Saline City Council to Interview Cole, Swallow and Smith for City Manager at Monday Special Meeting

Saline City Council has called a special meeting to interview candidates for city manager Monday.

Dan Swallow, City Manager of Tecumseh, interviews at 5 p.m. Jason Smith, City Manager of Belleville, interviews at 6 p.m. Elle Cole, Acting City Manager of Saline, interviews at 7 p.m.

The agenda also allows for public comment before the interviews. 

These interviews should be the final step before city council deliberates, chooses a candidate and makes an offer.

The process has been delayed for close to a month. A hiring committee recommended four finalists and did not include Cole, upsetting members of Saline City Council and business and property owners downtown.

Council interviewed the four finalists as the public reaction to Cole's exclusion grew stronger. Last week, council voted 5-2 to include Cole in the process, with Mayor Brian Marl and Councillor Jack Ceo voting no.

There were three members of the council on the hiring committee who excluded Cole from the finalists: Marl and Councillors Nicole Rice and Chuck Lesch.

Rice and Lesch voted to interview Cole at last week's meeting.

More News from Saline

• Letter: Why We Want to Sell Our Family Property to Related Digital Amy Marr and John Feldkamp explain their decision to sell their Saline Township family property.
• Wife and Mother of 2 Katrene Starling, Former Miss Saline, Helped Organize the Saline Fair Katrene Diane Starling, age 80, of Tecumseh, Michigan passed away peacefully on August 26, 2025, after a courageous battle with cancer.