CEO Podcast: Mandy Grewal, Pittsfield Township Supervisor

Paul Krutko: Welcome to Ann SPARK’s CEO Podcast, Conversations on Economic Opportunity. My name is Paul Krutko and I’m the president and CEO of Ann Arbor SPARK. 

Joining me today is Dr. Mandy Grewal, Supervisor of Pittsfield Charter Township. Mandy has been Supervisor of Pittsfield Charter Township since 2008. She previously served as a Washtenaw County Commissioner and has a Ph.D. in Urban Planning from the University of Michigan. A resident of Pittsfield Township for over 25 years, Dr. Grewal focuses on community development and sustainable growth. She holds leadership roles in SEMCOG (Southeast Michigan Council of Governments) and Ann Arbor SPARK, and serves on the Michigan Municipal Services Authority and Michigan Planning Association Board. Under her leadership, Pittsfield Township has seen significant population and economic growth, earning numerous awards for sustainability and fiscal management.

Thanks for taking the time to talk with us today, Mandy. 

Mandy Grewal: It’s my pleasure. Thanks for having me.

Paul: So Mandy, we know that you have announced that you’re ending your tenure as Supervisor in Pittsfield Charter Township and we wanted to take an opportunity to talk with you about what’s been going on over these last nearly 20 years. What are some of the most significant accomplishments that you’re proud of?

Mandy: I get asked that question a lot and I feel like it’s multifaceted. I think for me, I’ve been very grateful for the opportunities that I’ve been given to open doors for folks like me that are naturalized citizens, come from another country, and really allowing them to get more involved in the public sphere. I’m very grateful for that. 

And then I have to admit, when I decided to step down from County Commission to run for Supervisor, I was a little nervous – I’m inherently more of a private person. But I am proud that I was able to complete four consecutive terms at a very hyperlocal level that has a lot of scrutiny on a day-to-day basis and really managed to move the needle on the vision that I had delineated when I first ran, which was to outline a blueprint to retrofit a suburban landscape within a more sustainable and inclusive lens. So I feel like that encapsulates what I’m probably most proud of: having really transformed Pittsfield Township’s physical and cultural landscape.

Paul: So it is interesting for folks that are listening in, I mean, the transition from a County Commissioner in Washtenaw County, where it’s primarily a legislative body, to then being the executive leader, elected leader of a very significant part of our community is a big change. It is a big change because being the executive brings with it all kinds of other responsibilities and duties. So it was quite a change and something that you have handled very well. 

What were some of the biggest challenges that you faced?

Mandy: Again, challenges are probably dual, two-faceted. First, maybe on the personal side, I would say the challenges really had to deal with overcoming stereotypes in so far as I have really followed a very untraditional path, not just within my career, but also I married outside of my culture, didn’t do all that sort of stuff. So I think it was really saying, no, this is who I am. And so that was a lot and continues to be having your voice heard and making sure that it’s legitimized. So that’s on the personal side and it goes into your leadership and all those sort of things. 

And on the professional side, of course, I can get into a number of different challenges that I faced, especially off the bat, because as you noted, I’ve been Supervisor since November of 2008 and many of us recall what was happening then, which was the depths of the great recession. And so I took over at a time when finances were plummeting across the board. And so I feel like the work that we’ve managed to accomplish and the direction that we chose to take, which was to focus on grant funding and partnerships, which allowed us to bring in now over my tenure close to $60 million in grant funding and also the private investment that we’ve attracted into Pittsfield Township that has sort of really grown and retained a very vibrant and diverse business sector has helped us overcome a number of those financial challenges. So I think that would be the top-level stuff I could maybe point to.

Paul: Okay. Well, so during the time that you’ve been Supervisor and in the time before as County Commissioner, you have a pretty wide period of time to think about and look back on. So how has the economic landscape of Pittsfield Township and the greater Ann Arbor region evolved during your time at office?

Mandy: Very significantly, I would say. I remember many years ago when I was establishing a corridor improvement authority for State Street and speaking to some folks and they gave me some advice and rightly so, and this would be probably circa 2012-ish. And they said one of the first things you need to do is change the connotation of “development” in Washtenaw County, because it was really considered to be a bad word. And I feel like we really swung the pendulum on that and have really come around to the point where maybe not development across the board, but I think there is a larger, more mainstream recognition of the fact that we do need to increase, maybe because of the housing crisis, because of the pandemic, a combination of different factors. Climate change I would imagine also has a role to play as we are sort of really focusing on creating densities, infill development, multimodal transportation, all of those things have sort of become a lot more mainstream during my tenure and that’s very gratifying for me to see.

Paul: Yeah, I guess one of the things that I would want to say to you and compliment you on is because my academic training was in urban planning and design. I know that you’ve spent a lot of time in the same kind of background and training and I’ve been here, now it’s my 13th year, and have lived my entire time in the region in Pittsfield Township. So I am a witness. And what I would say that the thing that comes across very much having lived here over that time is the balanced approach to growth, both looking to have jobs but also housing, and then to compliment you and your planning team, the quality level of the development was very significant. One of the things that’s always a challenge is you said people thinking about growth, people want to move here, they want to come here, and if we don’t create the housing for them and the connectivity for them, we’re going to see all of our housing prices rise and we’re going to see congestion.

