Judicial College. Judge Gage
serves on the Michigan Supreme
Court's Sentencing Guidelines Ad-
visory Committee, the ABA's Task
Force on Reduction of Litigant
Cost and Delay and is a member
of the Coordinating Council on
Life-Sustaining Treatment Deci-
sion-Making for the National Cen-
ter for State Courts.
She is the recipient of myriad
awards, including the State Bar
of Michigan's Roberts P. Hudson
Award for outstanding contribu-
tions to the bar and the ABA's Na-
tional Conference of State Trial
Judges Award of Judicial Excel-
lence. ❑

in the circuit court in 1978, Judge
Gage was in private practice for
eight years and a faculty member
at Wayne State University's law
school, her alma mater. In 1971,
she tried her first case.
In the 1960s, Judge Gage
worked as a schoolteacher in Ann
Arbor and in the Cherry Hill
School District in Dearborn.
Among her numerous profes-
sional affiliations, she has served
as a state delegate for the Amer-
ican Bar Association (ABA), past
chairperson of the Judicial Tenure
Commission, past president of the
Michigan Judges Association, and
vice chairperson of the National

Back To The Basics

West Bloomfield candidates put controversies aside
to focus on what matters most.

MARA REINSTEIN JEWISH NEWS INTERN

lthough the Centennial
Olympics in Atlanta are
heating up, the candidates
'ng in the West
Bloomfield Township primary
election hope their local games are
over.
Indeed, as the Aug. 6 election
day draws near, the candidates
are putting their personal differ-
ences aside and are campaigning
solely on the issues and their goals
for the community.
In the Republican primary,
Larry Wasserman is mounting
a campaign for township super-
visor against incumbent Jeddy
Hood. Incumbents Raymond Hol-
land, Michael Schwartz, Marc
Shulman and Dennis Vatsis are
running against Debbie Macon
and David Turnqiiist for the four
Republican slots on the Novem-
ber ballot. Democrat Stuart Brick-
ner, who runs unopposed
in the August primary,
will join the four Republi-
can primary winners on
the general-election bal-
lot in November, when
the top four vote getters
will win four-year terms.
A top priority for many of the can-
didates is road improvements for
Orchard Lake, Maple and 14 Mile
roads. Traffic congestion on these
streets — especially on Saturdays
— is maddening and stressful.
Several solutions exist. One
popular idea to manage existing
traffic — the widening of Orchard
Lake Road (up to eight lanes) and
making a boulevard out of Maple
— is supported by West Bloom-
field Township Supervisor Jeddy
Hood and candidate for trustee
Stuart Brickner.
'Widening Orchard Lake will
almost certainly help the rapid
growth," says Mr. Brickner. "It
will take a lot of thoughtfulness
and planning, but it can work."
Another possibility is to make

'9

roundabouts for these roads, or a
ring road that circles around the
township. Supporters like trustee
incumbents Dennis Vatsis,
Michael Schwartz and Marc Shul-
man hope that by redirecting traf-
fic with this method, overall
congestion eventually will de-
crease in West Bloomfield.
Mr. Vatsis, Mr. Schwartz and
Mr. Shulman also stress concern
for the environment. Over the
years, they have publicly de-
nounced proposals for additional
shopping centers and other busi-
ness venues in an effort to retain
the township's open spaces and
25 lakes.
'West Bloomfield is a jewel that
needs to be preserved," says Mr.
Vatsis, an advocate of maintain-
ing woodland and wetland areas.
"[West Bloomfield] took two
decades to get this way, and it
shouldn't be ruined with
strip malls."
Other candidates, like
Debbie Macon, believe
that a balance is need-
ed. "We have a beautiful
suburb, but there is al-
ways room for commer-
cial development," she says.
The other big issue is one on
which almost everyone concurs:
providing community teens with
social and educational alterna-
tives to gangs and loitering.
"We have to draw kids togeth-
er and utilize their resources,"
says David Turnquist, trustee
candidate. "I'd like to take them
away from the local 7-11."
Mr. Turnquist hopes the elect-
ed trustees will put away their
personal agendas to work toward
these goals. "My biggest concern
really is all the bickering that is
going on at the trustee level," he
says. "We're all citizens and we
should stop the games on non-val-
ued issues." ❑

SEE CHART ON PAGE 22

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