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Westland Mayor William R. Wild is proud to have been elected to provide leadership for the City of Westland – the city he has long called home, having lived here for over twenty years. Established on May 16, 1966 and named after Westland Shopping Center, Michigan's first fully enclosed, climate controlled shopping center, Westland has grown to become the 10th largest municipality in the State of Michigan and currently boasts over 84,000 residents.
Prior to becoming Mayor in January of 2007. Mayor Wild served as a member of the Westland City Council for five years, City Council President for one year, and a member of the Westland Planning Commission from 1999 through 2001. |
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The City of Westland has a strong form of mayoral government, and as such, Mayor Wild acts as the chief executive officer of the city and oversees a wide range of services and administrative responsibilities, a position that is full-time. As mayor, he oversees an appointed staff of 21 and approximately 300 employees.
From the beginning, Mayor Wild established a host of priorities for the city, fiscal responsibility being the most imperative, an ethic heavily predicated on his well-founded background in business (he grew up working in a family-owned business before later owning and operating his own.) Mayor Wild has worked constructively with the Westland City Council, the city’s legislative body, to produce consecutively balanced budgets and also believes professionalism is the cornerstone of each service a municipality provides to its residents. In his first month in office, he initiated the V.I.R. (“Very Important Resident”) Program, a program which maintains a focus on handling the concerns of residents both efficiently and in a timely manner. The V.I.R. Program also requires that City Officials wear proper business attire and credentials while serving our residents.
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Additionally, Mayor Wild is a strong proponent of environmental consciousness and launched Mission: Green, a joint effort of residents, business owners, and elected officials who aim to improve Westland through cost-savings, environmentally-friendly measures and spearheaded Westland's nationally award-winning single stream curbside recycling program.
Mayor Wild serves as a member of the Transportation and Communications Committee, the Tourism, Arts, Parks, Entertainment and Sports Committee as well as the Membership Committee for the United States Conference of Mayors and was recently appointed Michigan Ambassador. He served on the Legislative Governance Committee for the Michigan Municipal League from 1/1/09 - 12/31/10, he is a member and past chairman of the Conference of Western Wayne. In addition, Mayor Wild is an alternate delegate on SEMCOG's executive board and serves as chairperson for SEMCOG's Legislative Task Force. In 2010, Mayor Wild was elected to serve on the Board of Directors for the Michigan Municipal Risk Management Authority.
Mayor Wild is honored to have been the recipient of several awards through the years for his philanthropic and professional endeavors. In 2010, Mayor Wild was named Local Elected Official of the Year by the Michigan Recreation and Parks Association. He is the recipient of the Mayors Business Council 2010 Excellence in Public/Private Partnership award for Outstanding Achievement. He is also, the 2008 recipient of Westland John Glenn High School’s Distinguished Alumni Award, as well as the recipient of the Jaycee’s Outstanding Young Michigander Award, also in 2008. He also won the Automotive Recyclers of Michigan Presidential Award in 1996 and went on to serve as the organization's President from 2000 through 2002. Furthermore, the Mayor is a supporter of various charitable efforts including the American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life and CATCH – Caring Athletes Team for Children's and Henry Ford Hospital. He is also a member of the Westland Community Foundation, the Westland Lions Club, and a supporter of D.A.R.E. – Drug Awareness Resistance Education.
Mayor Wild and his wife, Sherri, a 6th grade science teacher,are spirited “Rockets,” both having graduated from Westland John Glenn High School – he in 1986 and she in 1988. Together they are the proud parents of a son and two daughters, Luke, 9, Lily, 6, and Payton, 4. In his spare time, Mayor Wild enjoys both playing hockey and watching his son Luke’s “squirt” hockey team, and spending weekends with his family at a family cottage in northern Michigan. |
Mayor's Office
