Just-Released 8-Page Memo Shows Plan to Remake East Lansing Government; Sheds Light on Resignations
An eight-page document just released to ELi under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) reveals a draft plan to remake a substantial portion of the East Lansing city government. It also appears to shed light on why so many heads of departments quit in such a short space of time.
The document outlines a plan to create a new Department of Culture, Equity, & Placemaking that would – if created as described – fall under the Department of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI). It would have involved moving funding and staff from the Department of Planning, Building & Development and Parks, Recreation and Arts to create this new approach, and would have amassed a tremendous amount of power under DEI Director Elaine Hardy.
An anonymous complaint recently filed with the city referred to this eight-page document, which is how ELi learned of it. The complaint itself focused on alleged overreach by the City Council – particularly Mayor Ron Bacon – and Hardy. In response, Council voted last night to order an independent investigation of the claims made in the complaint.
The complaint specifically charged Bacon with violating a section of the City Charter that says council members shall not “in any manner interfere with the City Manager in the exercising of his or her judgment in the appointment or assignment of administrative officers and employees in the administrative service,” that is, the day-to-day operations of the city.
The complaint named as an example of alleged overreach “an 8-page plan” that was given “sometime in September” by Bacon to then-City Manager George Lahanas.
According to the complaint, “The plan’s development gave the appearance of requiring coordination with hand-picked staff across multiple departments and divisions, without the knowledge of those departments’ directors. The Mayor told George [Lahanas] the Council wanted him to effectuate the plan, which outlined a vision for taking away functions and staff from the Planning and Park departments, and combining them under the newly organized DEI department. It is known to internal staff that those employees called out in the plan have close ties to Elaine and/or the Mayor. This plan appeared, to those who were watching, to openly award more staff, more funding, and more authority to a Director who openly acts as a conduit for a specific segment of Council’s will in City operations in contradiction with the City’s Charter.”
ELi requested the eight-page document under FOIA and obtained it earlier today. (We have provided it here.)
The document outlines a substantial reorganization of the government in an attempt to achieve a combination of DEI and economic development goals. The plan is framed in terms of supporting the City’s Economic Development Strategic Plan and Housing Action Plan.
The plan includes “removing” Community and Economic Development and Parks & Rec staff “from their respective Departments” to “concentrate limited resources.” The plan also looks to “reduce the overall size and number of responsibilities” in the Planning, Building, and Development Department and Parks & Rec.
It also seeks to pull arts away from the Department of Parks, Recreation & Arts, “reverting” that department to cover only Parks & Rec.
The revelation of this memo sheds light on the wave of resignations of department directors and assistant directors, including in Planning, Building and Development, Human Resources, Parks & Rec, Public Works, the City Clerk’s office, and more.
A former city employee who spoke on the condition of strict anonymity to avoid retribution said city staff who became aware of this plan saw the team creating it as “going rogue.”
ELi is working to establish authorship of the document. Bacon and Hardy did not respond immediately to requests for information about authorship. ELi has requested authorship information under an additional FOIA request made today.
Other materials obtained recently under FOIA confirm the close working relationship of Bacon and Hardy, with Bacon having her schedule appointments and provide him talking points, at one point even referring to her as “my DEI Director.”
Sources tell ELi that directors came to be troubled by one director – Hardy – having direct access to Council, influencing the decision-making of what is supposed to be the legislative branch.
The eight-page plan also helps to explain Lahanas’ email to Council, just days before his contract was terminated by Council, decrying what he described as a violation of the City Charter.
“I want to express a significant concern that has occurred a number of times over the prior several months,” Lahanas wrote on Jan. 2, “where I have objected to City Council members becoming directly involved in personnel management. As I have stated, such involvement violates the City Charter, which prohibits Council or its members from directing or interfering with my management of City staff.”
At Tuesday’s Council meeting, Bacon and Interim City Manager Randy Talifarro angrily accused the anonymous complainant of racism in targeting them and Hardy.
“I see a level of coordination and cooperation where individuals are moving with information prior to the time that it’s even available or FOIA-able,” Bacon said at the meeting. “There’s a little bit of something extra going on here.”
About that, he may be right, as a former employee of the city told ELi today the complaint was passed around among several people, though it was signed as if written by an individual “Anonymous Public Servant.”
Bacon asked City Attorney Tony Chubb at yesterday’s meeting “to give me my options as a city [official] or as an individual” with regard to filing a civil rights complaint. Chubb said he would do that.
This is a developing story and may be updated.
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