Perry planning commission seat open; Mayor Hammond to appoint

Anyone in the City of Perry who has opinions about how the city grows now has a seat to sit in. The city posted a vacancy on the Perry Planning Commission on Sept. 3, effective immediately, and it is filled by mayoral appointment.

The requirements are short: candidates must live in the City of Perry. The commission meets at 7 p.m. on the first Monday of the month, and more often if the need arises. Members qualify for $30 for each meeting they attend.

The appointment is for a three-year term expiring January 2027 — meaning whoever takes it is finishing out someone else's term rather than starting a fresh one. The Current reported that at its Aug. 6 regular meeting the Perry City Council accepted resignations from council member Larry Lambert and planning commissioner Gerrad Leitelt. The city's notice does not say which seat is being filled or name the departing member.

The planning commission is the body that reviews site plans, rezonings and special land use requests before they reach the council — the panel that decides, in practical terms, what can be built where in the city. Across the county this summer that has meant real decisions: an Owosso commission cleared Stach's Moto Cave for the vacant building at 804 W. Main St. and signed off on a 44-unit apartment development on Bradley Street, and Woodhull Township's commission took up a conditional rezoning request from E.T. Mackenzie Company in August.

Residents interested in the Perry seat are asked to complete the city's application and contact Mayor Sue Hammond at [email protected] or 517-625-6155 ext. 231. Questions can also go to the city clerk at [email protected]. City Hall is at 203 W. Polly St. and is open 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays.

What happens next: The notice sets no application deadline and no date for the appointment, so it is not clear whether the mayor intends to name someone before the commission's next monthly meeting. The Current has asked the city when applications close.