City Council Meeting Tonight | Election Central 10/17/23
We have received a number of requests that Speak Up Portage be a place for information related to the election. As a non-partisan organization, we do not endorse any particular candidate or policy outcome. However, we do continue to want to serve the citizens of Portage by providing information that will allow informed decisions in our upcoming elections. We will publish public information at the request of our citizens in this letter so please keep providing the information you would like shared to speakupportage@gmail.com or through our website at SpeakUpPortage.com.
Please review the recent article from MLive regarding views for candidate up for election to the City Council – https://www.mlive.com/news/kalamazoo/2023/10/qa-see-which-issues-matter-most-to-portages-9-city-council-candidates.html
Upcoming Events:
Friends of Lisa Brayton for Portage Mayor – Thursday 10/19 from 5:30-7:30
Meet & Greet with Lisa Brayton, the write-in candidate for Portage Mayor. This is your chance to get to know the woman behind the vision for a better Portage. Lisa will be speaking throughout the event, sharing her plans and listening to what YOU want for the future of Portage. It’s a two-way street, and she’s excited to hear your thoughts. Join us from 5:30-7:30 at Mancino’s! Food and Music will be will create a lively atmosphere at the Open House.
10/17 City Council Meeting @ 7PM
Agenda Packet:
https://www.portagemi.gov/610/City-Council-Meeting-Agendas-Minutes
o Regular Meetings held twice a month on Tuesdays
o Start at 7 PM
o City Hall, City Council Chambers, 7900 South Westnedge Avenue, Portage, MI 49002
o City of Portage City Council meetings are open to in-person attendance and can be viewed live on the Portage Cable Access Live Stream. https://www.portagemi.gov/205/Cable-Access
o There are two opportunities for public comments during meetings. In-person comments can be made during these opportunities. To make a public comment remotely during the meeting, dial 1(844)875-7777 and use access code 7577015. Then press * 6 to enter the queue.
• Any item on the consent agenda will be automatically approved without discussion unless a council member or citizen requests to have the item pulled out for further discussion. This makes it important to stay active in attending meetings and speaking up when asked early in the meeting about the agenda to ensure all important items are given opportunity for full consideration.
Recently, the City Council approved the updated City of Portage Public Participation Plan. In the process of updating the plan, the City Administration implemented improvements to engage citizens in a transparent manner, making information easy to access for all interested members of the community.
• Public hearing notices are now published on the Community Development web page (portagemi.gov/173), in addition to the Legal Notices web page.
• Applications for new developments requiring Planning Commission approval and/or City Council approval are published on a new city web page (portagemi.gov/910) at the time they are initially received.
• Citizens may also sign up to receive automatic notifications (portagemi.gov/list.aspx) when public hearing notices or new applications are published.
The Public Participation Plan also requires developers of major new developments to meet with nearby neighbors before applying to the city and allows for written notification of public hearings for major new developments to extend up to 500 feet for projects with potentially significant impacts (instead of the legally required 300 feet).
