Hamtramck now has a new city manager

Kathy Angerer

Kathy Angerer

 

By Charles Sercombe
City officials gave it one more shot to vote on whether to hire a city manager last Friday evening.
City Councilmember Fadel Al-Marsoumi called for a special meeting after last Tuesday’s vote was prevented when two councilmembers suddenly walked out of the meeting, which created a lack of a quorum.
Mayor Karen Majewski, who votes on department heads being hired, was not at Tuesday’s meeting as was Councilmember Saad Almasmari.
On Friday, the situation was different. Everyone on council and the mayor were in attendance despite it being the start of a holiday weekend.
Long story made short: Acting City Manager Kathy Angerer is now the new city manager. She has been in the acting city manager role for a year and two months.
Prior to that she has served in a number of positions with the city for the past several years.
And prior to that she was a state legislator and worked with the Dundee Public School District.
Councilmembers Perrotta and Karpinski, who walked out of Tuesday’s council meeting, voted against Angerer’s hiring, while Mayor Majewski was in favor along with Councilmembers Anam Miah, Abu Musa, Saad Almasmari and Fadel Al-Marsoumi.
Perrotta and Karpinski said that while they have nothing against Angerer, they think a search should have been conducted.
They pointed out that a majority of the council agreed to ask voters to change the city charter language on what qualifications are needed to fill the position of city manager. It was thought the requirements as originally adopted were too limiting, and that by loosening up the language would allow the city to consider otherwise qualified candidates.
The voters overwhelmingly approved the change in the August Primary Election.
But an anticipated search never happened. Councilmember Al-Marsoumi, instead, proposed hiring Angerer and to instruct the city attorney to draw up a three-year employment contract.
He had the support of Councilmembers Miah, Almasmari and Musa, as well as Mayor Majewski.
Their reasoning was that Angerer had already proven herself.
Trying to break in a new city manager, said Councilmember Miah, would slow the “momentum” of the city’s progress.
“Angerer is doing a wonderful job,” Miah told The Review.
Perrotta and Karpinski said city officials owed it to the community to conduct a search.
Both insisted there would be no slowing down of the city’s progress, and stressed Angerer could also apply for the job.
The matter isn’t entirely over.
The council will once again revisit the subject when City Attorney James Allen returns with a proposed employment contract.

Sept. 7, 2018

One Response to Hamtramck now has a new city manager

  1. Fatema Hossain

    September 8, 2018 at 2:25 pm

    Kathy Angerer’s history with Hamtramck goes back to 2012 when she was hired around the same time as Kyle Tertzag and she functioned as deputy city manager under Kyle.

    She also worked in the economic development division as a department head and developed a close working relationship with the City Council.

    Overall, she has performed reasonably well during state receivership and during the turbulent period when Katrina Powell was manager.

    Anam Miah – and some other City Council members – felt she was a known commodity with some track record in the city’s operations and decided not to change horses in mid-stream.

    We wish her the best of luck.

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