The city of Cadillac earned top honors as the Michigan Municipal League’s Region 6 Community Excellence Award (CEA) winner at the League’s 2014 Capital Conference in Lansing on Tuesday, March 18, 2014.
Cadillac won for its bicycle rental project called Bike Cadillac! The city of Cadillac has put to use the many abandoned and unclaimed bicycles the police department has collected over the past several years. The city takes these bikes, has them refurbished if needed, places decals on them, provides locks, and then rents them for free to visitors and residents in the Cadillac area. People use the bikes on city trails, paths, and roads to travel around Lake Cadillac, visit Mitchell State Park and the Carl T. Johnson Hunting and Fishing Museum, and/or travel to downtown Cadillac. The exciting and innovative program started in 2013 through a partnership with Mitchell State Park, which is the location of the bike station. The program was a very popular and successful endeavor and plans are now underway to expand it.
Other communities that competed for the Region 6 CEA nomination were Kalkaska, Manistee, Mackinaw City, Alpena, Traverse City, West Branch, and East Tawas.
“This program has added something unique to Cadillac—it invites both residents and visitors to explore and enjoy our beautiful city with absolutely no expense,” said Cadillac Mayor Carla Filkins. “It brings campers from the Mitchell State Park into downtown so they can actually experience what the entire community has to offer. Every time we can bring back an award like this it is a reflection of the people within the community. In this instance it was someone having the vision to create something unique and enjoyable with resources we already had. We’re excited to share our story during the League’s Convention in October.”