The city of Negaunee had the right idea recently when it hired Mona Lang to get its Downtown Development Authority up and running.

Lang, the recently retired Marquette DDA executive director, worked in that capacity for well in excess of 20 years.

Negaunee, meanwhile, is reconstituting its DDA after some years of inactivity.

Specifically, Lang will be responsible for fulfilling requirements for DDA reporting purposes under Michigan law and help the DDA to develop a proposed marketing branding plan as well as a community events plan and community affairs plan if necessary, a Mining Journal story on the matter, stated.

Negaunee City Councilman Jason Wallner said that adding Lang to the mix is helping to move the newly revitalized Negaunee DDA forward.

“I attended the last DDA meeting (where) they discussed this,” Wallner said. “I commend them on the work they are doing … Bringing Miss Lang on board, she brings a wealth of experience. There are a lot of great things happening.”

Councilwoman Dana LaLonde agreed.

“I am very excited to have Mona Lang on board, she brings a lot of experience to the position,” LaLonde said.

City manager Nate Heffron said he didn’t believe Lang was looking to stay on staff long term. Rather, the $14,000 the council agreed to pay her as an independent contrctor will cover less than one year worth of work.

It’s hard to imagine a better selection to oversee the ground work needed in Negaunee to get the DDA’s feet on the ground.

We predict good things happening in the near future at the Negaunee DDA.