Traverse City Record-Eagle

Election 2009

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    Michael Gillman
October 15, 2009

Retired attorney seeks city post

By Sheri McWhirter

Editor's Note

This story is third in a series of profiles of Traverse City Commission candidates.

Read the entire series as it is published in our election section at record-eagle.com/election »

TRAVERSE CITY -- Michael Gillman is looking to return to public service.

Gillman, 70, is a retired lawyer who in 2007 joined Traverse City's Citizens Operational and Financial Analysis Committee as a way to ease himself into retirement. Instead, he's now making a bid for a seat on the Traverse City Commission.

"I thought I'd done my public service in the past," Gillman said.

Gillman was a Bay County commissioner from 1967 until 1971. He then went to Lansing to serve as chairman for the state's workers' compensation appeals board. He moved to Traverse City in 1983 and began a private legal practice as a workers' compensation defense attorney for municipalities and insurance companies.

Gillman's experience with the COFAC committee prompted him to run for city commissioner.

"It was a crash course in local government and I don't think people realize how much goes into local government these days," he said.

The committee primarily focused on ways to reduce city expenses and three such examples are highly important to Gillman, he said.

First, Gillman said he has a "major issue" with Traverse City taxpayers spending hundreds of thousands of dollars each year to help fund Grand Traverse County Sheriff's Department road patrols, though deputies don't patrol city streets.

Second, city officials must find a way to reduce "legacy benefit costs," such as employee pension programs, Gillman said.

"We make a promise to pay in the future without knowing what the future is going to bring," he said.

Gillman would prefer no new employees receive such benefits and instead would adopt a "pay-as-you-go retirement system," like a 401(k) program.

Finally, Gillman wants to find a way to reduce fire protection costs in Traverse City. COFAC committee members determined taxpayers are charged 100 percent more per capita than other comparable cities, he said. He doesn't claim to know the solution, just that the situation deserves attention, Gillman said.

Gillman has lived in Traverse City for 26 years, has been married to Betty Gillman for 47 years, and also has five sons and eight grandchildren.

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