Ferndale Mayor Coulter Appointed As Oakland County Executive

PONTIAC, MI — Ferndale Mayor Dave Coulter will serve as the next Oakland County executive, according to a report, finishing L. Brooks Patterson's term. The Oakland Press reported he was appointed Friday by the Board of Commissioners, newly an 11-10 Democratic majority after Dave Woodward was allowed to return to the board.

Woodward resigned from the board Aug. 7, the Detroit Free Press reported, in order to run for the county executive position.

The GOP fought the decision to allow Woodward back onto the board, but lost their bid for an injunction, the Free Press reported. They wanted Gerald Poisson, Patterson's chief deputy and interim county executive, to keep the position until the next election.

Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard endorsed Poisson's role as county executive until the next scheduled election, in part to offset the costs of another election, but the appointment of Coulter comes without the costs of an election.

See more on Patch:

• Board Should Appoint Poisson As County Exec.: Sheriff Bouchard
• L. Brooks Patterson Funeral Is Thursday In Troy

The appointment came after hours of public comment and caucus discussions, the Oakland Press reported.

"I appreciate the applause, but this is not a celebratory day for me," said Coulter, according to the Oakland Press. "You don’t replace Brooks Patterson and I don’t expect to be able to. Brooks’ Administration has made this job look easy and I know it’s not easy," he said.