The Michigan Municipal League 2012 Capital Conference begins at 9 am today with several interesting and informative workshops at the Lansing Center. Recreation Authorities & Other Funding for Parks & Rec is in Room 202. Most Common OMA and FOIA Mistakes and How to Avoid Them is in Room 205. Creative Consolidation: Success in Shared Services is in Room 204. The MAMA Advanced Institute is 9 am - 4:30 pm in Room 201, with the League Board of Trustees Meeting from 10 am - 1 pm at the League Capital Office.

The Governance Committee Meeting is 1:15-2:15 pm in Rooms 103-104.

Welcoming General Session starts at 2:30pm and features a discussion on the personal property tax issue with Lt. Gov. Brian Calley. This is a hot topic of concern to many League communities at risk of losing this crucial revenue source for local services, unless the legislature provides a guaranteed replacement. The general session is your chance to hear firsthand from the Lt. Governor on where this issue is headed.

Don't forget the Regional Roundtables at 3:45 pm, where you'll get a chance to hear and present entries for the annual Community Excellence Award competition. This year the process starts with a casual five-minute talk in front of your region, describing what your community's project has accomplished and how it's benefitted your city or village and its residents. Check the program or the League's Capital Conference apps for Android or iPhone to find out in which room your region meeting is taking place.

The day finishes up with the MML Liability & Property Pool Kick-Off party at 5:30 pm in Hall A.

Onsite registration and packet pick-up is open in the Central hallway from noon to 6 pm.

Welcome, everyone! Check back here on the Capital Conference blog, follow the event on Twitter at hashtag #mmlconf, and check out event photos on flickr throughout the next two days.

To stay up to date on the latest news from Capital Conference, read the Capital Conference blog or go to the League’s website at mml.org. Want to be sure you know what's happening as it happens? Follow the Capital Conference Twitter feed by searching the hashtag #mmlconf. Want to see photos from the event? We'll be posting them throughout the event on the League's flickr page.

Go here for the full agenda that covers everything from brownfield tax credits to green government to Lt. Gov. Brian Calley discussing the personal property tax issue.

If you've been planning to register for the League's upcoming Capital Conference March 20-21 in Lansing but have kept putting it off until you "have the time"...well, that time is running out fast! Online Registration ends Monday, March 12! This could also be the perfect year to enter the annual Community Excellence Awards! All you have to do is stand up at your Regional Roundtable and give a simple five-minute talk on the success your community has had with some unique, innovative program or project. Maybe it's a community effort, a new marketing campaign, a downtown revitalization project or a new operations system that makes your government offices run more smoothly. It could be anything! Don't be intimidated by the impressive slideshows and video productions you see during the final round at Convention -- you won't need to do anything right now except tell your fellow region members about your project. Then if you win your region, we'll send out press releases and help spread the word to your local media about your community's success. All because of a simple five-minute speech!

Then you'll have six full months to prepare to show off your best and brightest at the League Convention at the Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island! Can you think of a more perfect setting to tell the whole state about what your community has accomplished?

  Peter Anastor will be one of the guest speakers for Brownfield Tax Credits: Now What? It's one of the morning concurrent sessions at Capital Conference, 10:15-11:30 a.m. Wednesday, March 21 2012. View other speakers here and the Capital Conference agenda here.

Peter Anastor is the Director of Policy for the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC). In this position, Peter is responsible for developing broad policy initiatives and designing and creating new strategic initiatives at the MEDC. In addition, Peter is leading a Statewide team, working with many statkeholders, to develop a Statewide Logisitic strategy. Professional Background Prior to his current position, Peter served as the Manager of Community and Urban Development for the MEDC. In this position, Peter was responsible for developing and implementing urban and community revitalization strategies for the MEDC. This included overseeing the Brownfield Redevelopment Program, the Community Assistance Team and the Michigan Economic Growth Authority (MEGA) tax credit programs.

Prior to that Peter also served as Program Manager for Brownfield Redevelopment at the MEDC. In this position, he oversaw the day-to-day operations of the program including the allocation of brownfield redevelopment tax credits and Tax Increment Financing (TIF) approvals. Peter has also served as a Senior Project Manager at the MEDC where he worked with companies to structure incentive packages to secure new jobs and investment for the state of Michigan. Prior to joining the MEDC, Peter served as a Budget Analyst in Michigan’s Office of the State Budget where he developed budget recommendations for various state departments. Peter also serves as a member of the Michigan State Land Bank Authority and was a former Secretary to the MEGA Board. Education Peter earned a Bachelors degree from James Madison College at Michigan State University and a Master’s degree in Public Administration from the Maxwell School at Syracuse University.

Read additional posts about the 2012 Capital Conference here:
- Lt. Gov. Brian Calley to Discuss Personal Property Tax at Capital Conference
- Michigan Municipal League Launches Mobile App for Capital Conference
- Oklahoma City Mayor Mick Cornett to Discuss Placemaking at Capital Conference
- Energy, Environment, Transportation Policy: What's Ahead? Find out at Capital Conference
- Capital Conference General Session To Have Transportation Focus

Elizabeth Shaw is communications coordinator for the Michigan Municipal League. She can be reached at eshaw@mml.org.
 

Michigan Governor Rick Snyder's State of the State speech highlighted the issue of transportation funding in MIchigan, with a large package of transportation bills to be introduced in Lansing in the coming weeks.

The League's Capital Conference's general session on Wednesday, March 21 will focus on this crucial topic: Transportation: Taking the Inside Track. Get on the inside track of Michigan’s transportation future, and learn what’s ahead and how it could impact your community.  You’ll hear the latest updates on where transportation legislation is headed in 2012 from Senator Tom Casperson, Chair of the Senate Transportation Committee, and Representative Paul Opsommer, Chair of the House Transportation Committee. Troy Chamber of Commerce President Michele Hodges will talk about what transportation means to the business community. Let’s Save Michigan advocate Sarah Szurpicki will offer insights on why transportation is so vital to Michigan’s future.

Click here to register!

The League's annual Community Excellence Award competition highlights innovative projects and local success stories in Michigan communities, as a way to inspire others facing similar challenges or goals. That is exactly what happened this year when Buchanan was inspired to host a winter sledding festival like Vassar's "Chill on the Hill," which won the 2011 Region 5 CEA, which Buchanan city officials say they learned about at the League's 2011 Convention. Click here to read a great story about Buchanan's new "Thrill on the Hill." Then click here to learn how the League is making CEA entry easier than ever with a simplified 1st round process at the Regional Roundtables at the Capital Conference, March 20-21 in Lansing. Register now for Capital Conference! Click here to submit your CEA entry idea!