My City November 2022

MYHISTORY

The Mayors of Flint PART 11: SETBACKS AND SURViVAL

BY PETER HINTERMAN

Since the 1960s, Flint’s circumstances have slowly deteriorated. e population trickled out of the city, taking their tax money with them; General Motors began to pull up shop closing o ces and factories, and small business faltered.With little money or population left, city leadership began to cut back while desperately searching for ways to reverse the situation. e budget quickly became a problem that would grow in signi cance each passing year. By the late 80s, Flint had taken a number of shots, was out of breath and standing on tired legs. No reprieve was on the way. In fact, one more punch was coming. e city mostly responded by scaling down and contraction yielded mixed results. e mayors from 1987 to today ran into their own battles, scandals and adversity – each of them tasked with searching out and uncovering a miracle. is series has tracked Flint’s Mayors throughout history, providing short accounts of their professions, lives and decisions they made while in o ce (if known). Some mayors were men/women of great deeds or of great controversy; some simply acted as placeholders in time. Each of them, however, chaired a city important to its country and its citizens on a path through triumph and heartbreak, and toward its revitalization. For Part 1 in this series, see the January 2022 issue of My City.

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