MARQUETTE — After 15 years representing the city of Marquette, attorney Ron Keefe will retire on Dec. 31.

Keefe was formally recognized and wished farewell at Monday night’s Marquette City Commission meeting. He thanked all of the city staff and commissioners he’s had the pleasure to work with over the years.

“I’m dearly going to miss this place,” he said. “I made too many good friends along the way, and that’s the hardest part of leaving. It’s about time I suppose. I’m sure you’re wondering when I was going to leave, but it’s about time I left. I will miss you all and thank you very much.”

Marquette Mayor Jenna Smith had kind words for Keefe, thanking him for his contributions to the city.

“Your important work on the city of Marquette’s property sales, contract negotiations, legal disputes, policy implementation and ordinance changes have helped the city of Marquette to become and remain a more vibrant, fiscally secure and growing community,” she said to Keefe. “You have personally contributed to making our wonderful community an even better place to live, own a business and raise a family. Thank you for your conscious contributions to the city of Marquette.”

Keefe added that ending his tenure during the COVID-19 pandemic is like coming full-circle, recalling a dark period in time when he was first hired to represent the city in 2005.

“When I started in 2005… you think these are dark days because of the pandemic and all the stuff we’re going through,” he said. “But when I started in 2005, there were three city commissioners. They appointed me as acting city manager, though I’m not sure what that meant. We had three commissioners, they hadn’t had a city attorney in seven (months), we couldn’t sell real estate, we couldn’t pass an ordinance, we couldn’t do anything that requires more than four or five votes.

“But we got through that period, and at the end of my tenure as city attorney, we’re facing this pandemic. This is the first time I’ve been in a meeting live since February.”

Smith presented Keefe with a certificate on behalf of the city of Marquette, while soon-to-be-retired City Manager Mike Angeli also gifted Keefe with a plaque highlighting his years of service, a gift card to Snowbound Books and a bottle of bourbon.

Other commissioners also thanked Keefe for his decade and a half of service.

“Ron, you’ve had a lot of years of service, and I feel like we’re just the lucky ones to see you at the end of your city career,” commissioner Sally Davis said. “But there should be a long line of previous commissioners who should have an opportunity to kind of roast you.

“One of the things that comes to my mind as I think back the last five or six years is you guiding the city through three quarters of a billion (dollars) in developments. I don’t know how many documents that took or how many times you had to have your eyes and your hands on them, and the complexity of them, but thank you for doing that. Your knowledge of municipal law will be greatly missed, as well as your ability to provide the solid evidence when faced with potentially controversial issues.”

“You and I haven’t gotten a chance to work very long together,” added commissioner Cody Mayer. “You coming on with the city back in 2005, I was probably only 7 or 8 years old. It’s clear from not only some of the comments from my colleagues, but also the history that comes with the amount of profound impact you’ve had with this community. I’m very thankful that you’ve spent so much of your professional life dedicating yourself to Marquette and I really appreciate that.”

The city will be left in good hands, with Suzanne Larsen taking over the city attorney position effective Jan. 1.

Larsen has been a law partner with Keefe for several years at Kendricks, Bordeau, Keefe, Seavoy & Larsen, PC, a full-service law firm serving the Upper Peninsula with offices in Marquette and Hancock.

The commission voted 7-0 earlier in December to appoint Larsen to the position.