On the night of November 5th, when the dust had settled, Marcus Muhammad had successfully defended his post as Mayor of the City of Benton Harbor by a less than 100 vote margin over contender, City Commissioner Ron Singleton. Last night, by personal invitation from Muhammad himself, Singleton was asked to rise before a standing room only crowd at the Mayor’s Inauguration Celebration at the Inn at Harbor Shores to thunderous applause as he pledged unity at the top of Benton Harbor city government.
Six weeks after winning the election by 91 votes over Singleton, Muhammad likened their bout to be the mayor to the fabled Ali-Frazier title bouts on three different occasions, but noted, “In the end they became lifelong friends after their last bout.” He added, “I asked Ron to come tonight because we need unity in this community. Because if the people don’t see unity at the top then there can be no unity at the bottom.”
There was symbolic unity right there in room when Muhammad posed for pictures with three previous Mayors — Wilce Cooke, Joel Patterson and Emma Hull.
The Mayor was in great spirits throughout the colorful night of speeches, live dance and music performances and fellowship. He used the occasion to briefly details his vision, mission and values for the city, and told the standing room only crowd, “Developing our neighborhoods is critically important. Downtown is very important, and a rising tide lifts all boats, but downtown is going nowhere without Catalpa…without Lake Street…and without Colfax. There has to be a collective effort in development to raise the city up, so this Friday I will be meeting in Detroit with a special assistant to President Donald Trump, the Lt. Governor and other state officials because as the Mayor, I don’t have the luxury with the problem that I’m looking at, to say ‘I’m not going to meet with you because you’re a Republican.’ We need a new narrative. We need the type of leader that will look beyond party lines, that can look beyond partisanship, and look at what’s best for people. I’m not registered to any party. I’m committed to the party of the people. I’m willing to work with whoever, wherever, and however — under the law — to raise up the city of Benton Harbor.”
The night began with emcee Renaldo Tripplett reading aloud a letter to Muhammad from Governor Gretchen Whitmer, which said:
Dear Honorable Mayor Marcus Muhammad:
On behalf of the State of Michigan, I would like to extend my sincere congratulations to you upon your Mayoral Inauguration Celebration.
In your first term you have shown a sincere love and passion for Benton Harbor, and exceptional leadership throughout your work in healing and developing downtown and the neighborhoods.
I have no doubt you will continue to initiate effective solutions that represent the needs of the residents of Benton Harbor, and make the city a great place to live, work and raise a family.
Our state depends on talented and committed leaders like you serve as the voice of the people in making our communities strong.
Again, I would like to congratulate you on your inauguration as the Mayor of Benton Harbor, and express gratitude for the commitment you have shown and will continue to show for our state. Please accept my best wishes on your new beginning.
Sincerely,
Gretchen Whitmer, Governor of Michigan
Cornerstone Alliance President Rob Cleveland told the crowd about the importance of economic development in the community, saying, “Many folks, tend to talk in an analogies, especially in sports analogies, because so many understand sports analogies as followers of major sports. I always tell people that economic development is also like a sport, unfortunately, we don’t get the cool ones like basketball or football. Economic development is often considered to be very much like a three-legged race. If you’re like me you remember the three-legged race from field day at school, and it was terrible because I was always pretty bad at it, and always fell. But, if you remember the three-legged race – it’s not the fastest person that wins, it’s not the best athlete, and its not the smartest person. Just like economic development, the people who win in projects, are those who are the most collaborative, and who are the most coordinated. Those are the folks who get to the finish line first.”
Cleveland continued, “I know that the Mayor will acknowledge this — and we all will acknowledge — that Benton Harbor has a ways to go. But, we are working collaboratively, to deliver on projects. We’ve got real results to prove that. Ken Ankli is here tonight and what he has done with the Sheffield Building is nothing short of amazing. There are four new residences in Benton Harbor on Pipestone because of him, and we’re working beyond Main Street and towards the neighborhoods. And Ken has brought another world class restaurant, The Houndstooth, to Benton Harbor, and if you don’t believe me drive up and down Pipestone in the evening and see all the cars that are parked along the street. It’s fantastic!”
Cleveland continued addressing the city’s progress, saying, “We’ve had projects this year like Nobo, we have a project at Harbor Center, right across from City Center Park at Pipestone and Main. And, I’m going to tell you folks, that building was days away from being demolished. We were on our last developer, we were on our last hope. That building was going to be demolished. Ultimately, the fate of that building was in the hands of the Benton Harbor City Commission. Five commissioners decided to support progress in Benton Harbor. Commissioners Isom, Singleton, and Henderson, and Mayor Pro Tem Seats, and Mayor Marcus Muhammad, are responsible for keeping that building, and bringing future development.”
The leader of Berrien County’s lead economic development agency at Cornerstone Alliance concluded, “We are stronger, and we are wiser, and we are better than we were a year ago and I’m proud of that. I am positive that with the continued leadership of some of these folks on the commission, we are going to continue to make progress, we have a lot of great projects coming our way, and we’re excited to be sharing those with you and with the Mayor and the commission, and we are appreciative of being part of this tonight.”
After a number of dignitaries were introduced, recognized and applauded and several brief musical showcases, the Mayor took the mic for his comments, which reverberated through the room with his powerful voice. Here is what he had to say:
“Thank you, thank you, thank you, I’d like to first of all give all honor to God, for without Him, none of this would be possible. I’d like to thank my Mother and Father, my lovely wife, my children. I’d like to thank the city council for putting up with me. It’s not easy to work with people who all are passionate about the same thing, because each one of us bring a certain perspective of how we think and feel the City of Benton Harbor should move forward. With all of our different perspectives, the most common denominator that brings us all together is our love for Benton Harbor.”
