What Happened at City Council This Week?

East Lansing’s City Council was down to four members this week, with Mayor Ron Bacon absent. No explanation was given for his absence. Here’s a round-up of what happened at the four-hour meeting:

Nine citizens came to speak in favor of the City Council passing a resolution declaring East Lansing a “sanctuary city,” with two coming to speak against the idea. Council put off a decision on the matter after Councilmember George Brookover called for a written opinion from the city attorney on the legal implications of such a resolution. 

Councilmembers also wanted to have before them a resolution written in the voice of the Council, something that had not been provided prior to the meeting. ELi will be bringing a special report on discussion of the issue.

The Council formally honored Judge Richard Ball on the occasion of his retirement from the bench of the 54B District Court in East Lansing. Ball has served in the role since first elected in 1992. State law requires him to retire now because of his age. ELi is working on a special report on Judge Ball’s long history of public service.

Councilmember Lisa Babcock has been elected to take Ball’s seat, which means next week is expected to be her last council meeting. Under the City Charter, Council will need to appoint her replacement by late January. 

Moving to fill the vacancy, Council decided on Tuesday to put out a call for applications similar to those used in the past. The deadline for applying will be Dec. 28. After that, Council expects to interview applicants who have been verified as qualified to serve on Council. (To be appointed, a person must be registered to vote in the City of East Lansing.) The four remaining members of Council will then choose the appointee. That person will serve until the seat is filled through the election set to occur Nov. 7, 2023. Find out more here.

Hired external consultant CNA presented to council the results of their year-long study of the East Lansing Police Department’s policies and procedures. CNA has articulated 72 recommendations, and only a portion of those recommendations could be covered in the presentation Tuesday night. The police department will be taking up the recommendations next. ELi will be bringing a separate report on this matter.

Council voted 3-1 to authorize issuance of refinance bonds for the Downtown Development Authority’s debt related to the purchase of properties on Evergreen Avenue in 2009. Three members of Council expressed concerns about the DDA’s finances. We have a dedicated article on that.

On the consent agenda – a list of items passed as a block, without discussion – Council made a slew of appointments to boards and commissions, approved a resolution thanking election workers, approved the resolution honoring Judge Ball, approved a fire department lieutenant buying retirement credits and approved a union contract with 51 employees.

Council also set two public hearings for Jan. 10, 2023: one for a request to sell adult-use (recreational) marijuana at 2040 Merritt Road; the other for an application to rezone 1788 Woodside Drive. 

Also on the consent agenda, Council granted a conditional Class III rental license for 631 Lexington Ave., approved a $54,000 contract with Walker Consultants for an update on the parking master plan and approved street closures for the Ronald McDonald House Run for the House races on March 19, 2023.

Finally, Council formally approved the installation of two loading/unloading parking spots on the south side of Albert Avenue near Newman Lofts for passenger pick-up and drop-off. Those spots were first requested by Judith Labovitz, a resident of Newman Lofts, over two-and-a-half years ago and have been the subject of some controversy. City staff has said the road change will cost about $18,000, including engineering.

You can watch the video of last night’s meeting here.