William K. Blickley papers

Collection

Identifier: Collection 545

Content Description

This collection includes correspondence, campaign materials, and writings that document William “Bill” Blickley’s civic involvement and planning philosophy. Campaign materials, especially his position papers from his service as Third Ward City Commissioner for the City of Grand Rapids, provide insight into his political views, priorities, and values.

Materials describing the Blickley family’s research travel through Europe and West Africa offer detailed observations on housing, transportation, and other infrastructure systems that informed his approach to urban planning.

The collection also contains an essay by the late City Commissioner M. Howard Rienstra reflecting on his experience with terminal cancer, adding a personal perspective from a colleague in local government.

Dates

Creation: 1971 - 1991

Conditions Governing Access

This collection is open and available for researcher use.

Biographical / Historical

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William “Bill” Blickley was born in 1942 in West Michigan to Kenneth and Ruth Blickley and grew up in the Baptist Church. He married LaVerne Tromp in 1962, and they had four children: Adam, Eric, Rhonda, and Katherine (Kasey).

Blickley studied urban planning at Grand Rapids Junior College and earned a Bachelor of Science in City Planning from Michigan State University in 1974. His interests included housing, transportation, solid waste disposal, recycling, and citizen involvement in local government. He and his family spent eight months traveling through Europe and West Africa in 1974 and 1975 studying international approaches to these issues. After returning to Grand Rapids, he worked briefly as a Neighborhood Planner for the City but resigned in 1976 over concerns about the lack of meaningful citizen participation in planning processes.

Blickley has been deeply involved in neighborhood organizing, serving as a founding member of the WEFF (Wealthy-Ethel-Franklin-Fuller Neighborhood Association) and as chair of the Eastown Community Association. In 1984 he was elected a Third Ward City Commissioner for the City of Grand Rapids and served eight years. He helped establish the Coalition for Representative Government, which promoted increased representation of people of color in local elected offices. He later earned a master’s degree in city management and public administration from Western Michigan University in 1992 and ran again for City Commission in 1999, losing by 339 votes.

Full Extent

.25 Linear Feet (1 box)

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Abstract

The William K. Blickley Collection documents the work of a Grand Rapids, Michigan city planner, neighborhood organizer, and two-term Third Ward City Commissioner, elected in 1984. The materials include correspondence, campaign files, position papers, and writings that reflect Blickley’s political values, advocacy for citizen participation, and involvement in neighborhood and city government. Additional materials describe the Blickley family’s research travel through Europe and West Africa to study urban infrastructure and planning practices, as well as an essay by former Grand Rapids City Commissioner M. Howard Rienstra on his battle with terminal cancer.