Benton Harbor Voters Elect Wilce
L. Cooke as their next Mayor
On November 5, 2003, Benton Harbor voters elected Wilce L.
Cooke as their next Mayor. Cooke is no
stranger to this position. Sixteen years
ago he was elected and served as Mayor from 1982 to 1988.
He is also no stranger to leading the City when it faces a
deficit. As it did in 1982, the City of
Benton Harbor in 2004 is in a financial shortfall. When Cooke took office in 1982, there was a $3
million deficit and the State of Michigan
was contemplating taking the City of Benton Harbor into receivership. Under Cooke’s administration, the City was
not taken over by the State, though several other cities in Michigan were.
According to Cooke, “When I left office in 1989, I left the
City’s financial situation in such good shape that they didn’t have to do
anything except basically follow what was already in motion.” Some other specific achievements during
Cooke’s previous tenure as Mayor includes:
- Removing
old abandoned buildings
- Redevelopment
of Benton Harbor’s waterfronts
- Redevelopment
of housing and new neighborhoods
- Rebuilding
of bridges in the City
- Renovating
and improving the City’s water plant
- Passage
of millage to fund Dial-a-Ride
- Laying
the groundwork for purchase and renovation of the Armory
- Creation
of the State’s only Enterprise Zone
- Formation
of the Tax Increment Finance Authority overlaying the Industrial Park and
Downtown Development Authority to fund and manage the redevelopment of
downtown
- Securing
numerous grants including for the Industrial Incubator now know as the Carl Brown Business
Growth Center.