Meet Grand Rapids mayoral candidate Steve Owens

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — News 8 is interviewing the candidates running to become the next mayor of Grand Rapids.

The primary election is set for Tuesday, Aug. 6. The top two vote-getters will move on to the November general election.

Below, see candidate Steve Owens’ response to News 8’s questions. Interviews with other candidates will air and publish on woodtv.com in the coming days.

Steve Owens is a Grand Rapids native who went to high school in the area. After serving in the Marine Corps, he went to Grand Valley State University and graduated in 2016. He later attended graduate school at the University of Tennessee and graduated with an economics degree. Owens said he then spent four years working in the federal judiciary before becoming a data scientist in the private sector.

The following interview has been edited for clarity and conciseness.

Q: Why are you running for mayor?

Owens: “I’ve been talking to a lot of people in the city. I’ve heard people complain about the plowing, the potholes, the cost of child care, the cost of housing, groundhogs. But I’ve never heard anybody say we need an outdoor amphitheater or a soccer stadium, so I think that’s just a waste of taxpayer dollars.”

Q: If elected, what is your biggest priority?

Owens: “It’s making sure taxpayer dollars are spent prudently and efficiently. If you really want to grow the economy, you have to invest in infrastructure and education because those things lead to innovation and then the infrastructure helps spread the innovation.”

Q: What needs to change in the city?

Owens: “I think the city really needs to focus on the needs of the citizens, not what they think the needs of the citizens are. I’ve heard people complain about potholes, plowing, groundhogs, child care, housing, I’ve never heard them once complain about an amphitheater, soccer stadium or an aquarium.”

Q: You indicated you are opposed to the amphitheater under construction, a proposed soccer stadium and a possible aquarium project. Why?

Owens: “It’s a terrible use of resources. There’s already four or five music venues downtown. The impact of adding another one is going to be zero. It’s going to be almost nothing. You’re not going to get any additional tourists. The tourists that do come here are going to be spending more money because of the hotel tax and that’s going to be less money for the businesses downtown.”

Q: For many residents, the availability and cost of parking downtown is a concern. How do you balance that need with these projects?

Owens: “That’s actually a really good question. I haven’t given the parking too much thought. But I know a lot of bigger cities, usually when they have a parking problem, they invest more in public transportation.”

Q: You’ve indicated you’re against the proposed 3% hotel/motel excise tax. Tell me why.

Owens: “That money is just going to be paid for by the businesses in the form of lower revenue.”

Q: The idea behind it is that tourists would be paying for it.

Owens: “But there’s going to be no more tourists coming to the city because of these projects. You’re just going to get the same amount of tourists and they’re just going to be spending less money because they’re going to have that extra 3% going to the hotel tax.”

Q: Crime and violence in our community continues to be an issue, especially involving young people. How would you hope to address that?

Owens: “I think a lot of studies show if you want to reduce crime, you have to increase the number of police. But that’s kind of hard to do when the city is spending so much money on the amphitheater and the stadium. I talked to some other people and they thought a better way to build rapport with the police would be to have more cops walking a beat and have cops living in the city of Grand Rapids. I think you could incentivize cops to live in the city, maybe through having (the Grand Rapids Police Department) implement a policy where maybe they pay them extra for living in the city or the city gives them a couple mills off their property tax.”

Editor’s note: All city employees who live within Grand Rapids can take part in a homeownership incentive program that helps them buy a home. For employees that already reside in Grand Rapids, the city will pay actual closing and prepaid costs up to a maximum of $6,000. For employees that do not currently live in Grand Rapids, the city will pay actual closing and prepaid costs up to a maximum of $7,000. For employees that are first-time homeowners, the city pays an additional incentive of up to $2,500.

Q: Police departments across West Michigan have struggled with staffing shortages . The Grand Rapids police chief has said officer shortages have been a problem. Do you believe the police department needs more or less funding?

Owens: “I haven’t really looked into the funding of the police department too much. But I know it would be a lot easier for the police to get the money they need if the city wasn’t too busy giving $200 million in tax breaks for luxury apartments and spending $150 million to relocate the maintenance facility to make way for the amphitheater.”

Watch News 8’s full interview with Owens below:

Q: So without knowing the exact funding amount, in general, are you for giving more money to the police department to help achieve its mission or do you think it should be redirected elsewhere?

Owens: “When you have lower crime, it’s easier to start a business. People feel safe in the community. They’re not afraid to go out and they can utilize all the assets that are in the communities like parks.”

Q: Any other ideas to address crime in the community?

Owens: “If people have full-time jobs, they’re not going to have time to commit crime. Really the best way to make sure people have a full-time job is to invest in infrastructure and education and not amphitheaters, aquariums or stadiums.”

Q: There’s still pain among many in the community when it comes to its relationship with the police department. You saw the protests that happened after George Floyd and Patrick Lyoya were killed. How do you hope to bridge that divide between the community and the police department?

Owens: “Like I said, the police department should implement some new policies, more cops walking a beat when the weather permits and try to incentivize cops to live inside the community so they can build a rapport with the citizens.”

Q: What is your pitch to voters as we approach this election?

Owens: “We’re going to make sure the tax dollars are spent responsibly and go toward things that benefit the entire community like roads, sidewalks, parks, police, firemen instead of wasting them on amphitheaters, stadiums and aquariums.”

Q: There’s many other issues we can talk about, homelessness, affordable housing. Is there anything I haven’t asked you that you want to get out there, or that you want people to know about you?

Owens: “With regards to homelessness and housing, I think if you just build more housing, the city needs to approve a lot more building permits. That will lower rents and lower the number of homeless people in our city.”

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