Councilmember Allen Leaving Town? What Will It Mean To Council?

In a follow up to the story we brought you yesterday regarding the on-going investigations into the burglary and fire at A Family Affair Soul Food Kitchen in Fond du Lac, comes word that current City Councilmember Arletta Allen is not reopening the restaurant, and appears to be leaving Fond du Lac.

In a Facebook post on the Family Affair page, Allen said “I must say goodbye to all of you. The restaurant (A Family Affair) will not be reopening here in Fond du Lac.”

Allen went on to say she’s shutting down the page “until I can gather myself enough to start over.”

She also alluded to the fact that she’s “going to where the love of family is strong and supportive.” Allen did indicate she open a new restaurant in Texas but did not give a timeline as to when she might be leaving.

If Allen chooses to resign her position and indeed moves out of the city and does not run for re-election on Council, it could pose an interesting dilemma for the City Council moving forward.

As of Thursday morning, only one person had returned declaration papers to the Fond du Lac City Clerk’s office. Brett Zimmermann, who ran in the last Council election, was the only person to officially file by the end of day Wednesday.

That would leave current members Ben Giles, Donna Richards and Allen as the only incumbents that could file for re-election. Current councilmember Kay Miller, who also serves as the council president, has termed out and is not eligible.

Interested parties have until January 4th to return papers.

As it stands now, the last few weeks of 2021 could be very interesting on a number of different fronts.