Carol Wood has been one of the longest serving members of the Lansing City Council. She joined the council in 1999 and served as council president several times, working alongside four mayors.
Wood declined to seek re-election and is retiring at the end of her term this year. WKAR’s Arjun Thakkar spoke with Wood to reflect on her time serving the city.
Interview Highlights
On advocating for Lansing's neighborhoods
When I first came on council, a number of the things that people talked about had to do with business and development, but not listening to the needs and the concerns of neighborhoods. Since been on council over this long period of time, I've helped to educate the public, as well as other councilmembers on making sure that they are listening to the community that helped elect them.
On what she wishes she accomplished
I think one of the things that I wish we would have been able to be more aggressive on and that's our corridors. Coming into Lansing, I often call those the front porches of our neighborhood ... if you see dilapidated buildings, if you see trash and things like that, oftentimes, you won't take the time to go back into that neighborhood that's behind that corridor. And often we're looking at very good neighborhoods that have a value in the property that they have for sale in those communities.
On her advice to other Lansing officials
We all bring different experiences, different ways that we were raised and things that we've tackled in our lives. And so it's important instead of being in your own little bubble and figuring that you have all the answers as it is to listen to the community and making sure that when you are acting, that you're acting on behalf of the community.
Interview Transcript
Megan Schellong: Carol Wood has been one of the longest serving members of the Lansing City Council. She joined the council in 1999 and served as council president several times, working with four mayors. Wood declined to seek re-election and is retiring at the end of her term this year. WKAR’s Arjun Thakkar spoke with Wood to reflect on her time serving the city.
Arjun Thakkar: So Councilmember Wood, you're leaving the council at the end of this month after serving for more than 23 years. How does it feel to be stepping away from a position you held for so long?
Carol Wood: There's mixed feelings about it. First, being able to serve the public of the city of Lansing is extremely important to me. But also, there's a time when you need to turn over the reins to someone else and listen to their ideas and help them as they navigate being an elected official and bringing different ideas to the council.
Thakkar: What are you most proud of having accomplished in your years on the city council?
Wood: I know people have heard me say this over and over again, but I think it's the idea of the importance of neighborhoods in the city of Lansing. Whether we're talking about creating jobs, economic development. Whether we're talking about sustaining a good tax base. Without the great neighborhoods that we have throughout the city of Lansing, none of these things could be accomplished.
From saving GM (General Motors), which was part of [former mayor] David Hollister's legacy, I know that having a strong workforce in our community, that made a difference. So our neighborhoods are extremely important and giving them a voice.
When I first came on council, a number of the things that people talked about had to do with business and development, but not listening to the needs and the concerns of neighborhoods. Since been on council over this long period of time, I've helped to educate the public, as well as other councilmembers on making sure that they are listening to the community that helped elect them.
Thakkar: Do you have any regrets over the course of your tenure? Is there anything you wish the city accomplished but the Council wasn't able to get done?
Wood: You know, as we look over this period of time, I think one of the things that I wish we would have been able to be more aggressive on and that's our corridors. Coming into Lansing, I often call those the front porches of our neighborhood.
If you're driving down Martin Luther King or Cedar Street or Pennsylvania or Saginaw or Oakland, any of those major arteries that come into and our part of the city, if you see dilapidated buildings, if you see trash and things like that, oftentimes, you won't take the time to go back into that neighborhood that's behind that corridor. And often we're looking at very good neighborhoods that have a value in the property that they have for sale in those communities. But again, that front porch, that thing that you're looking at, as you drive down that corridor, has an impact on whether you will make that trek into a neighborhood.
We are doing things now. We've developed a number of corridor committees that are working at enhancing those. I just wish we would have done it a little bit sooner and had some of the enthusiasm that we have now trying to make a difference with those corridors. But sometimes it's better to have to at least have started something than not to have started something. So I applaud the fact that we are working with that initiative.
Thakkar: As you know, Lansing voters last November approved a general revision of the city charter. Do you feel there are any changes that could benefit residents?
Wood: I think it's important when we look at how many years that the current charter has been in effect. The idea that, again, we've changed dramatically as a community from 1978 to where we are today. I think it's important to look at that charter to make sure that, again, it's meeting the needs and what is reflected for the residents and the taxpayers of Lansing.
I did support taking a look at this. And again, it could mean small tweaks to [an] overall rewriting of the charter. Then this will go back to the voters. The voters will have an opportunity to review it and and vote on it and determine whether they agree with the change. Is that or have been produced by the commission or not.
Thakkar: With more than 23 years of experience under your belt, what advice would you offer to Mayor Andy Schor as well as the incoming and current members of the City Council?
Wood: I think it's extremely important to be listening. Oftentimes, we get in our own heads and think that we have the best answers to a problem or a situation that's going on. And if we're not listening to the people that put us in that office, we are doing a disservice to them.
We all bring different experiences, different ways that we were raised and things that we've tackled in our lives. And so it's important instead of being in your own little bubble and figuring that you have all the answers as it is to listen to the community and making sure that when you are acting, that you're acting on behalf of the community.
I often talk to young people about the time that we had a bunch of young adults that came to council and talked about a skateboard park. Now, was I ever going to be on a skateboard? No, I don't think so. But that skateboard park was important to them. They were not into playing with some of the things that I had grown up with, with baseball and some of those things. A skateboard park was something that was extremely important to them.
If we hadn't listened to that, we might never have invested tax dollars as well as park millage money into that project. So I think that's just a small example of listening to somebody's experiences other than your own.
Thakkar: And what will you be doing with your downtime now that you're no longer working for the city of Lansing?
Wood: I'm not sure what downtime means because for the last 24 years, well, I've always had more than one job. I have a consulting business. But for the last seven years, I've also been the executive director of retired and senior volunteer programs for Ingham, Eaton and Clinton County.
And what we do in this position is we help seniors that are 55 and older, find volunteer opportunities where they can use their skills, the things that they've learned in their lifetime, whether it's mentoring children, patrolling the River Trail, working at hospitals, in the surgical lounges and making coffee and helping people.
It gives them a purpose in life. It helps them get out and be active and feel that they've accomplished something other than just their work life and their retirement life. So I will be continuing as executive director with this organization.
Thakkar: Sounds like a very rewarding experience.
Wood: It really is. In fact, we just got a card today from a woman who does telephone reassurance, where she calls other seniors that are isolated and might not have family members and she calls them once a week. And in her card to us, she talked about the fact that she didn't realize how much she would receive as a reward for making these calls and having someone to connect with. We not only make an impact on clients, but we also make an impact on the people that are doing the volunteering.
Thakkar: Carol Wood is the current Lansing City Council president. Her term ends at the end of this month. Councilmember Wood, thank you for your time.
Wood: Thank you very much for having me. And I've enjoyed many times on WKAR and being able to speak to your listeners. So thank you for concluding my year with this interview. I appreciate it.
Thakkar: Thank you.
Wood: Thank you.
This interview has been edited for brevity and clarity.
