City Hall insider … 2/24/26

By Charles Sercombe
The city council met on Feb. 24, and all councilmembers were in attendance.
It was announced that the city is giving away 250 trees to be planted, the first step in ultimately planting 1,000 trees over the next four years.
The city said the trees will help “improve air quality, cool temperatures, and reduce storm water flooding.”
For more information, call (313) 800-5233, extension 818. You can also request a tree by emailing the city at: treerequests@hamtramckcity.gov.

In public comment, Lynn Blasey took issue with the council adding on agenda items at the beginning of meetings. Blasey said that, according to the city charter, only the city manager can present urgent matters to be included on the agenda without prior notice.
Otherwise, she said, the city charter says that the agenda is set by the Wednesday before a council meeting on the following Tuesday. Blasey urged councilmembers to read the city charter.
Blasey also criticized the city’s code enforcement for ticketing residents for violations that can’t properly be addressed in cold weather – such as painting the exterior of a house.
She also said she received a code violation for a property that was not hers. Blasey said she called multiple times, but the code enforcement department did not return her messages.
Ibrahim Aljahim complained that the sanitation company the city hires has failed to keep up with emptying trash cans on Jos. Campau.
“Enough is enough, guys.” he said.
As for the code enforcement department, Aljahim said “they play favoritism.” He said code enforcers focus on residential dwellings instead of businesses.
Ahmed Sharaf Aldeen noted that, with the hiring of the city’s new city manager, Adel Al-Adlani, he becomes the city’s first Muslim to be hired into that position.
“I’m expecting it to be good,” he said. “We’re here to help you, everybody.”
Larissa Richardson introduced herself as a representative of Detroit Mayor Mary Sheffield, and talked about Sheffield’s wish to form community partnerships.

In the consent agenda, Mayor Adam Alharbi informed the council that he re-appointed the following members of the Board of Review, all for two-year terms: Yeasmin Sultana, Rezaul Chowdhury, and Mohammed Muhit, and alternate members in good standing Gamal Alturki and Mohamed Alduais.

In new business, the council OK’d contracts, with the Piast Institute and Passenger Recovery, to continue opioid prevention, treatment, and recovery services funded through the Opioid Settlement Fund.
Funding comes from a lawsuit settlement with the state that will provide $1.6 billion for the state and municipalities.
In a note to the council, it was said:
“The settlement funds are intended to address the opioid crisis, which has killed more than 11,000 Michiganders since 2018.
“These funds are legally restricted and may only be used for specific opioid remediation and drug intervention activities as defined by the national settlement agreements and corresponding court orders. The funds must be spent on opioid remediation, which includes care and treatment for opioid use and related disorders, mitigating other effects of the opioid epidemic, prevention programs, expanding syringe service programs, and researching the effectiveness of abatement strategies.”
In another matter, the council approved paying Hennessey Engineers tocreate the design for a parking garage for Public Works vehicles. The building will be on Council St.
The cost of the engineering study is $112,500.

In another project, the council agreed to award a $100,000 subcontract to the Hamtramck Parks Conservancy to install a concrete pad for a fitness center in Veterans Park.
That funding comes from a state community development program.
A discussion was held on a proposed employment contract with new City Manager Adel Al-Adlani.
But, before the council got into the details of the contract, Councilmember Mohammed Hassan took issue with an earlier comment, from back during public discussion, that Hamtramck is now run by a Muslim for the first time.
Hassan said the city went through a candidate selection process to fill the position, and only experience and qualifications were considered – not religion.
“It’s not a Muslim person is here today,” Hassan said.
Mayor Alharbi said the city indeed went through a “detailed” hiring process.
“Religion should never be something of discussion,” Alharbi said.
He said the city only looked at qualifications, and that Al-Adlani had a doctorate degree in public administration, “and other things that are impressive, and we felt he’s qualified for this position – overqualified for this position.”
(Al-Adlani has no prior experience as a city manager or equivalent experience, which is required by the city charter.)
The contract calls for a salary of $135,000, with a $500 a month personal allowance and a one-time signing bonus of $3,000.
The council approved the contract.
City Manager Al-Adlani later said he’s “deeply honored by your trust … to serve as your city manager is a great responsibility.”
He said he will serve the community “regardless of the race or religion, with integrity, with professionalism.”

Moving on, a lengthy discussion was held on whether to censure Councilmember Yousuf Saed.
The resolution was presented by Councilmember Mohammed Alsomiri, who accused Saed of using an offensive word to describe him and three other councilmembers on social media.
(A censure carries no punishment, but rather is a public reprimand – or public shaming – that does not remove a councilmember from office.)
“Never someone speak anything bad for our council,” Alsomiri said.
Saed denied he used an offensive word, and blamed it on a poor translation from Arabic.
He countered that what he said “wasn’t a bad word or anything. Just an opinion for four people.”
Saed also accused Alsomiri of telling him how to vote on resolutions facing the council.
“How many time did you push me to vote for somebody for resolution,” he said.
Councilmember Nayeem Choudhury attempted to play the role of peacemaker, but it didn’t seem to help much.
“I wish it didn’t come to this point. Things got heated up,” Choudhury said. “This isn’t necessary to censure somebody – unless it’s an extremist way that person behaved.”
Mayor Adam Alharbi, who chairs council meetings, also tried his hand at offering an olive branch.
He said Saed was “wrong with his comment, but it’s not to the point where he needs to be censured.”
Councilmembers who voted in favor of Saed’s censure included: Mohammed Hassan, Muhtasin Sadman, Abu Musa and Alsomiri. Those voting against the resolution were Councilmembers Nayeem Choudhury and Saed.
The council’s censure read, in part: “Councilmember Saed published a post on his personal Facebook account that contained derogatory and demeaning language directed at fellow members of the Hamtramck City Council regarding votes those members had cast on prior matters before the council; and the publication of such content undermines the decorum, mutual respect, and collaborative spirit that are essential to effective and transparent city governance. …”

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