Lifelong Resident Would Bring 'Younger Perspective' to Farmington Council

With the exception of his time in college, Matthew Christian Wayne has spent all 33 of his years in Farmington. 

Even though he attended school out of state, he maintained his residence and voted in the community. 

"It's a great place to live," said Wayne, who is among five candidates for three seats on the Nov. 5 Farmington city council ballot. "It's very walkable, very livable ... Other places are nice to live, but they don't have a downtown." 

This is Wayne's first bid for public office. He said he'd like to see Farmington maintain its autonomy, while remaining involved with cooperative organizations like SWOCC Studios, a cable consortium, and RRRASOC, which provides recycling services.

Wayne said he can provide a "younger perspective" on council, which he believes can be helpful as officials look at how to attract new families to town. He is also studying to be an attorney, and would bring those skills to the table.

"I don't remember the last time we had somebody with legal training on the council," he said. "I would think about things differently and could judge things more dispassionately." 

A Farmington High alum, Wayne will graduate from Thomas M. Cooley Law School in May of 2014; also during that month, he and his fiancé, Janna, a nurse, will be married in Italy. He is a full-time student and substitute teacher. 

Why he decided to run
Wayne said the thing that spurred him to run was wondering why the northeast corner of Grand River and Drake Road was being developed, while there were so many vacancies in the Drakeshire shopping center just across the street. "I wanted some answers," he said. "And I talked to people who felt the same way."

Community connections
Through Nardin Park United Methodist Church, Wayne has volunteered with Focus:Hope, South Oakland Shelter and Cass Community Services. 

Campaign information
Here's a link to his League of Women Voters profile: http://lwvoa.org/files/VG2013NovemberCityFarmington.pdf