Meet the Candidates: Scott Moore Running on Experience, Integrity

The Nov. 8 election is drawing closer every day, but what do you really know about those names on the ballot?

Patch will interview candidates for the , the board and the during the ramp-up to the election, bringing you the stories behind the names and the issues they think are important for Birmingham.

For the Birmingham City Commission, incumbents George Dilgard, Tom McDaniel, Scott Moore and Mayor Gordon Rinschler are running against Doug Weaver, James Foxley, Steve Knox and Vicki Walsh for four spots.

The Oakland County League of Women Voters will hold a voters forum and meet-the-candidates night at 7:15 p.m. Oct. 12 at the for those running for City Commission.

Scott Moore

Age: 58

Family: Moore and his wife, Joan, have a daughter, Paige, who is 17 and a senior at .

Occupation: Moore is an attorney and counsel to Goldstein, Litt, Slinger PLLC located in Farmington Hills.

Previous elected experience: If re-elected in November, this would be Moore's fourth term on the Birmingham City Commisison. He has served as a commissioner for the past 12 years. Twice during that time, was he mayor and mayor pro tem. Currently, Moore serves on the Southeast Michigan Council of Governments (SEMCOG) Transportation Improvement Program committee and is on the board of directors for the Cultural Council of Birmingham/Bloomfield.

Why are you running?

For Moore, being a city commissioner is more than a job or part-time commitment — it's an affirmation of his love for Birmingham.

"I'm going to do this as long as I can," he said.

Five years ago, "as long as he could" was a question Moore had to consider seriously after he was diagnosed with cancer. After he was given a clean bill of health, Moore said he "came back to life" and decided to re-dedicate his time to giving back.

Though he's been a city commissioner for more than a decade — his daughter was 2 years old when he first ran — Moore said he feels he's still relevant to the community and open to new ways of thinking. But he admits he may be a bit more cautious now than he was 12 years ago.

What do you bring to the City Commission?

If there's one thing Moore brings to the commission, it's experience. However, he also stressed his openness and willingness to listen to residents' concerns, ideas and problems.

"I think I'm a better listener now than I was 12 years ago," Moore said, noting that he wants nothing more than for people to be honest with him.

"We have got to continually listen," he said. "What are our values, what is important to us, what is serious?"

Integrity is also key for any commissioner, Moore said. He said he's proud of the current commission for keeping partisan politics out of debates on city issues, noting that a commissioner should be someone residents look up to and trust.

What issues are important to you?

For Moore, Birmingham needs to consider two important demographic groups moving forward — the city's aging population and young people.

Making Birmingham an attractive place for young people — whether that's high school students or those in their 20s and 30s, particularly young families — is a challenge, Moore acknowledged, but one that's needed to help the city grow in years to come.

"We need to be having a community discussion about how do we go about creating an environment for our young people," he said.

At the same time, Birmingham is growing older, and Moore said the city should be paying attention to how it goes about caring for this population of seniors and retirees.

Development is not only an important issue going forward, it's a point of pride for Moore. He said Birmingham was a "city in decline" when he was first elected to the commission in the late 1990s, facing stagnant growth trends and the specter of the Somerset Collection Troy, which threatened to lure shoppers away from the streets of downtown Birmingham.

Now, downtown Birmingham is the place to be yet again, and the city has seen tremendous growth in the Rail District (located east of Eton) and the Triangle District (located between Woodward and Eton). Business development has to continue in those districts going forward, Moore said.

"You will have three different Birminghams," he said. "What a sexy idea that is."

"This whole region needs more Birminghams," Moore said. "I will work to create that infrastructure and maintain that sense of pride in our town."

For more

Check out Patch's profiles for all candidates running for the Birmingham City Commission: