Cowley's Focus is Redevelopment in Farmington

Farmington council candidate Greg Cowley believes the city's success hinges on the growth of the central business district.

"I think the city needs to aggressively attack redevelopment," said the longtime resident and principal with the family-owned John Cowley & Sons restaurant in downtown Farmington, citing the need for business incentives, like tax abatement.

Right now, he said, the city receives 75 percent of its tax revenues from residential properties, which puts the city "out of balance." "What we suffer from is a lack of revenue and taxable value over the last 20 years," he said. And without either a tax increase—which he strongly opposes—or new business investment, "I think we're going to have a failure to execute (city) services in the next year."

Cowley believes his service on the Farmington Downtown Development Authority (DDA) board, for which he served as president from 2006-2009, positions him well for a term on the City Council. He successfully negotiated with City Council members to restore 100 percent of tax increment financing (TIF) dollars back to the DDA; there had previously been a 50/50 split of revenues generated from increases in business property tax values.

He'd like to see even more support from the city, in the form of a budget line item devoted to funding redevelopment. Cowley also suggests making the entire city the DDA, so that any redevelopment in Farmington would be eligible for TIF incentives.

Cowley knows private investment is difficult to come by; he's attempting to get his own building refinanced. "I can tell you the note is underwater," he said. "Banks are hamstrung because of federal requirements."

Another business tool he favors is modeled by the city of Farmington Hills: an economic development commission (EDC). "I think that's one of the areas we need to look at how we can work together. The Hills has a track record."

Cowley would like to see Farmington become a destination, as it was when larger stores anchored Grand River, but said business developers are looking for areas with more traffic and parking. A longtime advocate for expanding parking, Cowley believes the city needs to make an investment in infrastructure that includes a "pay-to-park" strategy and a parking authority.

"The DDA can't do that. The City Council has to do that," he said.

Cowley is not in favor of a merger with Farmington Hills, but he does support shared services. He believes more attention should have been paid to a study done by Plante Moran several years ago that analyzed opportunities for shared services, and he'd like to explore more of those opportunities.

"I don't know why we have dispatch and a 24/7 jail," he said. "Beyond those two, I'd have to dig in a little deeper." Cowley also believes the city should examine the potential for outsourcing in every department.

When it comes to participating with SMART (Suburban Mobility Authority for Regional Transportation), Cowley said he believes in public transportation, but "I need to be convinced the residents of Farmington get value" out of it. He does not see a value in the twice-annual communitywide leaf pickup service, which he doesn't use.

"I don't believe the families in Farmington can afford to pay more," Cowley said. "People are making less ... I think government should tighten its belt."