Ypsilanti council affirms staff personnel decision, orders outside review; approves event fee waiver and proclaims Transgender Empowerment Month

The Ypsilanti City Council on Wednesday affirmed a personnel action taken by city staff but voted to commission an external review of the matter, approved a partial waiver of event fees for the All Hallows Eve Illumination at Frog Island with a condition protecting canvassers, and adopted a proclamation recognizing October 2025 as Transgender Empowerment Month.

The council also heard a presentation from the Washtenaw Housing Alliance about a new shared-housing program for older adults and discussed updates to the city’s Transportation Asset Management Plan (TAMP).

Why it matters: The personnel decision and the council’s direction to order an independent review address allegations raised during public comment and earlier proceedings; the fee-waiver vote affects funding available for park events and sets a precedent for future requests; and the Transgender Empowerment Month proclamation signals an explicit civic stance and an operational step — display of a trans pride flag at City Hall.

Personnel review and outside investigation

After extended deliberations the council voted to affirm the personnel decision that had been reviewed in a hearing but approved an amendment directing city leadership to obtain a third-party review of the circumstances and related personnel practices. Council members debated whether the record presented at the hearing contained sufficient information to overturn the earlier administrative decision; several members said they did not feel the hearing record provided a full investigation.

Council member Catherine McLean moved to affirm the staff decision. During discussion other council members said they wanted additional independent fact-finding and clarity about personnel policies to avoid similar disputes in the future. The council accepted a friendly amendment to direct an external review; the council agreed that the scope of that review would be set at a later meeting. The council’s action was framed as both closing the specific 10‑day review step required by the charter procedure and creating a path for further review of procedures and practices.

The council’s motion required two distinct outcomes: a decision on the immediate request for review and a directive to pursue further investigation of policies or practices. Attorney Jason Barker advised the council about the charter provisions and said the council could direct further remedial measures while noting legal and liability considerations. The council will return with a defined scope and timeline for the outside review at a future meeting.

Event fee waiver: All Hallows Eve Illumination at Frog Island

Council approved an amended request to waive half of the permit and electrical turn-on fees for the All Hallows Eve Illumination scheduled for Nov. 1 at Frog Island Park Amphitheater. Organizers requested a full waiver; after discussion the council approved waiving half the fee on the condition that canvassers and petitioners at the public event not be interfered with.

James Decker, who identified himself as a co‑applicant, told the council organizers currently have no steady budget or sponsors and requested the waiver to make the event viable in this first year of relaunch. The council’s motion set a condition requiring event organizers to allow lawful canvassing and petitioning at the public park event; city counsel said that requirement reiterates existing legal protections for public spaces. The finance note included in the staff presentation said the approved waiver — $1,085 — would reduce the city’s fee-waiver fund to $11,742.50 and that the annual park-fee waiver budget is limited (staff said about $15,000 for the year).

Transgender Empowerment Month proclamation

Council member Fellows introduced and the council adopted a resolution recognizing October 2025 as Transgender Empowerment Month in Ypsilanti and directing the city clerk to share the resolution with state and county officials and local partner organizations. The resolution also directs that the city display a trans pride flag in a City Hall window during the month. Christine Watts, executive director of SafeHouseCenter, had earlier described the SafeHouse Center’s plan to place purple ribbons downtown for Domestic Violence Awareness Month; council added that ribbon program to the consent agenda and approved it.

Shared‑housing program presentation

Danielle Bryant, shared‑housing program coordinator for Washtenaw Housing Alliance (WHA), briefed the council on a new program intended to prevent displacement and increase housing stability for older adults in Washtenaw County. WHA’s model matches home providers (homeowners with an extra room) and home seekers (older adults who need affordable housing) and uses a written shared‑housing agreement, background and reference checks, home visits, and ongoing mediation.

“Our shared housing program is focused on prevention and long term stability,” Bryant said. She reported the program launched in August, currently has nine home providers in its onboarding pipeline, and aims for approximately 25 households served by the end of the first year. Council members asked about matching, dispute resolution and how the program would complement other county services; Bryant said WHA would provide regular check‑ins and mediation support.

Transportation Asset Management Plan discussion

Public Works staff and the city’s consultant presented a status update on the Transportation Asset Management Plan, which inventories roadway and related assets, grades pavement condition and helps set priorities for resurfacing, reconstruction and maintenance. Staff asked the council what level of detail they wanted in a city-facing plan: more granular financial modeling, sidewalk inventories, prioritization rubrics, or visual maps and glossaries that could be shared with the public.

Director Bonnie Westler told council the current draft meets the state’s requirements but can be expanded as a practical budgeting and planning tool — for example, to show where preventive maintenance would be most cost-effective and where large capital projects (such as the Cross Street Bridge and Cornell reconstructions) should be prioritized. Council asked for clearer visuals, a prioritization rubric (condition, traffic volume, proximity to critical destinations), sidewalk gap mapping, and links to the city’s non‑motorized and stormwater plans.

Public comment and other business

Public comment included multiple speakers urging the council to allow and fund community-based harm‑reduction services and asking the council to reconsider public‑comment restrictions. Speakers included residents and representatives from SafeHouseCenter and local harm‑reduction advocates. City staff and the city manager outlined plans to use the communications team to notify residents about possible future ordinance changes (for example, a prospective dark‑sky ordinance) and staff said the city would provide education around non‑ordinance campaigns such as “leave the leaves.”

What’s next

Council instructed staff to return with a proposed scope for the external review of the personnel matter, and members indicated they expect that report and any recommended policy changes to return to council at a future meeting. The city manager and department staff will follow up on the TAMP visualization requests and on logistics for the Transgender Empowerment Month flag. The All Hallows Illumination organizers will coordinate with parks staff to meet the condition tied to their partial fee waiver.

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Sources: Ypsilanti City Council meeting transcript; presentations and statements by Danielle Bryant (Washtenaw Housing Alliance) and Christine Watts (SafeHouseCenter); staff reports and motions read into the record.