Ray Muscat
By SUE SUCHYTA
Times-Herald Newspapers
HEIGHTS – Colorful, opinionated and dedicated are words used to capture the larger-than-life personality of longtime City Councilmember Ray Muscat, who resigned Aug. 21 after serving eight years on the city council.
He said he began attending council meetings in 2002 as a resident and never looked back.
Muscat, who cited undisclosed health reasons for his departure, said the decision to step down was difficult for him, and he wishes he could have done more for the city and its residents.
“I really wanted to see the city go back to work five days a week, and I kind of failed big time on that,” he said. “It’s like when people call you. You try to do your best to help them out with whatever situation they are in. Either there are blighted neighbors or their trash isn’t getting picked up or it could be different things.”
Muscat said he is glad he got rid of all the newsprint sales circulars that were being dropped off at residences on the sidewalks and driveways.
He said he also believes he saved the taxpayers a lot of money when he discovered the sewers weren’t being cleaned properly.
“We were being charged a tremendous amount of money by the company we had,” Muscat said. “That was an easy discovery – all you had to do was read your paperwork. If you read your packet, you can find out a lot of things that went on.”
He said he felt he served the public by being observant and by asking questions.
Muscat said he hopes residents remember that he was hardworking and helpful.
“I’m a human being and I made a lot of mistakes while I was on council,” he said. “I was a person that tries to help, that’s all.”
Muscat was the third-highest vote-getter in the recent city council primary election, and by default will remain on the November general election ballot. He is discouraging residents from voting for him.
The city charter tasks the city council with either appointing a new member to fulfill Muscat’s remaining term or with leaving his seat vacant. The council may solicit letters of application, may hold interviews or, theoretically, could choose a qualified resident at random.
Unlike some neighboring cities, including Dearborn, the Heights council does not have a mandate to seat the next highest eligible vote-getter from the most recent city council election. If it did, it would likely seat Rachel LaPointe, who is not running for city council in the next general election, yet remains engaged in city government.
However, if the city council selects a non-incumbent who is currently running for the city council, whether they served in the past or not, it could be seen as giving the appointee an unfair advantage in the November general election.
If the council chooses to remain a six-person body, they run into the possibility of having more tie votes, and the body could potentially have a heavier work load while short one member. There is also a stronger likelihood that the body may have meetings when it does not have a quorum present and would be unable to vote as a body.
Many at the meeting shared many heartfelt remarks at the Aug. 22 council meeting, where Muscat’s absence was strongly felt.
LaPointe thanked Muscat for all of the work that he has done on behalf of the community.
“It’s always hard to put yourself first when you want to serve others, and I know that Councilman Muscat has always wanted to serve the community and to do his best, and I just hope that he knows that we appreciate that,” she said.
Former Councilmember Zouher Abdel-Hak said he wishes Muscat the best and hope that he recovers and that others understand that Muscat’s health comes before everything else.
“He’s the most honest and the most passionate person I have met in my life,” he said. “And I wish him the best.”
Council Chair Dave Abdallah said that when he was running for city council for the first time, at the same time as Muscat, he realized his year of attending city council meetings as a resident paled in comparison to the many years Muscat had been attending.
“What that showed me was how passionate he was about the city council and the city that he lives in and how much his heart was in it,” Abdallah said. “That is something you can’t buy, you can’t make up, you can’t create. You either have it or you don’t. Every time I walked into that voting booth, that gentleman had my vote.”
Looking at Muscat’s empty chair, Councilmember Mo Baydoun said that his spot will always be his seat.
“We wish you the very best of health,” he said. “This is tough on me since you have supported me since the beginning of my journey.”
Councilmember Robert Constan said Muscat was always passionate about protecting the taxpayers and his city and speaking up.
“He spoke from the heart and he really has a passion for the city,” he said.
Councilmember Tom Wencel said when he first joined the council, Muscat offered him an important piece of advice.
“He said, ‘If I bring something to the city council and I need your support and you vote no, good for you – you are voting the way you think you should vote, and I will never hold that against you,’” he said.
In the Aug. 22 council meeting vote to accept Muscat’s resignation, Councilmembers Hassan Ahmad and Baydoun voted symbolically no, while the remaining councilmembers voted to officially accept Muscat’s resignation.