Dearborn Heights Mayor Dan Paletko dies of COVID-19 complications
Darcie Moran
Dearborn Heights Mayor Daniel Paletko died late Tuesday of complications associated with COVID-19.
Paletko tested positive for the coronavirus and was hospitalized on Monday, Krystina Laslo, his chief of staff, said. He also had pneumonia. He was 70.
Paletko's death came as a shock to his colleagues, including Laslo. She said he was careful concerning COVID-19 safety precautions and was in good spirits when they spoke Monday night.
COVID-19 is a "nasty" disease and the community lost someone who accomplished incredible work on flood management plans, handled the city's major deficits, and cared, she said.
"He always wanted to be mayor, and he was getting ready to run for another four-year term," she said. "He loved his job. He loved the city and started City Council ... in 1973 and other than one year when he was a state rep ... served the Dearborn Heights community until 2020."
Paletko had a year left in his term as mayor. City Council Chairwoman Denise Malinowski Maxwell will now serve as mayor pro tem. She could not be reached for comment.
Dearborn City Council President Susan Dabaja remembered her colleague in a Facebook post shortly before midnight Tuesday.
“He was a devoted public servant, and he will be missed,” she said. “My heartfelt condolences to his family and the city of Dearborn Heights.”
In a tweet Wednesday morning, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer offered her condolences to Paletko's family, calling him an "extraordinary colleague."
"I am deeply saddened to hear of the passing of Mayor Dan Paletko," Whitmer wrote in the tweet. "He was a committed public servant and an extraordinary colleague. My heart is with his family, friends, and the city of Dearborn Heights."
Paletko's death was "just too much" for Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy, she said in a statement Wednesday morning. Worthy called him the "quintessential collaborator."
“Mayor Paletko was one of the first Wayne County mayors to befriend me, to work with me, and to support me," Worthy said. "The fact that the doors of Dearborn Heights were always open was a testament to his kindness, his openness, and his belief that we were one Wayne County and if Dearborn Heights benefitted, we all benefitted.”
Paletko first took over as mayor in 2004 after another longtime mayor, Ruth Canfield, resigned from the post through a cost-saving early retirement program. Prior to that, he served as a state representative and was a member of the Dearborn Heights City Council.
Paletko was also a Ford Motor Co. retiree, an accountant and a father of two, according to the Dearborn Heights website.
The mayor had faced a contentious tenure in office in recent years while at war with members of his City Council, with accusations levied at him regarding the legality of a financial audit and him levying complaints in a lawsuit over reported violation of the Open Meetings Act, The Press and Guide reported.
Even with the in-fighting, no one could say he wasn’t a great public servant, said Laslo.
Laslo worked with Paletko for 20 years, and, on a personal level, she will remember his kindness, his love for newspapers — reading eight a day, all hard copy — and how he used a little twang in his voice after a weekend of watching NASCAR.
Before COVID-19, he would “hold court” at lunchtime at a local restaurant, she said.
The loss to the community is tremendous and will be felt for years to come, she said.
“He's been around public office for 47 years and he is Dearborn Heights,” she said.
Paletko attended Crestwood High School and was in his early 20s when he began his political career, said Councilman Robert Constan. He was also a longtime member of St. Linus Catholic Church.
“I’m just in a state of shock,” Constan said.
He was a good man, councilman Dave Abdallah said in a post on Facebook.
“May you rest in peace my friend,” he said.
In his last message of 2020 issued on the City Hall Facebook page, Paletko's focus was on the novel coronavirus pandemic.
“This has been a year like no other for all of us and the most challenging and difficult in my political career,” he said.
He called the work of first responders and those in public services “nothing short of heroic,” and asked for people to continue to wear masks.
“With the holiday season and the New Year at hand, it is my hope that the coronavirus is vanquished, but that the goodwill and the togetherness it birthed will carry on in 2021,” he said. “Showing abundant amounts of love, kindness and generosity to one another is the embodiment of the city that I’m proud to call my home and to lead.”
Paletko leaves behind two daughters, a brother and a sister.
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Darcie Moran is a breaking news reporter and podcaster for the Detroit Free Press. She's served as an investigative reporter and covered justice issues, crime, protests, wildfires and government affairs. Contact Moran: dmoran@freepress.com. Twitter: @darciegmoran.