Update 5/20/21 – There is a special meeting of the Adrian City Commission tonight at 7pm to act on Henagan’s resignation.
Adrian, MI – The evaluation of Adrian City Attorney Tamaris Henagan was over an hour and a half long Monday night, and it ended with her resignation.
Henagan was instrumental in drafting, and working with the State of Michigan on, a Charter Amendment spelling out different options the Commission could use to replace members that resign… following the departure of John Dudas weeks before an election.
Commissioner Mary Roberts and Mayor Angie Heath pointed out that Henagan can come off as defensive…at times…during her explanations of resolutions, describing ordinances, or elaborating on the City Code or Charter when Commissioners have questions about them.
During Commissioner Kelly Castleberry’s comments, she said that there is a break-down in communication at City Hall, but did not cite anything specific or ‘point a finger’ at anyone in particular.
Commissioner Allen Heldt said that the group has not supported Henagan… a “homegrown commodity.” He referenced back to earlier comments made by Commissioner Mary Roberts about them not showing enough support for Administrator Elliott… and that that was probably a reason for him potentially leaving for a job in Manistee. Commissioner Heldt continued, saying that they failed Henagan in terms of informing her of their expectation and direction. He said the Commission is “as fractured as it’s ever been” in his time on the governing body. He expressed his support for Henagan.
On the evaluation document that most Commissioners filled out, there were six questions, based on Henagan’s performance as a legal advisor; how she prosecuted ordinance violations and defended or prosecuted cases on behalf of the city; how she prepared, reviewed, and communicated contract as they pertain to the code and charter; her knowledge of marijuan ordinances/regulations, and communicated them to the Commission; if she was providing expected value for the city based on her pay; and her overall performance.
While some Commissioners did not rate Henagan (on a 1-7 scale), the ones that did said she was average or slightly above average. Here is how the Commission graded Henagan: Mayor Angie Heath (5 above average), Commissioner Ladd Strayer (no grade), Commissioner Mary Roberts (no grade), Kelly Castleberry (no grade), Commissioner Allen Heldt (5 above average), Commissioner Brad Watson (4 average), and Gordon Gauss (5 above average).
After the nearly hour-long evaluation of Attorney Henagan, she handed out binders to each Commissioner. Inside was information on her accomplishments in the position, projects and boards that she served on, and other documents related to ethics. She also highlighted her extensive work on marijuana law and working to improve blight/code enforcement in the Adrian.
The meeting shifted in tone Monday night with the discussion of several FOIAs (Freedom of Information Acts) that were filed by Henagan on Commissioners Strayer, Roberts, and Castleberry. She said that on December 18th, 2020 she asked a Commissioner about particular issues pertaining to her job performance. She said that the request was not answered…so she asked multiple times up to May 7th of this year. Henagan said that in a personal meeting with the Commissioner, she was told that there was only one issue. The FOIA, according to Henagan, showed that there were emails sent to Administrator Greg Elliott talking about multiple issues. No other Commissioner said, during the meeting, they were subject to FOIAs.
Henagan said that she is being held accountable for things that she was not made aware of.
After Henagan’s talk with the Commission, she tendered her resignation, citing ethical concerns. The resignation should be on the next regular meeting agenda Monday, June 7th.
Tune into our local and state newscasts, anytime day or night, for this story and more.
#wlenradio #wlennews #lenaweenews