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Flint mayor calls for city to 'pull together'

Flint mayor Dayne Walling addresses a city hall audience after being sworn in for his first full four year term
Steve Carmody/Michigan Radio
Flint mayor Dayne Walling addresses a city hall audience after being sworn in for his first full four year term

Flint mayor Dayne Walling said at his swearing in ceremony that the city should not wait for the appointment of an emergency manager to tackle its crime and economic problems.   

“Now is the time for us to pull forward together," Walling told the city hall audience that had come to see him sworn in for his first full four year term as mayor. Walling has been Flint's mayor for the past two years after winning a special election. 

In his inaugural address, Dayne Walling talked about the need for the community to move quickly to stop violent crime and to bring new business investment to Flint. Walling insists Flint city government can move forward with his agenda, despite the looming reality that the governor will soon choose an emergency manager to take over running city government. 

“If this emergency manager is here for a few months…if they are here for a year or two…I look forward to serving my full four year term that I was sworn into today," Walling told reporters after the ceremony. 

Last week, the governor announced that he agreed Flint faces a ‘financial emergency’, probably requiring the appointment of an emergency manager. A governor’s office spokeswoman said they are currently reviewing candidates for the job, with the intent of putting “Flint in a safer, stronger position” and getting the city “back on its feet.”

Steve Carmody has been a reporter for Michigan Public since 2005. Steve previously worked at public radio and television stations in Florida, Oklahoma and Kentucky, and also has extensive experience in commercial broadcasting.