On August 25, 2026 Algonac City Council approved a motion to Instruct the City Attorney to engage a workplace consultant/evaluation.

Upon instruction by City Council, our City Attorney retained the services of Westbrook Investigations & Consulting LLC of Plymouth, Mi.  The workplace evaluation was intended to identify opportunities to strengthen leadership and organizational effectiveness, and to help ensure City Hall is a professional, accommodating workplace.

Why was Westbrook selected to conduct the evaluation?

Westbrook Investigations & Consulting LLC was retained because of its notable experience conducting independent and organizational assessments involving complex operations, compliance and workplace issues.

What was the scope of the workplace evaluation?

The scope of the investigation was to assess the workplace environment within City Hall, including leadership, oversight, accountability, reporting practices, organizational structure, and the effectiveness of policies and procedures to examine broader operational and organizational issues within City Hall.

What role did City Council play?

City Council commissioned the workplace evaluation, received the findings and recommendations, and is overseeing implementation of recommended reforms.

Why isn’t the report being released publicly?

Maintaining the confidentiality of the investigation protects the privacy of employees and promotes the willingness of those employees to participate in future processes to strengthen the workplace environment going forward.

What were the principal findings of the workplace evaluation?

The evaluation found material administrative and internal control issues, including unclear approval authority, and inadequate formal procedures governing certain purchases and asset dispositions.  The evidence available does not support characterizing those issues as theft, fraud, embezzlement, or any “quid-pro-quo” by City staff or department heads.

What actions will City Council take in response to Westbrook’s evaluation?

City Council and the City Manager accept the recommendations from the

evaluation and are moving forward with implementation.  They will develop an implementation plan with defined milestones, timelines and accountability measures to guide the work and monitor progress.

Will there be any personnel actions moving forward?

Moving forward, Council will address the workplace environment issues within City Hall as a whole, ensure that each department head is “on the same page” to clearly define policies and procedures and work with City Administration to monitor the progress.

That being said, City Council may not discuss individual personnel matters publicly as protected by the Open Meetings Act 15.268(1)(a). Personnel decisions, when appropriate, are made in accordance with best practices and applicable law.