Grosse Pointe Park voters nix pot shops, name mayor and council members

GROSSE POINTE PARK — In another hotly contested local election cycle, Grosse Pointe Park voters chose to retain Mayor Michele Hodges and named two newcomers to the City Council. They also just said no to marijuana — marijuana businesses, that is.

Hodges — who was first elected to the City Council in 2019 and was elected mayor in 2021 — will serve another two years as the city’s top elected official. City Councilwoman Christine Gallagher, who was elected to the council in 2021, was unsuccessful in her bid to oust Hodges, who received 58.23% of the vote to Gallagher’s 41.77%. Gallagher, whose council term runs until 2025, will continue to serve in that capacity.

“To know that the community believes in me and I’m now empowered to continue the positive momentum we have underway was a positive feeling,” Hodges said.

Hodges said she wants to focus on making sure the Park Public Safety Department has the resources it needs, addressing the Trombly School building issue, continuing the process of professionalizing the city, rebuilding trust with residents and holding people accountable.

“It’s imperative that we commit to the truth and work together,” Hodges said. “We’re better together than we are apart.”

Adding public safety officers to make up for budget-related staffing reductions in recent years is “what we’re working towards,” Hodges said. She said that it would cost the city about $500,000 to add four officers to the payroll and there’s “not a lot of cushion in our budget” to do that.

“No one has been naïve about the need for resources for public safety,” Hodges said. “We are committed to that.”

For a local election, turnout was strong. According to unofficial vote counts available at press time, 42.64% of the Park’s 10,344 registered voters — or 4,411 — cast ballots in this election.

“It has been surprisingly busy,” said John Rizzo, chair of Precinct 4. “We have had a really good turnout.”

Francine Pegues, an election inspector for Precinct 4, said the voters she encountered were very pleasant and many thanked election workers.

“(It’s been a) constant flow of people, all who are really enthusiastic about democracy and voting,” Pegues said. “It’s very rewarding.”

Heidi Black, another election inspector for Precinct 4, said voters “appreciate all of the precincts being in one place.” The Park has located all its precincts at Windmill Pointe Park for the last few elections. Precincts used to be housed in different spots, including school buildings.

Judy Florian, chair of Precinct 7, echoed Black’s sentiments.

“Everybody likes the setup here,” Florian said. “If you’re at the wrong precinct, you don’t have to get in the car and drive — you just have to go across the gym or the parking lot.”

Voters faced a crowded field for City Council, with six candidates running for three seats: Brent Dreaver, Jay A. Kennedy, Tim Kolar, Marty McMillan, Elvis Torres and Heather Ulku. McMillan, Kolar and Dreaver were the three top vote-getters, earning each of them a four-year council term.

McMillan, the only incumbent council member on the ballot, was the top vote-getter, with 20.8% of the total. He was named to fill the vacancy that opened in 2021 when Hodges was elected mayor.

“It was a tight race!” McMillan said by email. “It was great running alongside so many excellent candidates which is a testament to how wonderful Grosse Pointe Park really is. Thank you to the residents, volunteers and the community for the support! It has been an absolute honor to serve as a GPP Councilman and I am thrilled to be able to continue serving our community. Our City has made great progress over the past couple of years. We will continue the positive energy and momentum. There is much more to do and I am looking forward to being part of making our city the best it can be.”

Kolar, who was a close second with 19.41% of the vote, said he was “excited and relieved” after the election.

“We had a communitywide effort here,” Kolar said. “Our message was there. Our values were aligned with the community.”

A forensic accountant who holds degrees and certifications in professional finance and accounting, Kolar is especially concerned about the Park’s financial state.

“We are not in a good situation,” said Kolar, noting that the council needs to communicate this with the community. “You can’t continue to spend more than you bring in.”

A capital improvement plan is another priority for him, although he acknowledged, “We can’t really do all the things we want to do … unless we have a good hold on the finances.”

Campaigning with his fellow candidates on Election Day at Windmill Pointe Park, Kolar was impressed with the voters he spoke to.

“The best thing about being here is meeting engaged voters,” Kolar said the evening of Nov. 7. “It’s refreshing to have voters who are engaged and took the time to research each of the candidates.”

Gallagher, also campaigning at the polls Nov. 7, was happy to see so many voters, and to see that races in the Park were competitive.

“Competition causes leveling up,” Gallagher said. “That’s always good.”

Dreaver said he felt “so humbled and moved” when he learned he’d been elected.

“I wasn’t elected to keep things the way they have been,” Dreaver said. “I’m enthused to get to work on a lot of (initiatives) for our city. … There’s big shoes to fill.”

He said improving and increasing communication is an area where the city could improve, and noted there are many opportunities to do this that won’t cost anything to implement.

Torres, who came in fourth place in the council race, missed becoming a council member by a fraction of a percentage, winning 16.27% of the vote to Dreaver’s 16.85%. According to unofficial vote tallies available at press time, Dreaver received 1,880 votes, while Torres received 1,815.

“I’m very grateful to have put myself (out there),” said Torres. “I have met a tremendous amount of people I would not have met (otherwise).”

He said he plans to remain active in the community.

As Torres acknowledged, the margin of votes between him and the fifth-highest vote-getter — Heather Ulku — was even narrower, with only 15 votes separating them.

“It was really close,” Torres said.

A pair of ballot proposals that would have allowed for up to two businesses selling marijuana for recreational use to set up shop in the Park was resoundingly rejected by voters.

Two charter amendments did pass. Proposal 1, which changes the summer tax collection deadline from Aug. 31 to Sept. 14, was approved by nearly 65% of voters. Proposal 2, which eliminates primaries for local races, passed by a closer margin, with 54.26% voting in favor of it and 45.74% voting against it.