Council will be, like the current council, comprised of six trustees and a Mayor (rather than a Village President). Petitions for City Council positions will be made available soon, and public notices will be disseminated via the Mirror, the village website, and public notices posted at Village Hall, 912 City Rd. Petitions must be completed, notarized, and filed by 4pm on July 25 to be on the ballot for November 7.

“And now comes the hard part,” Wallace said. “It has been more than four years since we began this process. How do we re-engage the public; how do we get accurate and fact-based information out there, such as what is in the Citizen’s Advisory Committee report, rather than rumor and opinion about the process or the reasons for becoming a city? We need to concentrate on the form of government, because that’s what a city is all about. Cityhood isn’t about how big you are, or how taxes are assessed, it’s about how you govern. You have the ability to do things differently. A city is considered a primary local unit of government, by the state; while a village is a sub-unit of the township. That is the big change that people don’t understand.

“It doesn’t mean the community changes at all. All that really changes is the form of governance. That fact tends to get lost in a lot of rhetoric that gets circulated around. People need to know the facts. When they understand that, it will all fall into place.”

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by Marsha Chartrand

Marsha Johnson Chartrand, a founder, writer, and copy editor with the Manchester Mirror, is a 50-year resident of Manchester. She has a long history of volunteer and community involvement.