By Jim Bloch
The Michigan Association of Planning has given St. Clair resident Jim Bier the 2026 Planning Advocate Award.
The organization, which serves as the Michigan chapter of the American Planning Association, made the announcement July 5.
“His contributions to zoning, parks and recreation planning, trail development, ordinance modernization, housing initiatives, and regional connectivity have produced lasting benefits for both the City of St. Clair and St. Clair County,” said the MAP jury members who recommended Bier for the award.
Bier’s 13-year tenure on the St. Clair County Parks and Recreation Commission has resulted in trail development, the acquisition and restoration of the Fort Gratiot Light Station, and several millage renewals, according a letter of recommendation in support of his award.
Bier worked 42 years as a civil engineer, retiring in 2019.
He has been a member of the City of St. Clair Zoning Board of Appeals since 1992, with a two-year break for work in Georgia, and is the board’s current chair. In 2023, He chaired the committee that updated the city’s zoning ordinances. He chaired the City Hall Construction Committee, which evaluated the old city hall – then located in the former St. Clair Hospital – and recommended building of the city’s new municipal headquarters on Carney Drive in 1999.
“On a fun note, I was a board member of the original Imagination Station playground in 1994 and then worked to rebuild the playground in 2019,” Bier said in his brief autobiography in his award application packet.
Bier chaired the committee that overhauled the city’s sign ordinance. He’s a past president of St. Clair Rotary and a current member of the Regional Trails Board.
“I was appointed to the Industrial Park board when Magna looked to develop in St. Clair,” Bier said. “(My wife) Lea and I provide financial support to our city summer concert and hanging plant programs,” Bier said. “I have been serving as an election worker for the past few election cycles.”
“Congratulations on this prestigious award,” said Amy M. Vansen, MAP’s director of information and programs, in her announcement letter to Bier.
Bier and the other winners of planning leadership awards will be honored at the association’s awards banquet at the Radisson Hotel in Kalamazoo Sept. 30.
The Planning Advocate Award is one five Leadership Awards presented by MAP annually; Dr. Deyanira Nevarez Martinez was also recognized as an Advocate. The others are the Leadership Award for Professional Planner, awarded to Claire Karner of East Bay Charter Township; Outstanding Community Administrator’s Award given to Brenda Stumbo, supervisor, Charter Township of Ypsilanti; and the Planning Champion Award, which went to Tammy Girling of the Charter Township of Orion.
The St. Clair City Council will recognize Bier and his award at its regular meeting Aug. 3, said City Clerk Annette Sturdy.
Jim Bloch is a freelance writer based in St. Clair, Michigan. Contact him at bloch.jim@gmail.com.
