Good news for Illinois; bad news for Detroit.
The job of city manager is a common post in local suburbs. Its occupants are hired by elected politicians, and they are typically quiet, apolitical technocrats.
Tom Barwin, though, used his platform to become one of metro Detroit's most outspoken activists on two of the region's most vexing issues: mass transit and sprawl. His departure has ramifications far beyond 9 Mile and Woodward.
Observers say Ferndale's success has been the work of a variety of officials and businesspeople, but even those who sometimes opposed Barwin give him high marks for his performance.
"Tom did a great job in Ferndale," said Dan Dirks, general manager of the suburban bus system. "I think he is one of the best out there. We might disagree on some aspects, but I was impressed with his effort and stamina on the issue of mass transit. Tom has been dogged."
Esther Capaldi, a Ferndale resident for nearly 25 years, said, "The people in my book group joke about how Ferndale has become a 'destination.' I even hear people Up North talking about going to Ferndale."
A lanky man who sometimes wears a ball cap, even with a suit, Barwin, 52, was born in Detroit and raised in Warren. He worked in several other suburbs before taking the Ferndale job in March 1998.
His arrival, he said, coincided with a movement to overhaul the neighborhood of 9 Mile west of Woodward. Officials eventually slowed traffic by shrinking the road from four lanes to two, established on-street parking and convinced business owners to reorient their entrances from a big parking lot on the other side of their shops and restaurants to 9 Mile.
"We wanted a more human scale," he said. "We wanted people to slow down and appreciate what's here."
...Where Ferndale represents a version of New Urbanism, its opposites are the popular big-box complexes along M-59 in Macomb County or around Great Lakes Crossing in Oakland County.
Barwin's New Urbanistic beliefs run deep, and he became combative at times while advocating a light-rail line down Woodward or criticizing plans to expand I-75 through Oakland County from three lanes to four.
In 2003, Ferndale and two pro-transit community groups filed a lawsuit against the Southeast Michigan Council of Governments (SEMCOG), arguing that it's biased against Detroit and older suburbs and has promoted sprawl and discouraged investment in mass transit. The suit was dismissed.
SEMCOG spokeswoman Sue Stetler said no one was available from the regional planning body to speak about Barwin but added that the organization wishes him well.
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