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Steve Myers
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Steve Myers jumps into Genesee Township Supervisor race: Independent Myers to take on Democrat Steven Fuhr in November election
by Elizabeth Lowe | The Burton News
Saturday August 16, 2008, 3:27 PM
GENESEE TOWNSHIP, Michigan-- Until this month, Supervisor Scott Streeter and local businessman Steven Fuhr were the only contenders for the township's top position.
Fuhr defeated Streeter in Genesee Township's Aug. 5 Democratic primary election but another candidate, Steve Myers, has emerged to run for supervisor in the Nov. 4 general election. Myers filed last month to run as an independent.
Myers, 45, a retired Army officer and businessman, said he left his firefighter job in October 2007 to seek office but opted not to appear on August's ballot, despite collecting twice the petition signatures to file.
"I'm not a Democrat, I'm not a Republican," said Myers. "At the township level, I think it's ridiculous to (require) party affiliation."
Neither of November's candidates has been on the Township Board; both began attending township meetings within the past year.
Myers, who has been married 21 years to wife Anja, was born and raised in Genesee Township. Myers said he chose military enlistment over studying at Kearsley High School but completed his degree in Germany.
Myers' military career included serving in both Gulf wars, working as a drill sergeant in Fort Benning, Ga., working with budgets while on staff in Hawaii and serving as a liaison between local government and citizens in Kosovo, he said.
When he retired as a Sgt. 1st Class in 2002, Myers became a firefighter for the township's station 2 and started operating www.flinttalk.com, a local chat board.
Fuhr, 51, a Kearsley graduate and owner of Kearsley Auto Repair, has been married to wife Junell for 26 years. They have two children, Steven and Kimberly.
Fuhr said he served in the U.S. Marine Corps and worked three years on Kearsley's automotive advisory board. He has owned his auto-repair business for 18 years.
"I supervise employees, handle day-to-day operations, take care of health care and workman's (compensation)," said Fuhr prior to this month's election.
With increasing budget constraints, this year is a trying time to jump into local government, said both candidates.
Roads in disrepair are one of Genesee Township's biggest issues and "are going to be a tough issue," Fuhr said.
Myers acknowledges the supervisor will have a full plate of problems, based on his discussions with residents.
"Jobs are hard to find, people are losing their homes, businesses are closing down, (the problems of) Flint's east side are creeping into Genesee Township. The next supervisor has to develop a plan to fix all this."
Fuhr said the township needs to look for new sources of funding and seek grants for beautification. He will cut pay and health benefits for elected officials, he said.
Myers said he plans to work with the City of Flint to fight blight and, as a member of the Downtown Small Business Association in Flint, he aims to start a similar association for Genesee Township merchants. He's also a member of the East Flint Lions Club and a Mason since 1986, although he isn't currently active in the organization.
Annual compensation for the Genesee Township Supervisor's office is $70,430 plus about $16,800 in benefits. About 22 percent of the supervisor's salary goes toward a pension.
http://www.mlive.com/flintjournal/index.ssf/2008/08/steve_myers_jumps_into_genesee.html |
_________________ Steve Myers |
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Sat Aug 16, 2008 9:43 pm |
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Opinionated
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I know who I'll be voting for. And it's not Streeter or Fuhr. |
_________________ If you can imagine it, you can create it. If you can dream it, you can become it. |
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Sun Aug 17, 2008 3:09 pm |
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Adam
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Sun Oct 05, 2008 8:27 pm |
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Steve Myers
Site Admin
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Please comment on the milive story on milive.
Thanks
-=Steve Myers |
_________________ Steve Myers |
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Mon Oct 06, 2008 11:15 pm |
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Ryan Eashoo
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Mon Oct 06, 2008 11:31 pm |
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