MARQUETTE - Gov. Rick Snyder made a stop in Marquette today while on a trip through the central Upper Peninsula on his way to Sault Ste. Marie to fulfill a lone campaign commitment.
"I'm looking forward to the Soo 500 tomorrow," Snyder said, referring to the annual snowmobile race that's been held there since 1969. "It was a funny story that during the entire campaign process, I didn't make any commitments but one. I was at the Soo 500 and they said if you became governor would you come back and drop the (starting) flag on the race."
Snyder agreed.
"I told them yes, but I can't commit to do it year one because I just took office," Snyder said. "So I said sometime during the course that I'm governor I'll get back up here and drop the flag on the race. I'm happy to say I made it in year two."
Snyder, who is traveling with his wife, Sue, arrived in Marquette on a commercial flight Thursday. He spoke to some constituents Thursday and was scheduled to meet with city and county officials in Marquette today, along with state employees from the Michigan Department of Human Services.
Snyder said those talks with government officials have no predetermined focus.
"(I'm) really just here to listen to what they have on their agenda and how we can work together, because it's about partnership," Snyder said.
Around lunch time, Snyder was scheduled to hold a town hall meeting at Bay College in Escanaba and throughout the day be the subject of several media interviews before heading to Sault Ste. Marie. There he will participate in Soo 500 race related activities tonight and stop at Lake Superior State University before returning to Lansing.
"It's a busy trip," Snyder said. "It's just coming to see people and continue a good dialogue and relationship because as governor I think it's important to come around and visit people in the state."
Snyder said there have been marked successes in his tenure as governor so far, but there is also more work ahead. He said the first segment of his term has been focused on policy issues, but a shift is expected in the months ahead toward implementation.
"We did so many policy things this year, I want to work on good implementation and good government in terms of more empowerment of our employees, more customer service to the average citizen," Snyder said. "So that will be a big theme continuing through all of 2012 into 2013. State government's a customer service business. You're my customer. We can do a better job."
While on a typical trip to the U.P., Snyder said he enjoys local cuisine.
"I'm always looking for whitefish on the menu when I get up here, because I always enjoy that," Snyder said. "That's great. It's one of my favorites. That's usually one of the highlights. Get a good whitefish meal here and there along the path."
John Pepin can be reached at 906-228-2500, ext. 206.
