Bennett seeks to return to University Heights council
Steven Bennett is a candidate for University Heights City Council again after a two-year absence. He served on council for more than 10 years prior to running for mayor in 2009 – a race he lost to the current mayor, Susan Infeld.
Infeld said it was a positive experience working with Bennett on city council for several years, but declined to comment further on Bennett to keep any misinterpretations out of the media during the competitive election season.
After graduating from the University of Michigan in 1965, Bennett fought in Vietnam. Upon his return, he went into the trucking industry for 30 years, traveling from coast to coast and working to develop marketing systems for trucking.
Eventually he became interested in politics due to its history in his family and his study of political science in college. As he seeks to return to University Heights council, he hopes to use his past experiences to help him.
“The best part about serving on this council is the fact that you get to affect things. You really have to work up a consensus or argument, while considering the outside views or people,” said Bennett. Listening is one of the most important things a person can learn, he stressed.
If re-elected Steven Bennett plans to work to improve the city’s revenues. As the nation faces economic struggles, he says, so does University Heights. Bennett says University Heights is a unique city: one that is small, with a university in it, yet quite dense in population. He also recognizes that the lack of big industries in the city means University Heights must rely on small retail businesses.
Working with John Carroll University is also an important task for Bennett, who has three sons who are Carroll graduates.
“John Carroll offers a lot to University Heights. We have to try to balance the needs of everyone,” Bennett said. It is very important to share the vast resources and benefits of University Heights with everyone, he said, John Carroll students included.
As a local politician, Bennett has occasionally been subjected to criticism, but he looks at any criticism as a way to improve.
“You must keep your emotion out of it when taking criticism,” he says. “Listen to the person. They can tell you where your mistakes were made.”
Spencer German
Spencer German is a student at John Carroll University who has been following this candidate for his journalilsm class.