WOODHAVEN, Mich. – The Wayne County Election Commission will have to appoint a new member to the Woodhaven City Council after recent resignations have made the council unable to form a quorum.
City officials confirm Woodhaven City Councilmember Don Belcher has resigned due to health concerns, marking the fourth resignation from the council in recent months.
The latest shakeup comes as Council members Preston Abadie and Janet Sikes stepped down to run for mayor, creating vacancies that have caused the city to have to navigate charter and election-law requirements.
In a Facebook post on July 17, Mayor Patricia Odette said Councilmember J.C. Moczydlowsky had submitted his resignation effective immediately, creating a third vacancy at the time and halting planned appointments.
Odette wrote that because of the additional vacancy, two candidates, Tim Podlewski and Joseph Cotton, could no longer be nominated or appointed at the July 21 meeting and the openings instead must be handled through the election process required by the city charter.
In a resignation letter, Moczydlowsky told Odette and the City Council his decision was not directed at any individual, but stemmed from concerns about “the process” and the prospect of appointments.
He wrote that with multiple council members resigning to pursue office, “the opportunity to choose who represents them on the City Council” should be decided by voters.
He also said that while he understands resignations create vacancies and delays, residents should have the chance to fill the seats “through an election rather than long-term appointment.”
Moczydlowsky didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment from Local 4 Thursday (Aug. 6) evening.
Filling the vacancies
City Attorney Brandon Fournier said that under the Woodhaven City Charter, a special election for three city council seats will occur in November. Since a fourth council member has now resigned, Fournier said the city has notified Wayne County of the requirement under Michigan law to appoint a council member to restore a quorum if the legislative body is reduced to less than a quorum.
The statute requires that the county board of election commissioners appoint the number of members needed to constitute a quorum, with appointees serving until a successor is elected and qualified at a special or regular election held on the next regular election date at least 60 days after the appointment.
Fournier said it’s unclear at this time if Belcher’s successor could be elected in the November election.
Vacancies shake up City Council elections
Both Tim Podlewski and Joseph Cotton, who were both planning to run for City Council, said in separate Facebook posts that they don’t have the necessary filings to be on the November ballot because the city was anticipating the City Council vacancies to be filled through a separate special election.
Fournier said it was determined that state law requires these types of elections to be held in the next regular state election in November, May, or August.
Fournier said this law supersedes the city charter.
City charter required Abadie and Sikes’ resignations
Both Preston Abadie and Janet Sikes confirmed that the city charter required them to resign from City Council in order to run for mayor.
In a statement after Councilmember Belcher’s resignation, Abadie said he was grateful for Belcher’s “many years of dedicated service,” calling Belcher “a respected public servant and longtime member of our community.”
Abadie said the city must now work with the Wayne County Election Commission and follow legal procedures to fill the remainder of Belcher’s term, adding he is confident officials will ensure the process is “transparent, lawful, and focused on the best interests of Woodhaven residents.”
Abadie has lived in Woodhaven since 1991 and is a veteran, previously serving in the U.S. Army as a combat medic.
“By Charter, I had to resign in order to run for the office of Mayor,” said Sikes, a longtime city public safety leader.
Sikes also outlined her reasons for running, citing decades of service in the community.
She said she has been a Woodhaven resident for 50 years and served 19 years as fire chief, 11 years as a firefighter/paramedic, and 11 years on the City Council.
She said her leadership experience in the fire department taught her the importance of listening, teamwork, and “always putting the needs of the community first.”