This coverage is made possible in part through a partnership between IPR and Grist, a nonprofit environmental media organization.
IPR's Election Notebook is a weekly roundup of voting information and local events, ahead of the Nov. 5 election. Have something we should know about? Send us an email at ipr@interlochen.org.
It is just under three weeks until November 5th.
A rundown on voting and registration deadlines
If you want to register in person, you can do it on or before Election Day at your local clerk’s office.
Register online or by mail before Oct. 21.
To vote absentee, your clerk has to get your request by Nov. 1, and your ballot by Nov. 5.
Solar panels spark controversy in Leelanau County
This week we're taking a look at an issue that’s come up this year in Leelanau County — an effort by the Leelanau Energy Futures Task Force to obtain a grant for solar panels.
The effort failed but the debate is still going. Candidates for all seven seats up for grabs are still talking about it.
Republicans at the time were upset with various parts of the project, including its connection to Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s MI Healthy Climate plan.
The new Republican candidates share those opinions. Meanwhile, Democrats say projects like this would save the county money.
IPR climate reporter Izzy Ross caught up with reporter Zack Marano, of the Leelanau Enterprise, about what happened.
Here's a transcript of a portion of their conversation. The interview has been edited for clarity and for length. You can also listen to it in the audio player above.
IZZY ROSS: What did the people who supported having this grant application say? Why did they want to proceed with the project?
ZACHARY MARANO: For the Democrats on the county board to vote in favor of the proposal, the main argument in its favor was that the solar panels would allow the government to save money on its electric bills. The purchase and installation of the solar arrays would have been funded by the state, and each year, the county would save a substantial amount of money on the electric bills that it pays to a local energy cooperative.
ROSS: Talking about this array might be a moot point, because they didn't get the state funding in the first place. But as you mentioned, this has been a big issue for people living in Leelanau County. How do you think this might play a role in the upcoming election?
MARANO: At this point, it looks like Leelanau County is not going to get funding, although it's still a possibility if another one of the recipients backs out. Despite this, the solar array issue is still at the forefront of people's minds, in part because of the investigations into the specific members of a task force while the county was waiting for a response from the state.
Groups of citizens who are affiliated with the local Republican Party accused several members of the Task Force of not posting meeting notices and meeting minutes from their group's meetings in an attempt to force through the solar array project without proper public review.
Additionally, the grant proposal outlined that the Task Force chair, Joe DeFors and another task force member might receive up to $135 a week as consultants of a project, which to opponents of the solar array project, represents a conflict of interest.
In one case, they made a complaint to the county board, and in another case, they filed a police report, which was eventually taken up by the Michigan State Police. Neither complaints resulted in an investigation, but the discussion has continued nonetheless.
ROSS: What should voters be looking out for here?
MARANO: For the Republicans who have candidates running for each of the seven seats on the county commission, the solar array project often represents just another example of their Democrat colleagues spending excessive amounts of local taxpayer dollars on what some call pet projects.
ROSS: But this solar array would not have taken any local taxpayer dollars, right? Not directly, anyways?
MARANO: That's correct, per the terms of a grant, the state would have funded the entire purchase and installation of the solar arrays.
ROSS: And what have the Democratic candidates up for reelection said?
MARANO: Generally, they avoid touching broader issues, like climate change. Last election, it flipped from a Republican to Democrat majority on the county board, and there are still many Republicans voting in the county. The phrase climate change is sure to raise some heckles. On the other hand, cutting local government costs is something that both sides can agree on. So it makes sense that Democrat candidates would emphasize that the project ultimately saves money, but it also opens them up to some criticism because they don't address why the state is incentivizing these kind of projects in the first place.
Find links to Zack's reporting here, or in a copy of the Leelanau Enterprise.
