aGameOfThrones
09-25-2014, 09:36 PM
The mayor and City Council of Detroit regained most of their decision-making authority on Thursday, a symbolic milestone in a financially beleaguered city that cleared the way for an end to nearly 18 tense months of oversight by a state-appointed emergency manager.
The city leaders agreed that Kevyn D. Orr, who has overseen the city for more than a year, will remain the emergency manager until bankruptcy proceedings were complete, but that he would cede his authority to the elected officials aside from issues tied to the bankruptcy.
Mayor Mike Duggan, for instance, will immediately retake control of police operations, and the City Council will be responsible for approving contracts, city officials said. City leaders said they expected bankruptcy proceedings to end in the coming weeks or months, at which point, council members voted unanimously, Mr. Orr’s role in Detroit would also end.
From the time Mr. Orr, a restructuring lawyer from Maryland, arrived in Detroit in March last year, he has been a focal point of debate in a politically and racially charged atmosphere.
Not long before, Gov. Rick Snyder had found Detroit’s financial circumstances, including billions in long-term liabilities and annual cash shortfalls, to be in such a state of disrepair that he called in Mr. Orr. The governor granted him sweeping control, making the city one of the largest ever to face such a level of oversight. Local political officials and some residents denounced Mr. Orr’s arrival, calling it undemocratic and accusing Mr. Snyder and other Republican leaders who control Lansing, the state capital, of trampling the rights of a mostly black city that favors Democrats.
Even as Mr. Orr held broad authority over Detroit’s contracts, spending and operations, new city leaders were elected last year, including a mayor, Mr. Duggan, who, like many of the candidates for office in Detroit, had opposed the appointment of an emergency manager.
By December, Mr. Orr and Mr. Duggan had announced plans for a power-sharing agreement, in which Mr. Orr would maintain control of finances and the police and Mr. Duggan, who took office in January, would be responsible for day-to-day operations.
The city’s plan to emerge from bankruptcy — by erasing more than $7 billion in debts and investing about $1.5 billion in improvements like updated computer systems, fire trucks and ambulances — is being considered in court. In proceedings expected to continue next week, Judge Steven W. Rhodes must consider whether the plan is fair and feasible. The trial could end in October.
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/26/us/detroits-leaders-regain-some-power.html?_r=0
The city leaders agreed that Kevyn D. Orr, who has overseen the city for more than a year, will remain the emergency manager until bankruptcy proceedings were complete, but that he would cede his authority to the elected officials aside from issues tied to the bankruptcy.
Mayor Mike Duggan, for instance, will immediately retake control of police operations, and the City Council will be responsible for approving contracts, city officials said. City leaders said they expected bankruptcy proceedings to end in the coming weeks or months, at which point, council members voted unanimously, Mr. Orr’s role in Detroit would also end.
From the time Mr. Orr, a restructuring lawyer from Maryland, arrived in Detroit in March last year, he has been a focal point of debate in a politically and racially charged atmosphere.
Not long before, Gov. Rick Snyder had found Detroit’s financial circumstances, including billions in long-term liabilities and annual cash shortfalls, to be in such a state of disrepair that he called in Mr. Orr. The governor granted him sweeping control, making the city one of the largest ever to face such a level of oversight. Local political officials and some residents denounced Mr. Orr’s arrival, calling it undemocratic and accusing Mr. Snyder and other Republican leaders who control Lansing, the state capital, of trampling the rights of a mostly black city that favors Democrats.
Even as Mr. Orr held broad authority over Detroit’s contracts, spending and operations, new city leaders were elected last year, including a mayor, Mr. Duggan, who, like many of the candidates for office in Detroit, had opposed the appointment of an emergency manager.
By December, Mr. Orr and Mr. Duggan had announced plans for a power-sharing agreement, in which Mr. Orr would maintain control of finances and the police and Mr. Duggan, who took office in January, would be responsible for day-to-day operations.
The city’s plan to emerge from bankruptcy — by erasing more than $7 billion in debts and investing about $1.5 billion in improvements like updated computer systems, fire trucks and ambulances — is being considered in court. In proceedings expected to continue next week, Judge Steven W. Rhodes must consider whether the plan is fair and feasible. The trial could end in October.
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/26/us/detroits-leaders-regain-some-power.html?_r=0