Wayne County Treasurer Wojtowicz to Retire

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Wayne County Treasurer Raymond Wojtowicz said Wednesday that he will retire after 30 years in the position.

Wojtowicz’s retirement comes on the heels of the retirement of his top deputy, David Szymanski, who retired last month.

Wojtowicz, 86, a former Hamtramck mayor, was last elected in 2012, The Detroit News reports.

The retirement of the two top officials from the treasurer’s office fuels speculation that a mass exodus is planned before pension changes can be implemented — an expected outcome of Wayne County’s consent agreement to resolve its financial crisis.

Wayne County is wrestling with a $52 million structural deficit, stemming in part from a substantially underfunded pension system and dwindling tax revenues, down about$100 million annually since 2008. The county’s estimated accumulated deficit is $150 million.

Before the Wayne County Commission voted for the consent agreement, Commission Chair Gary Woronchak, D-Dearborn, said he feared employees would leave before the new fiscal year begins Oct. 1, according to the Detroit Free Press.

“The recovery plan as envisioned by the administration will have a severe impact on all employees of Wayne County except those who are favored or exceptions,” Woronchak said. “We’re going to lose a lot of talent.”

An ex-officio member of Wayne County Employees’ Retirement System board, Woronchak said there had been a “huge spike” in the number of retirement applications before the board. He warned at the time that more than half of the county’s senior staff might leave as a result of the consent agreement.

A panel consisting of Prosecutor Kym Worthy, County Clerk Cathy Garrett and Chief Probate Judge Freddie G. Burton Jr. is expected to meet soon to appoint an interim treasurer, The Detroit News said.

Wojtowicz, a Democrat, has come under fire for his office’s foreclosure of more than 100,000 properties over the past decade, but Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan has praised him for his efforts to help distressed homeowners save their homes.