Meet East Lansing City Council Candidate Mikey Manuel
Mikey Manuel is running for East Lansing City Council because he wants to bring a total open-door policy for residents to provide their opinions, and to help keep small business sustainable. Three issues motivating his run include: looking into local tax rates and how dollars are allocated, diversity, and dealing with the aftermath of the pandemic.
East Lansing, he said, is starting to “stretch its legs as a robust and potent city.”
“As we see downtown really start to blossom, I think it will be important for the people of East Lansing to have a voice,” Manuel said. “I want to be a voice for the people and, if elected, I would implement a totally transparent and open-door policy, with all willing East Lansing residents.”
He told ELi he wants “to give anyone who wants to be at a platform to speak and when there is a clear and present majority opinion on something, we can take action.”
Candidate’s background:
In an interview with ELi, Manuel noted that he grew up in the East Lansing area and has called it home most of his life. He attended Central Michigan University where he earned a degree in political science.
Manuel said he comes from a family of owners of small businesses, including Blondie’s Barn in Haslett, where he spends most of his working hours.
To have a successful business, Manuel said, creativity is necessary, and he believes creativity is also an important trait for Council members to have.
“I look forward to discovering creative ways to fund City indicatives and projects, discovering ways to save money and reinvest in the projects our residents actually care about,” Manuel said, “whether it be through forming an ideas committee, reviewing data, and successes from other cities and working with the people in East Lansing.”
In terms of his background, Manuel said he interned for the Michigan Democratic Party. Asked about public service experience, he said that the work he has done at Blondie’s Barn “speaks for itself, delivering free meal to healthcare workers, to working first responders and in particular our annual Thanksgiving Day meal.”
Candidate’s view on the important issues:
Manuel said the “number one issue” his neighbors told him about is local tax rates and where tax dollars go. He noted that East Lansing ranks high in the state in terms of property tax burden on property owners.
“So, I’m not suggesting it would be easy, but there are ways to introduce new balanced budgeting tactics, via cost cutting moves . . . [and] revenue enhancements,” Manuel said.
A second issue Manuel named as important is diversity, especially for businesses. He said East Lansing has come a long way in this area, but there is more to do in terms of building a culture of openness and dismantling all prejudice.
Manuel said businesses can be making a larger effort to hire minorities and to provide training. He said he wants to help business owners identify challenges, including high turnover downtown.
“Once again, I’m a product of small business owners, I know how difficult is to hire right now,” Manuel said. “I want to help our small businesses with exposure and help them lean in the right direction and help them in getting to know their customers who are the residents of East Lansing.”
Finally, a third issue named by Manuel as important for this campaign is Covid-19 and dealing with the aftermath. Manuel said there are “systematic health and social inequalities” that have increased residents’ risk of contracting Covid-19.
He said the City needs to “ramp up [its] response to dealing with both the physical health and mental health of our men, our women, and our children.”
Manuel and one other candidate – Ron Bacon – are running for the one two-year seat open on Council. Manuel told ELi he is seeking the two-year seat because he sees it is an opportunity to prove to himself and to voters that he can contribute to the community.
Find out more from ELi about the November 2021 Council election, including filing deadlines, who is running, and more, by clicking here.