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Going for gold

Northville wins top honors for sustainability efforts

.Northville was one of only 36 communities to receive a
gold seal of achievement for leadership in the Michigan
Green Communities (MGC) Challenge.
Michigan Green Communities (MGC) is a free program
open to all local governments in the state. MGC provides
networking, benchmarking and technical assistance to
guide communities in their work to improve their sustain-
ability efforts and adapt to the changing climate.
Communities are awarded bronze, silver, gold or platinum
seals of achievement
The Northville Sustainability Team, chaired by Kathy
Spillane, entered the award competition on behalf of the
city. Others on the team are: Mike Domine, DPW director;
Lori Ward, DDA director; AnnaMaryLee Vollick and Thom
Barry, both on the Planning Commission; Susan Haifleigh;
Dave Gutman, past chair; City Council Member John
Carter and John Porterfield.
Northville was at the bronze level in 2019 when the
Sustainability Team was formed. “After we put together a
plan, which was adopted by members of the city council, the permeable pavement on Wing Court, Smart Growth
we implemented several projects such as replacing street- advocacy for new construction, non-motorized transporta-
lights with LED bulbs, planting street trees and installing tion infrastructure, the Tree Champions, Low Impact
more EV charging stations,” said Spillane. “This helped us Development ordinances for managing stormwater and
earn silver status.” energy conservation plans. These and other efforts helped
The city then took on more complex projects such as the city achieve gold status, officials said.