A Conversation with Former Mayor Logie | Community Spirit

J. Bennett Rylah

John H. Logie was the Mayor of Grand Rapids for a long time, from 1991-2003. That's longer than any other Mayor in the city's 154-year history, though present Mayor Heartwell may overtake the record if he wins another term. Logie is currently a counsel attorney at Warner, Norcross, and Judd, but remains passionate about the city.

During Logie's stint as Mayor, he was an advocate for building a vibrant downtown and maintained what could be considered progressive politics. He talks about walking down Monroe Center as a candidate, counting 74 vacant storefronts and contemplating what to do with them. He's a fan of the layer-cake approach to building -- retail on the bottom, then office space, then residential. He's a vault of numbers, statistics, dates and information. He's tangential when he talks, telling you seven stories just to get to the point of one, but you don't mind, because it's interesting and articulately executed. Anything you wanted to know about Grand Rapids, you could probably ask him.

The first time I met him in person was at the Meanwhile Bar, at a benefit for Until Love...

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