Candidate Profile: Nicholas R. Handy For St. Clair Shores Council

Nicholas R. Handy

Age (as of Election Day)

38

Position Sought

St. Clair Shores City Council

Party Affiliation

City Council is non-partisan, though personally I vote Democrat.

Family

Married to my wife Beth. Daughter Alaina goes to Kennedy Middle School.

Does anyone in your family work in politics or government?

No.

Education

High School, De La Salle Collegiate; College, Michigan State University, B.A. in History.

Occupation

Bar Manager at the Country Club of Detroit, Union Member Local 24, Worked at CCD for over (20) years.

Previous or Current Elected or Appointed Office

None.

Campaign website

facebook.com/nickhandyscs

Why are you seeking elective office?

Local politics have always intrigued me. We live in a great city but it could always be better and I want to be a part of that change. We need to be better about attracting businesses to the city, we need to balance being fiscally responsible with aggressively fixing infrastructure within the city, and need to make sure everyone within the city feels welcome, safe, and accepted in our city.
The single most pressing issue facing our (board, district, etc.) is _______, and this is what I intend to do about it.

Infrastructure and attracting businesses to the city are important. But to be honest, making sure everyone within the city feels welcome, safe, and accepted within St. Clair Shores is even more important. And our current City Council has dropped the ball when presented an opportunity to do so, even though more than a dozen other communities within Macomb county have simply passed a resolution/proclamation to make June "Pride Month".

What are the critical differences between you and the other candidates seeking this post?

I take a very pragmatic "10,000-feet looking down" approach to problem solving. That, combined with the fact that everyone currently on the city council has been on it for years, and my age (38), means I would bring a fresh, new perspective to the city council.

If you are a challenger, in what way has the current board or officeholder failed the community (or district or constituency)

Like I said before, the current council members failed at passing the proclamation/resolution to make June "Pride Month". It is also my opinion that the current city council has done as much to deter businesses from coming to St. Clair Shores as the have to attract them.

How do you think local officials performed in responding to the coronavirus? What if anything would you have done differently?

The city made the correct decision moving to remote meetings and following all CDC recommendations.

Describe the other issues that define your campaign platform.

When you talk people throughout the city, move often than not the complaint about the condition of side streets, as well as flooding streets / back flow into basements from an aging infrastructure that simply can not handle heavy rain. Again, there is a delicate balance between fiscal responsibility and fixing infrastructure, but other neighboring communities have figured out how to fix these problems, and we need to as well.

What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job?

Being in the food service industry for two decades has taught me how to deal with everyone, from every walk of life, in any situation, with thick skin. But being part of the management team for over a decade at a nationally recognized premier private club, and being a part of its growth from struggling during the 2008 recession, to becoming one of the nations top private clubs, and maintaining that excellence year after year has shown me that it's not just becoming great, it is maintaining that greatness. And I believe that this city is great, but the potential is there to be even better!

The best advice ever shared with me was:

When Brad Stevens was still the head basketball coach at Butler Univ., he was on the TV show PTI, and he said "One of the hardest things in any endeavor is consistent greatness. That's the real challenge. The whole concept of good to great and how difficult it is to make that step and do it every year." And since that day it has been on a sticky note above my desk, it is at the beginning of any manual I have written at work, and it is true no matter what you are doing in life.

What else would you like voters to know about yourself and your positions?

I have lived in this city for over a decade, and I am raising my daughter here. I have a vested interest in the best interests of this community and I want everyone who lives here to be proud of the city they live in.