REGULAR MEETING MINUTES
BELDING CITY COUNCIL
Tuesday, February 3, 2026
7:00 p.m.
A meeting of the Belding City Council of the City of Belding, Michigan was convened in open and public session at the Pere Marquette Depot, 100 Depot Street, at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, February 3, 2026.
Mayor Jeannine Leary called the meeting to order and led with the Pledge of Allegiance.
Deputy City Clerk Sharyn Overton took the roll call:
Members present: Linda Curtis, Nikolai Zerkle, Shelley Gladding, Bonita Steele and Jeannine Leary
Members absent: None
Mayor Leary noted the following change to the agenda: Strike Item G. under New Business. Moved by Steele, seconded by Zerkle to adopt the agenda as amended. Motion carried by the following roll call vote: Yes - all.
Jenny Bennett requested that the Council give clarification on the boards and terms for the boards listed on tonight’s agenda. She questioned how the terms were chosen and set.
Mike McCarty shared his thoughts regarding the Recreation Board seats that the Council would be voting on.
Moved by Zerkle, seconded by Steele to approve the Consent Agenda as presented. Motion carried by the following roll call vote: Yes – all.
The Consent Agenda is as follows:
A. Approve Independent Bank Checks 84675 to 84724 in the amount of $124,104.92
Approve Mercantile Bank Checks 1733 to 1736 in the amount of $47,235.99
Approve ACH Payments
B. Approve Minutes: City Council Regular Meeting – January 20, 2026
City Council Special Meeting – January 28, 2026
Curtis reported that the Housing Commission has an upcoming meeting.
Zerkle reported that the ZBA has not met.
Gladding reported that the Planning Commission would be meeting on February 24th.
Steele reported that no meetings were held.
Mayor Leary reported that the Museum Board meeting had been postponed due to weather.
A. Steele explained that she had worked with the City attorney on the audit of the Recreation Advisory Board, going back to 1977 and also referencing the Recreation Advisory Board’s charter from 1964. She emphasized that the terms were set based on the seat, not the person.
Curtis thanked Steele for taking on this task, stating the enormity of the project.
In reference to earlier comments, Mayor Leary stated that the Council was not making up the rules but rather getting back to the original charter. The seats were determined by much research, and that any candidate could challenge Seat B or C if they wished to, and there was one vacancy, which was Seat A.
Moved by Zerkle, seconded by Gladding to approve the Audit of the Recreation Advisory Board terms. Motion carried by the following roll call vote: Yeas: Gladding, Curtis, Zerkle and Mayor Leary. Steele abstained from voting.
B. Steele explained her research regarding the Zoning Board of Appeals terms, stating that she was able to go back to the creation of this board. Her findings were then reviewed by Curtis and the City’s attorney. Moved by Curtis, seconded by Zerkle to approve the Audit of the Zoning Board of Appeals terms. Motion carried by the following roll call vote: Yeas: Curtis, Zerkle, Gladding and Mayor Leary. Steele abstained from voting.
C. Steele reported that for the DDA Board, she began her research starting in 1992. She shared that the Board actually began in 1984, but became co-mingled with another board until 1992. She stated that the board currently has six open seats and one applicant. Moved by Curtis, seconded by Gladding to approve the Audit of the Downtown Development Authority Board terms. Motion carried by the following roll call vote: Yeas: Curtis, Zerkle, Gladding and Mayor Leary. Steele abstained from voting.
D. Mayor Leary stated that Jeffrey Puehler has applied for reappointment to the Zoning Board of Appeals. This term will expire on 12/31/28 and would be the appointment for Seat B.
Zerkle requested that a brief interview be done with each of the applicants for the various boards, allowing the applicant to share why they are applying, what they feel they will offer to the board, etc. Moved by Zerkle, seconded by Curtis to hold a brief interview of each applicant for the various boards. Motion died for lack of support. Yeas: Zerkle, Curtis. Nays: Steele, Mayor Leary. Gladding abstained from voting.
Moved by Steele, seconded by Curtis to appoint Jeffrey Puehler to Seat B of the Zoning Board of Appeals with that term to expire on 12/31/28. Motion carried by the following roll call vote: Yeas: Steele, Curtis, Zerkle, and Mayor Leary. Gladding abstained from voting.
E. Mayor Leary stated that there is one applicant for Seat C of the DDA and that this seat is currently held by Sharon Carlson. The expiration date of the term for Seat C is 12/31/28. Moved by Zerkle, seconded by Steele to appoint Sharon Carlson to Seat C of the Downtown Development Authority, with that term to expire on 12/31/28. Motion carried by the following roll call vote: Yes – all.
