Utica Mayor Pro Tem Kenneth J. Sikora resigns after 35 years; council honors his service

Utica Mayor Pro Tem Kenneth J. Sikora resigned from the Utica City Council effective at the adjournment of the April 8, 2025 regular meeting, and council members used the session to recognize his more than three decades of service.

Council members presented Sikora with a formal resolution and a bound copy of the minutes from his first council meeting in 1990. Mayor Gus Calandrino read the council resolution that praised Sikora’s budget work and long service to the city. State and county officials and former colleagues joined the meeting to offer remarks and tributes.

The council’s recognition noted Sikora’s years on the council and on local boards, and a plaque from Macomb County Commissioner Sylvia Groat was presented. Retired Police Chief Sean Cody and State Representative Ron Robinson addressed the council and thanked Sikora for his support of the police department and fiscal stewardship. A representative from U.S. Congressman John James’ office read a written tribute that was also entered into the record.

Sikora’s resignation was filed in writing and read into the record by the city clerk; the letter stated that Sikora and his wife Emily will be moving out of the city and that his resignation would be effective at the meeting’s adjournment. The library director, Catherine Francis, also submitted a letter reporting Sikora’s resignation from the Utica Library Board of Trustees, citing the value of his council experience to that board.

During council reports later in the meeting, the council formally appointed Councilmember Brad O'Donnell to fill Sikora’s vacant seat on the library board. O'Donnell abstained from the roll-call vote to appoint himself; other members voted in favor.

Council members and guests repeatedly described Sikora as the city’s longtime budget steward. Calandrino said of Sikora, “He is the master of the budget,” and several speakers noted Sikora’s role in guiding budgets and city policy over multiple administrations. Multiple council members and several residents spoke in the public-comment portion and in council reports to thank Sikora for his service.

The council entered the resignation and the library-board appointment into the meeting record and approved both procedural steps by roll-call votes.

Looking ahead, the council did not name a successor to Sikora’s council seat at the April 8 meeting beyond appointing a replacement to the library board; the council said it will follow its usual procedures for filling council vacancies if and when required.

Speakers who addressed Sikora’s resignation at the April 8 meeting included Mayor Gus Calandrino; Mayor Pro Tem Kenneth J. Sikora; retired Police Chief Sean Cody; State Representative Ron Robinson; Lisa Brown of Congressman John James’ office; and Catherine Francis, library director. Council members who offered remarks included Councilmembers Torenzi, Dionne, Backus, Weaver and Councilmember Brad O'Donnell (whose appointment to the library board was acted upon at the meeting).

Ending: Sikora spoke briefly and accepted the tributes; council members closed the agenda item and continued with the night’s business. The council recorded the resignation and the library-board appointment in the minutes and moved to the next agenda items.