Mark Hackel
No question there was relief on Friday when Bankruptcy Judge Steven Rhodes approved Detroit's bankruptcy.
But Macomb County Executive Mark Hackel is critical about the celebratory tone of Detroit officials after the ruling, Jeff Payne of The Macomb Daily reports..
“It should be a lesson learned, not a celebration,” Hackel tells the paper. “This was all contrived. A lot of people suffered as a result of this.”
Detroit is cutting the pensions of general retirees by 4.5 percent, erasing $7 billion of debt and promising to spend $1.7 billion to demolish scores of dead buildings, improve public safety and upgrade basic services, among other key steps.
Hackel took issue with the lack of mention of those who were impacted by proceedings, specifically pensioners and suburban water users. Most Macomb County municipalities are hooked into the water and sewer system previously owned and operated by Detroit. They will now be serviced by the Great Lakes Water Authority, an entity that Hackel says was “forced” on the suburbs, which will have a vote on a regional board.