And so one of the things that is very noticeable, I think, when you drive through Pittsfield Township, is the care and the sort of intelligent approach to how do we accommodate growth and how do we make that growth comfortable for those who are already living here. 

So talk a little bit more about that. So your thoughts about how community auto approach growth and development and what are some of the specific strategies that you’ve used over the last few years to create what Im as not only somebody who practices in this field, but someone who lives in your community sees on a daily basis.

Mandy: Absolutely. Well, thank you for those kind remarks, Paul. I really appreciate them. I feel like to your point, yes, not only all the things you said, but then if you don’t accommodate for the development pressures, it will get sprawled out, which is the point that I really try to make in my work, which is why I took on this job — folks don’t understand that the suburban carbon footprint is double that of folks that are living in more densified regions of our country. So if you really want to make a dent and really seriously address issues of carbon emmissions, we have to start by retrofitting the suburban landscape and we have to densify it and we have to make it more inclusive and approachable to all different walks of life. 

In fact, in 2023, because of this sort of long-term visioning and planning that the Township has done, like you said, to really strike that balance between development and preservation, even though we were number two actually in Southeast Michigan, the highest number of new residential permits that were given out just behind the City of Detroit, we’ve also really focused a lot around preservation and quality of life.

So you don’t want to just sort of build housing, you want to make amenities available, whether there’s parks, recreation, culture, parks, all that sort of stuff. So really it is about that balance and that’s really been my strategy and initiative is to really sort of make sustainability and inclusivity two sides of the same coin and applying them across the board whether we’re talking about our administrative work, whether we’re talking about housing, transportation, business arts, culture-led use, green space preservation across the board, and being superbly transparent in all of the work that we do. And I think it sounds very simple, but it’s hard to do on a day-to-day basis. Heck, I announced over a year and a half ago that I was going to step down as Supervisor and I risked being a lame-duck Supervisor, but it’s really important for me to always be open, transparent, inclusive, and making sure that we’re continually living by those principles and pushing them forward in all the work that we do across the board.

Paul: Well, I have every confidence that you’re going to run through the tape, so I’m not concerned about that. But one visual image I want for the audience who drives through the community, they not know where the exact boundaries are versus different communities. But I think one of the really dramatic changes in the physical environment is at the Ann Arbor-Saline I-94 interchange, and as you go south out of that interchange that is Pittsville Township and the whole physical feel of the dense development around the Oakwood Village area and how the buildings front on the street creates an environment where people want to be pedestrians and want to walk to places, and it’s a subtle thing, but you have to have the desire to create that environment and to push that idea because had say those buildings step back from the street, you’d have wide field of parking, you have a Briarwood and no one would want to walk across that, but now that the buildings are close to the street, you’ve created that walkable environment. That’s an example of how the physical form can really change how people interact in what their daily lives are like.

Mandy: Absolutely. And we are hoping actually to create another one of those really significant points in the Township. If you’ve driven on 23 now, so not just 94 because that work is done, I think what’s starting now is on the 23 corridor, as you’re coming in on Michigan Ave. That whole corridor of Michigan is getting retrofitted all the way from Carpenter Road to Platt Road — about a $30 million project in partnership with the State of Michigan. And that will include a multi-use pathway. It has accessibility, and of course we are also addressing the traffic congestion and backup. And again, to your point, the hope is long-term that the land use patterns along those corridors then will start to change slowly to provide for those sort of more walkable and inclusive spaces.

Paul: Well, I don’t want to make this a completely Paul-complimentary podcast, but the other thing that is very noticeable in the Township is the pedestrian walking and biking trails that connect the community. That’s really significant. And one of the things I know that you’ve been asking for or trying to push on, as a cyclist myself, I would love that once I get to the edge of Pittsfield Township, to be able to continue into the City of Ann Arbor, but that connectivity is something we definitely need to work on. 

What advice do you give to your successor as you leave this role and someone else takes it on? Are there any particular pieces of advice or things you would like to see that person continue?

Mandy: So if you know me, you know that I am not a prescriptive person. In fact, the first thing I did when I took this job, even though I had this vision, was spend two years just listening. I did a huge planning process because I feel like that’s just not who I am. I’m not prescriptive. I really want to work with people and in partnership. And one of the reasons I am not one, but the main reason I’m stepping aside is I feel like you can get stagnant in what you’re doing. I had a vision, I put it into place, then it’s time for somebody new to come in with new ideas and fresh perspective. So I’ve told Trish Riley, who is running for my position, that I’m always here for any questions, any advice, any way I can help, because obviously Pitsville Township is our home, it’s our community, and it’s all about partnership. So I am always a shoulder to cry on, but now it’s her show. I want her to bring in new ideas, new people, new perspectives and take it to a bigger and better place. And that’s all I have to say on that.

Paul: Well, as we’re closing out, one of the things that I would want you to talk a little bit about is you’ve been active as a leader in the overall region. I mean, you’ve been on the SPARK board helping to shape what we do for all of Washtenaw County, and some of the things that we actually have done over the years and continue to do on a statewide basis. But you’ve been really active in trying to help shape Southeast Michigan as a whole. So maybe talk a little bit about that as we close out our conversation as one of the collaborations, partnership elements that you’ve been involved in.