F. Mayor Leary stated that there were three vacancies on the Recreation Advisory Board and four applicants. The first seat for appointment was Seat C, which has been held by Sharon Carlson. The term for this seat expires on 12/31/28. She presented Sharon Carlson’s name for appointment. Moved by Curtis, seconded by Steele to appoint Sharon Carlson to Seat C on the Recreation Advisory Board, with the term for that seat expiring on 12/31/28. Motion carried by the following roll call vote: Yes – all.
G. Mayor Leary stated that the second seat for appointment was Seat B, which has been held by Ron Devereaux. The term for this seat expires on 12/31/28. Steele stated that Mr. Devereaux was unable to be in attendance due to his work but is interested in the appointment. Steele shared that Devereaux has been chair for many years and is an active member of this board. Moved by Steele, seconded by Gladding to appoint Ron Devereaux to Seat B on the Recreation Advisory Board, with the term for that seat expiring on 12/31/28. Motion carried by the following roll call vote: Yes – all.
H. Mayor Leary reported that there were two applicants, John LaClear and Mike Tefft, for Seat A on the Recreation Advisory Board, and that the term for this seat expires on 12/31/27. LaClear spoke up stating that he was withdrawing his name.
The second candidate for Seat A, Mike Tefft, asked to address the council. He shared his displeasure with the process, stating that he was under the understanding that there were three openings on this board and four candidates, and that all four candidates would be interviewed, three would be chosen and then placed in the seats. However, those interviews did not take place, and in fact one of the candidates was not in attendance, even though he was under the impression that this was almost a requirement for appointment. Since Seat B and C were basically given to Sharon Carlson and Ron Devereaux, that would leave Tefft and LaClear to now compete against each other interviewing for the final seat, even though the first two were not required to be interviewed or even be in attendance. Based on how all of this was handled, Tefft also withdrew his name.
Mayor Leary stated that applications would continue to be taken for Seat A on the Recreation Advisory Board until the seat was filled.
Carolyn Wieczorek shared concern that prayer had been removed from the City Council agendas and meetings and respectfully requested that this be reinstated.
Jenny Bennett shared concerns about the lack of transparency in the Council’s actions and stated that she feels the Council is turning away people that want to serve.
John LaClear shared his disappointment in the way the appointments were handled. He also reminded the Council that both candidates appointed had stated that they would be willing to step down if others were interested. He stated that he feels that the city is losing good people because of the process.
Mike Tefft shared his agreement with John regarding the process. He also requested that if anyone had questions or comments for him, to talk to him following the meeting rather than addressing them through social media.
Sharon Carlson expressed her appreciation for those that serve on the various boards and stated that she also appreciated the comments shared by both Mike McCarty and Mike Tefft. She shared that the appointment to the DDA would make the 8th appointment, which was needed to be able to hold a meeting, but that her hopes are that the other vacant seats will also be filled soon.
Mike McCarty stated that he knew the appointment process would be difficult and that there may be problems. He shared that he wanted the various boards to be a positive experience, but that changes need to be made and that he hopes that tonight would be a learning experience for the future.
Mayor Leary asked Interim City Manager Becky Schlienz if she had any comments. She had none.
Gladding shared that council members are attacked on social media, even though she does her council work with the best intentions. She will continue to work for the good of the City.
Steele stated that there is a high level of negativity on some social media sites and she would like to work to counteract that. She stated that she is looking forward to seeing everyone on Saturday at the City Manager interviews.
Curtis gave a shout-out to the DPW workers for doing such a great job over the past couple weeks. She also shared her disappointment in the negativity she has seen on social media, stating that Belding is better than this. She thanked all those willing to serve on the various committees.
Zerkle reiterated the concern regarding the negative social media posts, stating that he wants to focus on his family and the future of Belding to make it better. He shared that he takes all comments by constituents personally and hopes to learn from the comments made tonight by the public.
Mayor Leary shared that she appreciated everyone that came out for tonight’s meeting. She stated that she realizes the council is not perfect and also hopes to learn from tonight’s input.
Mayor Leary shared that interviews for City Manager would be held this upcoming Saturday.
Moved by Zerkle, seconded by Steele to adjourn the meeting at 7:55 p.m. Motion carried by the following roll call vote: Yes – all.
Jeannine Leary, Mayor Sharyn Overton
Deputy City Clerk