City Hall Insider … 5/12/26

By Charles Sercombe
The city council met on May 12, and all councilmembers were in attendance.
Councilmember Mohammed Hassan asked for a closed meeting to discuss “city business.”
He insisted that “it has to be a closed session.”
Hassan did not explain what city business needed to be discussed.
City Attorney Odey Meroueh jumped in, and said he had an update about an ongoing lawsuit filed against the city by former city manager Max Garbarino that needed to be discussed during the closed session.
The council agreed to hold a closed meeting after the regular meeting.
During public comment, Korey Hall, a candidate for state senate, introduced himself and said that he will be a “connector” for Hamtramck and the senate district he hopes to represent.
Councilmember Hassan said that candidates for public office often come to Hamtramck seeking votes, but “nobody is helping us.”
(Editor’s note: In the past, Hamtramck has received numerous grants totaling millions of dollars from the county, state and federal government thanks to elected officials who serve Hamtramck.)
Hassan continued: “Everybody coming election time, taking our vote and going to the position and never talk about the Hamtramck. … We want a strong voice. If anybody want to come looking for our vote, they have to do something for us.”
Hall replied: “I want you to hold me accountable.”
The council took the first steps in updating the city’s tree and shrub ordinance.
In an overview of the changes, provided by the city’s Community Economic Development Department, it was said:
“The proposed amendments recognize trees and shrubs as critical public infrastructure and assets that provide environmental, social, and public health benefits to the community. The ordinance update also clarifies the authority of the Department of Public Services regarding planting, trimming, removal, and other activities.”
Key updates within the ordinance include:
• Establishing standards and criteria for the removal of city-owned trees and shrubs;
• Requiring review and approval from the Department of Public Services (DPS) prior to removal or disturbance of trees within the public right-of-way or on city property;
• Creating replacement and mitigation requirements for removed trees, including 1:1 caliper inch replacement standards or payment toward future planting efforts;
• Updating permitting requirements for planting, excavation, pruning, and construction activities near public trees;
• Authorizing DPS to maintain a prohibited species list and right-of-way clearance standards; and
• Expanding enforcement and penalty provisions for unauthorized damage or removal of public trees and shrub beautification, urban forestry, environmental sustainability, and public safety goals throughout the city.”
After a lengthy discussion, most of the proposed changes were OK’d.
In another matter, the council approved updates to the city’s contract with the Great Lakes Water Authority to provide drinking water for the city.
Rounding out the business section of the council meeting, the council approved a contract to have masonry repairs made to the fire station, at a cost of almost $87,000.
The money will come from the city’s present and future budgets.
In Mayor Adam Alharbi’s report, he said he recently met with residents in the northwest part of the community, which is the neighborhood located on the west side of the I-75 divide.
“We heard a lot from them,” Alharbi said. “We want them to feel that they are included in our community in which they are.”
The mayor said he will continue to meet with the residents throughout the year.
Alharbi also thanked City Manager Adel Al-Adlani for going to Lansing to urge lawmakers to allocate money for the city in order to make needed repairs to the city’s sewer system.
Councilmember Hassan called for the city to make the police chief a permanent hire.
“I’m hearing good things about the police chief,” he said.
(Police Chief Hussein Farhat was given a contract at a later meeting.)
Hassan also criticized social media comments about the council being divided. He denied the council is divided.
“As elected officials, we are one team,” he said. “There is no chaos, no issue. I condemn the social media, try to split the community. It is one community, no question. We are good people. We are not doing anything for our personal interest, anything.”
(Editor’s note: A month later the city council considered a resolution to strip Hassan’s title as mayor pro tem. That action did not happen.)
Councilmember Nayeem Choudhury said he welcomes candidates to introduce themselves to the council.
He urged the city to post signs cautioning drivers to share the road with those riding bikes. He said that attention is needed about this in order to remind drivers that “we are all in this together. We have to share the roads.”
During public comment, an email was read saying that the state Court of Appeals ruled that the city has to count 37 ballots from the last election that had been excluded because they were found in the clerk’s office a day after the November election.
The court ruled that the ballots have to be counted “to protect voters’ rights.”
The person said that every vote should be counted, and that the city “should not continue spending taxpayer money on this matter.”
Another email comment urged the mayor and council to find a way to “bring our council meetings back to a productive environment.”
The person said councilmembers “must respect the authority of the chair (which is the mayor, who chairs the meetings) and refrain from yelling and speaking out of turn. I hear from many residents who feel that this is disrespect, and personal attacks between our elected officials is a major problem that must be fixed so we can go forward together to address the real concerns of people.”
Bill Meyer said that councilmembers should stop coughing into their microphones because it is distracting.
(What is our City Council up to these days? We have the highlights of the latest council meeting.)
Posted July 17, 2026