Groveland City Manager Mike Hein was the featured speaker at the South Lake Chamber Breakfast on March 18. The early morning breakfast brought business and community leaders from across south Lake to the E.L. Puryear Building in Groveland to hear an update on The City With Natural Charm.
Hein is not only a charming city manager and speaker but enjoys boasting about all the new and exciting things happening in Groveland and, nobody can tell it better than Mike. However, was the building filled to capacity to hear Mike speak or to see if he was wearing the green pants he wears to such occasions?
Why the green pants? Some might guess he’s wearing the green for St. Patrick’s Day! The truth he explains is in recognition of the Groveland Greenbacks. History has it that the name Greenbacks came from the man who donated large sums of money near the end of the Great Depression in 1939 to build the High School. When asked what he’d like to name the school, he said, “Well, there’s nothing stronger than the U.S. Dollar. Let the school be called, ‘The Groveland Greenbacks.”
When Mike was hired, he promised the city council that he’d wear the jeans at special events, “Go Greenbacks”. That was over 4 years ago and the jeans still fit.
Mike Hein was appointed City Manager for the City of Groveland in March 2018. Prior to relocating to the City of Groveland, Hein managed several other cities, including the cities of Nogales, Marana, and Tucson in Arizona. Hein is a senior executive with over 30 years of experience in public service management.
City Manager Hein received his Bachelor of Science from the University of Wisconsin – Steven’s Point and completed his Master of Public Administration from the University of Arizona. He then went on to complete the program for Senior Executives in State and Local Governments at Harvard University JFK School.
Below are just a few of the highlights that the city manager spoke of during his presentation:
Many milestones have been reached this year: Groveland is celebrating its 100th anniversary, with Centennial celebrations going on throughout the year. Lake Catherine Blueberry Farm, The First Baptist Church, and the South Lake Chamber of Commerce also celebrate centennial celebrations. Faith Neighborhood Center turns 50.
Ford Commerce Park has brought approximately 3,341,189 sq ft of building space to thriving businesses, including Kroger Distribution Center, Amazon Distribution Center, Lakeview Industrial Properties Distribution.
Lots of new businesses and housing developments are planned or are already part of the Groveland community.
And, changing the face of the city, Groveland has received full funding for right-of-way acquisition totaling $39.9 million to purchase needed properties throughout the next two years for the long-awaited State Road 50 realignments.
Happy Birthday, Groveland. May the City With Natural Charm create another 100 years of Charming Developments.