Mandy: Absolutely. I feel like SPARK and SEMCOG have really been the two agencies where I’ve spent most of my time and felt really able to contribute substantively to the work that’s being done. In fact, just last week I stepped up as chair of SEMCOG, where I will serve through November when I step down as Supervisor. 

So I feel like the work that’s happening in communities across the board in southeast Michigan is, to your point that you just made, is that people don’t know the boundaries of where they live or where they work, and they shouldn’t have to. That’s sort of really always been my position. Yes, you have to have a sense of place and belonging in the neighborhoods that you live in. For sure. Outside of that, in terms of the transportation, amenities and services, it really should be regional. So a lot of the work that we’ve done at SEMCOG and what I feel fortunate again to have contributed towards, and it’s been a great partnership because a lot of the work I’ve done at the Township couldn’t have been done without their support and help. So it’s a two-way street, always. 

But I feel like the work that we’re doing around transportation, not just sort of saying, Hey, we need to build new bridges. Yes, we’re building these new bridges like we are here in Pittsville Township, but we’re providing for multiple modes of transportation. So it is allowing for different traffic modes, and that’s become sort of pretty standard practice across the board. So when you get Federal Highway dollars now from DC, we have money set aside that we are also doing planning assistant grants. So it used to be where you had money just to fund projects. What we’re doing now is we are funding planning work, which as we both you and I know just because of our discipline in the work we’ve done is planning is key. And what we are doing is we are actually prioritizing planning grants that are multi-jurisdictional.

So again, sort of really pushing that idea of regional cooperation and thinking about water, sewer, air, the roads in a very regional cross-jurisdictional manner and really doing it thoughtfully and deliberately and actually putting money behind it. So that’s sort of the work I feel like is really changing. And the planning assistant grant started six years ago, and we were just at one of our meetings last week where we are looking at now projects that are coming from those planning grants that we made six years ago. It’s just amazing what’s happening across the region in southeast Michigan in the small part that I may have played. 

Paul: Well, one of the things I think is important that as we look to the future, and I’m going to ask you a question particularly to close out here about what you see happening in Pittsfield, but one of the things that there’s a lot of angst, I think, in the state of Michigan about where we are on population and young people in all of that. And one of the things that’s important in the work you’ve been doing is that attactionness of the environment is what makes people stay and makes people want to come here. But also planning for the future is really important because with climate change, we’re going to become a more and more attractive environment for people that don’t live in Michigan. And so I balance the angst about where things are now with what we can see coming and solid planning to respond to that’s going to be very, very important. 

So speaking to that, as you’re ending your time 10 years from now, what do you think Pittsfield Township will look like? What do you think?

Mandy: Yeah, never been in the light of making predictions, and I’m not going to start now, but I do hope that Pittsfield Township continues to strike the balance between development and preservation because I feel like that is really what makes us such a gem and so unique, not just in Washtenaw County, but Southeast Michigan. So I hope that we can continue to do that. It’s not easy, but I have full faith in our leaders. The township has been blessed before me, and I’m sure subsequent to me as well, to have great leaders who will carry us forward.

Paul: Well, on my personal level, it’s been great to work with you in this role, but what’s next? Where am I going to encounter you next? What do you have in mind?

Mandy: Like I said in the beginning too, my career path is, and my personal I guess as well, I’ve always taken a untraditional path. So something that I never thought I would do this in my wildest dreams, definitely not when I started my doctoral program, not when I finished it, but life takes you where it takes you. So like I said, I’m not in the business of making predictions, I’m not going to. But I think what’s always driven me and will never change, is that I’m very committed to using my knowledge, my skills, and my experiences to give back for the larger public good. And I hope to continue to do that, whatever that looks like, especially terms of empowering the next generation. To your point, there’s a lot of gloom and doom about our current situation, whether that be socioeconomic or political. And I feel like the work that I’ve done at the hyper-local level, not just as supervisor, but also with SEMCOG and SPARK, you see so many tremendous examples of real good, positive change happening across our communities, and I would really like to sort of showcase and provide a more positive framework for our folks to function within. And so I think that’s sort of where I’m at right now, but we’ll see how that ends up looking like post-November.

Paul: What I’ve always found, I’ve always worked at the local and the regional level in my career, and it’s the closest, I think in terms of impact that something you do on a daily basis can make a change. I mean, if you’re a federal official or you’re in the Congress, you pass some legislation or something. But where the real action happens is at the local level, and it’s very gratifying, and I think feeling that as you end your time as Supervisor. 

Well, Mandy, thank you for talking to us today. We really appreciate it.

Mandy: Thank you so much. It was my pleasure.

Paul: Thank you. Well, I want to thank our audience for listening and learning more about those leaders and organizations working hard to create the Ann Arbor region’s economic future. These conversations are brought to you by Ann Arbor SPARK. For more information about Ann Arbor SPARK, you can find us at the web at annarborusa.org. We’re also on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn.