Peer Groups - SEMCOG

Collaborate with peers to strengthen your community, address shared challenges, and shape SEMCOG’s planning.
Connect to resources and insights tailored to your community’s needs.
Learn about state and federal resources that support your community’s unique needs and opportunities.

We invite you to join in conversations with your peer communities as part of our Peer Groups initiative. There are five Peer Groups to choose from:

Education – Rural – Small – Suburban – Urban

A group of meeting attendees stands on a paved pathway outside a renovated community building during a site tour. The group is gathered near landscaped grounds, a pedestrian bridge, and a sign partially displaying the word “Factory.” Trees, utility poles, and a roadway are visible in the background under a clear sky. The image highlights a community redevelopment project, peer networking, and a guided tour of a public space.

Suburban Peer Group at Canton Village Arts Factory

Group photo of Education Peer Group participants standing in a meeting room in front of a presentation screen displaying the text “Education Peer Group.” Attendees are gathered beside conference tables and chairs, with meeting materials, notebooks, and water bottles visible in the foreground. The image highlights collaboration, networking, and discussion among education and community leaders.

Education Peer Group at Oakland Community College

Visitors gather along a landscaped pedestrian pathway in downtown Farmington to view a public art installation. Blue-and-white artwork panels are displayed along a black fence, while seating areas, decorative lighting, trees, and landscaped planting beds line the walkway. New mixed-use residential buildings and an older home border the public space, highlighting placemaking, public art, downtown revitalization, and community engagement.

Small Peer Group in Downtown Farmington

Peer Group Goals

encouraging collaborative planning efforts to help develop local strategies to build strengths and address challenges,
ensuring the needs and challenges of all member types are heard and recognized in regional planning and initiatives,
connecting participating peers to information and resources specific to their needs, and
providing a space for collaboration and sharing of opportunities, challenges, and successes.
working with our federal and state partners to understand priorities and resources available that align with and support the needs and unique opportunities of our diverse Peer Group types.

Meetings are quarterly.