By James Windell
Todd Heinrich says he’s been accused of being anti-tourism. But that ‘s not true he says.
“I very much like tourism,” said in a recent interview. “I like to talk to tourists and find out where they’re from. But, we should not let tourism rule our city council. Our residents should come first.”
When he knocks on people’s doors and talks to them about their greatest concerns, he finds it isn’t short-term rentals or beach safety. “The top issue I find,” Heinrich said, “is population decline, and job decline.”
Both of those issues, however, have come about because of STRs overrunning so many neighborhoods.
Residents he’s talked to also say that home affordability is a concern. “It’s not that we need more housing,” he said. “We don’t need more housing. Unfortunately, we’ve converted too many houses into commercial housing in our neighborhoods. In the past, we had enough houses to support a much larger population.”
Is he in favor of reducing the number of STRs?
“We already have a cap on STRs,” he says. “The recent reforms that have been made haven’t done anything to reduce the number, but I don’t have a problem with the number of STRs. However, there is no mechanism in our current reform to potentially reduce the numbers of STRs in a meaningful way. The only way we can reduce the number of STRs is to have people surrender their permits, but there is no motivation to do that.”
Although he was not born and raised in South Haven, he and his wife Susan, a local family physician, have raised their two children here while living in the city for 35 years. He served for 12 years on the Planning Commission and Zoning Board of Appeals. In his career before retirement, he spent many years in sales, manufacturing, and property development and management.
Heinrich has served as past Board Chairman of the Michigan Maritime Museum, leading the Board during the construction of the Padnos building and during the Tall Ships Festival. He is an active member of the Rotary Club of South Haven, serving on various committees and currently a new board member.
He says that his goal is to faithfully represent the people who live in Ward 2. Hoping to replace retiring Ward 2 council member Wendy Onuki, he said that she was handicapped in what she could accomplish. “Although Wendy did her best, most of the time when she was on the city council she was in a minority situation where she could not get things done.”
Although he recognizes the importance of tourism, he would like to see a thoughtful, responsible approach to tourism. “Our approach has to make sure that our residents come first,” he said.