“I’d like to just briefly talk about some of the strategic imperatives for Benton Harbor. This is not a State of the City address or anything like that. I just really want to bring people together from different backgrounds, from different walks of life, from different socio-economic levels, different religions, and so on. Because if everybody in this room were to make the commitment to work with one another, despite our differences, there’s enough wisdom, there’s enough expertise, there’s enough know-how, right here, that if we just committed to work with another – not agree on everything – but just work with one another we could change the reality of Benton Harbor, not overnight, but we could see progress at a much faster pace.” 
“That requires us to have a vision, which very simply is a better Benton Harbor. A Benton Harbor that will work for all. Where we can create a city where we don’t have ‘have’s and have-nots.’ Where we don’t have people that are homeless. I went to the Salvation Army yesterday to invite them, the men at the shelter who are transitioning some from incarceration, some from hard times, some from divorce, some had lost everything. But, I wanted them to be a part, because they also have a significant role in the life and the development of the City of Benton Harbor.”
“That requires that we all have a sense of mission. First, personally. Where we all declare that the first person we’re going to make better is the person in the mirror. That’s what you call ‘mirrorology,’ where we study that man or woman in the mirror. As the Mayor, criticism comes day-in and day-out, night and day, but it gives me the opportunity to look at guess who? Me. We can’t have a better Benton Harbor if we don’t have a better me. And we can’t have a better Benton Harbor without a better you. So we take that mission where self-improvement is the basis for community improvement.”
“Values. Respect. Integrity. Inclusion. Where you don’t have to agree with me. Many of us disagreed with the city income tax. Do I need to take a poll? Not tonight. But the result, this very hotel, The Inn at Harbor Shores, was the result of Twin Cities, two communities, St. Joseph and Benton Harbor, going into an agreement – going into a partnership – where the City of St. Joe annexed this parcel under the Michigan Compiled Law 425 where for 20-years this is the property of Benton Harbor. And that started in 2005. How many of you have experienced riding on a smoother street in Benton Harbor? Did you know that this hotel was one of the major contributors to the city income tax? They contributed to, and helped, to fix the streets of the City of Benton Harbor, and will continue in that effort as long as it remains through 2025, but that is the power of partnerships.”
“That’s the power of collaborating, because in Benton Harbor we can’t do it alone, and St. Joe cannot do it alone either. It’s going to take us working together. And as the Mayor of the City of Benton Harbor, I pledge to work with not just St. Joseph, but Benton Township, too. When I went to the Economic Club and saw Richard M. Daley from Chicago, he said, ‘We have to begin to seek and work in a more regional way’ He said ‘Individual cities cannot operate in their silos, because you have one city in China that covers Milwaukee, Chicago, South Bend, Benton Harbor, St. Joe and Kalamazoo all put together.’ If we’re going to compete in a global world, then we can’t be so incestuous that we’re going to just deal with our 4.4 square miles.”
Operational Priorities. We have increased neighborhood and downtown revitalization. Infrastructure being at the top.
So, tonight, it’s a party for the people at the Inn at Harbor Shores. Everybody has a story. Behind every person in here there’s a story. So I’m honored to stand here as your Mayor. I’m honored to be a public servant. And I look forward to four more years.”
Fliers were distributed to those in attendance, detailing key points that the Mayor wants recognized.
Vision — Benton Harbor is the Port of Opportunities for all.
Mission — Every resident, taxpayer, visitor, and child is our customer, and we guarantee delivery of the best experience for them.
Values — Respect. Integrity. Inclusion. Collaboration
2020 Operational Priorities:
- Define the standards to best promote growth and investment for everyone in our community.
- Increase neighborhood and downtown revitalization.
- Prioritize infrastructure needs.
- Create a comprehensive housing solution for all socio-economic levels.
- Develop a vision for a healthy Benton Harbor that inspires our region.
2020 Action Items:
- Define the standards to best promote growth and investment for everyone in our community.
- Activate Youth Engagement
- Increase meaningful youth employment opportunities
- Create a Youth Committee to advise the City Commission that will increase collaboration, education, and civic engagement.
- Encourage Transformation in Targeted Areas, including the Harbor, Riverview Drive and others.
- Rehabilitation of Vacant and Underutilized Buildings.
- Create a Define Development Plan for Developers.
- Leverage Existing Resources that Support Development.
- Activate Youth Engagement
- Create a comprehensive housing solution for all socio-economic levels.
- Support Developers and Utilize Tools that will Increase Market Rate and Mixed-Income Housing Developments.
- Spotlight Resources and Development in Targeted Neighborhoods.
- Activate MSHDA, CDBG, and Local Resources for Housing Solutions.
- Increase neighborhood and downtown revitalization.
- Expand Neighborhood Beautification Initiatives.
- Position Gateway Signage and Branding.
- Expand Neighborhood Block Club Collaboration.
- Support Diverse Housing Options.
- Engage Youth and Young Professionals in Revitalization Efforts.
- Develop a vision for a healthy Benton Harbor that inspires our region.
- Focus on Areas that Improve Benton Harbor’s Social Health Determinants.
- Strengthen Partnerships with Healthcare Providers.
- Expand Upon the Strong Foundation of Community Partners.
- Address Food Desert Issues.
- Support Increased Connectivity, Walkability, and Harbor Mobility.
- Prioritize infrastructure needs.
- Identify Priority Needs for Road, Alley, and Sidewalk Repair.
- Create Awareness of and Support for Alley Activation.
- Promote City Government Effectiveness and Efficiency for Infrastructure Improvements.
