Saginaw · issues
Civic issues
Topics getting the most attention in Saginaw public meetings, ranked by how frequently they come up.
Federal housing and community development grant agreements
Saginaw gets about $3 million a year from HUD for housing, homelessness, and neighborhood programs. The council locked in this year's allocations, including shelter funding, home repair programs, Wi-Fi for housing commission high-rises, and youth programming.
Federal housing and homelessness funding
Speaker Melanie Velasco described a 70-year-old woman left in the cold and urged the city to board up vacant houses and build low-cost tiny homes. Councilmembers Young and Balls echoed concerns about vacant properties being squatted in and addiction-driven homelessness.
City union contracts extended to 2030
SEIU leader Corey Gage said all seven city union contracts expired July 1 and most remain unratified, urging council to push management back to the table. Council later approved the firefighters' tentative agreement.
Firefighter union contract (2026-2030)
A four-year deal with IAFF Local 102 covering fire department staffing and pay through mid-2030 was approved after closed-session negotiation, with one dissent.
Spending remaining CARES Act grant dollars on children's literacy
The city still holds authority to draw $288,958 in 2020 CARES Act money that must be spent by August 21, 2026. The council agreed to route it through United Way to fund literacy programs for low-to-moderate income kids whose reading scores dropped during pandemic closures.
Charter Section 45 amendment ballot question
The council approved ballot language for lifting the dollar-amount property tax cap — a question voters have rejected seven times. Supporters say the roughly $3.8 million cap can't even cover the trash operation; the cost to a typical homeowner under the plan is about $2.32 per month.
2026-2027 Capital Improvement Plan
The commission is being asked to rank the city's proposed public projects over the next six years before the annual budget is built — a chance to signal which streets, parks and facilities matter most.