The Chelsea City Council held a special meeting on Thursday, Aug. 27. Draft minutes and summary from that meeting are below, pending council approval.
Meeting Overview
This summary is based on the draft minutes; the full text is in the PDF attached below. All seven council members were present. The meeting ran from 7 to 8:07 p.m.
The council voted to terminate City Manager Elle Cole for cause following a closed session. For more coverage of the decision, see Chelsea City Council Votes to Terminate City Manager Elle Cole ‘For Cause’.
Public Comments
Several residents spoke, most in support of City Manager Cole or urging the council to retain her:
- Bill Ruddock expressed support for the council but raised concerns about the consequences of dismissing the city manager and the process, saying the motion to enter closed session was flawed.
- Cathy Bean spoke about the potential loss of the city manager, citing Cole’s success in getting a stop sign installed at East and Washington, and raised concerns about turnover and its cost.
- Gaye Morgenthaler thanked Council Member Bullerman for her questions and actions, discussed the recent Department of Natural Resources meeting on the deer population, and expressed misgivings about work related to a forensic audit.
- Tom Higgins said he appreciated working with the last two city managers and voiced support for the council.
- Shawn Personke urged the council to help Cole stay and succeed.
- Laura Damschroeder urged the council to make an effort to keep Cole.
- Jeremy Montange called Cole the best city manager the city has had in a long time.
Council Business
The council entered a closed session under MCL 15.268(1)(a) “to consider the dismissal, suspension, or disciplining of, or to hear complaints or charges brought against, or to consider a periodic personnel evaluation of, a public officer, employee, staff member or individual agent, if the named individual requests a closed hearing.”
Returning to open session, the council took the following actions:
- Adopted a resolution to terminate/remove City Manager Elle Cole for cause, on a unanimous vote.
- Voted to retain Management Advisory Group for interim city management services for a term of one year.
The draft minutes are available below, pending council approval.
City of Chelsea Special Council Meeting – Draft Minutes from Aug. 27, 2026
Chelsea City Council and commission agendas, packets, and minutes are also available at city-chelsea.org.
