Ottawa County is one of the fastest-growing counties in Michigan. Growth like that means we need more than just housing – we need water to serve it.

Here’s the problem most people don’t see: across the rural parts of our district, farms, businesses, and homes draw their water from wells – and the wells are dropping. The deep aquifer that rural Ottawa County depends on is running low, and we can only drill so far before hitting a layer of rock and clay that can’t be drilled through. This isn’t a someday problem. Families are dealing with it right now.

My plan:

Extend municipal water inland. The lake-supplied municipal system needs to reach further into our rural townships, so the neighbors who’ve farmed and lived there for generations aren’t left watching their wells run dry. That’s a real infrastructure investment – and I’ll fight for our district’s share of it.

Use the water we have wisely. About 3 billion gallons of water a year go to watering turf grass in Ottawa County alone. Nobody’s coming for your lawn – but smarter landscaping standards for new developments and incentives for water-wise choices can free up an enormous amount of water without anyone sacrificing a thing.

And here’s the catch: extending municipal water means competing for it – because private buyers want that same lake water, and data centers are at the front of the line. Which is exactly why the next part of my plan matters.

Water for the people who live here comes first. Full stop.