While people across Michigan view Oakland County as the most prosperous in the state, that doesn’t mean it is immune to the financial trouble and problems other counties have faced.

The foreclosure crisis in particular has hit Oakland County hard, with 14,071 filings in 2007 according to Andy Meisner. It is no surprise that the Democratic candidate for Oakland County Treasurer and current 27th District State Representative has made that area his main focus going into the November election against incumbent Republican Patrick Dohany.

“What I’m proposing is that the county gets serious about mortgage and tax foreclosure prevention and that we do a very aggressive outreach to homeowners who are in trouble,” said Meisner.

Meisner said that Dohany hasn’t done enough to solve the problems or to help out homeowners in trouble.

“We want to engage them and educate them about the resources available and I take the lead as quarterback of the strategy that should include forcing some of the lenders to the table to negotiate.”

Meisner also wants to establish a land bank that would act as “an incubator of sick properties to get them in the hands of families,” he said. Currently, many homes are sitting idle and neglected and many are targets of copper theft. Dohany is opposed to the idea of creating a land bank.

Oakland County also includes a considerable Arab and Chaldean population and Meisner met with many of them while going door-to-door as part of his campaign. Foreclosures are affecting that segment of the county as well, with one additional roadblock thrown in.

“I went on the Middle Eastern Broadcast Network talking about the issue, on the Wally Jadan TV program in Southfield,” said Meisner. “There’s a lot of them (Arabs and Chaldeans) going through the foreclosure problem. One issue is the language barrier, so we want to make sure non-profits like Lighthouse and Greenpath Debt Solutions are equipped to handle inquiries from people.”

Mesiner, who is also Chairman of the House Commerce Committee, is focused on all aspects of the general economy in Michigan and finding new ways to create more jobs.

The Arab and Chaldean community’s strong business skills were used as a model for others when Meisner hosted a town hall meeting in Berkley to promote entrepreneurship. The Chaldean Chamber of Commerce presented and shared tips on how to become successful in the small business world.

“I tried to profile that community in hopes of inspiring the rest of the community to try that path, to create jobs and to get the economy going,” said Meisner.

Another way Meisner has attempted to create jobs is through his search for new industries to help diversify the Michigan economy. He introduced legislation to lure the movie industry to Michigan, and it has helped bring $373 million to the state in the first five months of the enactment according to Meisner.

“The movie industry has brought a ton of opportunity for people who want to work in the industry and around the industry from retail store owners to restaurants to bars to hotels and caterers,” he said.

People who are interested in working for the movie industry in Michigan can visit www.michigan.gov/filmoffice to learn about possible jobs.

“There’s a ton of opportunities for people and in a time of bad news this is something we can look to that’s pretty exciting.”

Meisner was first elected to office at the age of 28, and now feels “like an old man” despite being just 35 years old. He talked about his love for Oakland County and the need for change.

“I’m very committed to helping out and this is a fun place to do it and work on some pretty exciting issues,” he said.

Meisner is an advocate of community involvement and currently has an open door policy that he plans to continue if elected as treasurer. His cell phone number 248.421.ANDY is also available for those who have questions or comments.

Besides his passion for fixing the economy, Meisner also hopes to shake up the power structure of Oakland County to allow for more involvement from different voices inside the community.

“I am committed to the community and I look forward to making sure that the Oakland County Treasurer’s office looks more like Oakland County and has the same diversity instead of being a members-only country club,” he said.