It’s a new era for the city of Detroit and for Mary Sheffield, the youngest person ever elected to the Detroit City Council and the city’s youngest city council president.

Now, Sheffield is the first woman elected mayor of Detroit. 

“I was told by the current mayor that it may take some time to fully sink in, but, very excited, very honored, and just tons of support from the community,” Sheffield said. 

The mayor-elect also has people in her corner from outside of the community, including former Vice President Kamala Harris. 

“I was very humbled that she took the time to call me,” Sheffield said. “She encouraged me to make sure I take it all in and to prioritize the things that matter to everyday Detroiters, and just gave me a lot of advice and encouragement as a woman, going into office.”

Being Detroit’s first woman mayor comes with added pressure. 

“You just don’t want to let people down,” Sheffield said. “Being the first, you want to set the tone, and you want to set a high standard that, while I may be the first, I’m not the last.”

Sheffield says politics wasn’t always the plan, but public service is in her blood. 

“As a young girl, I used to march with Dick Gregory and Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson. I was 10 years old, and, my entire life, I was molded by both my mother and my father to serve the community,” she said. 

Sheffield says Detroit hired her to do one thing above all: keep the momentum going and make sure every neighborhood feels it. It’s why Sheffield named her transition team “Rise Higher Detroit,” and set up shop at the Marygrove Conservancy in the Fitzgerald Neighborhood. 

“We have 18 committees focused on infrastructure and housing and public safety, transit, all of the topics that we heard directly from Detroiters throughout the campaign,” she said.

Those 18 committees are building an action plan for Sheffield’s first 100 days in office. 

“We’re really big on this administration being able to deliver day one for our residents,” Sheffield said.

Challenges are ahead for Detroit. By the end of 2026, millions of dollars in pandemic-era federal funding will stop flowing to the city. Several programs like Community Violence Intervention and down payment assistance depend on that money. 

“We’re having those discussions now to figure out what programs have been the most impactful and looking at ways that we can supplement that funding with the private sector, philanthropic support, and other means as well,” Sheffield said. 

Sheffield will enter office under a microscope, as ethics questions have surfaced from her time on the city council. Sheffield says she’s taking steps to address those questions. 

“We actually have an ethics committee, which is chaired by Elliott Hall, our former inspector general. And so they’ll be making recommendations on ways that we can improve ethics not only within our administration, but within the entire city,” she said. 

The job will be demanding, and the days long, but Sheffield says she relies on family and quiet moments to recharge. 

“Quietness, you know, no television, no TV, reading a book, chilling out with my family. I mean, that is always a relaxing time for myself. I don’t have much of that these days, but it’s definitely something that I enjoy,” she said. 

Down the road, if there’s one thing Sheffield hopes Detroiters say about their mayor in the Sheffield era, it’s this:

“She was always for the people. She improves the quality of life for our city, and she put our neighborhoods first. Most importantly is that she left the city better when she was here than when it was before,” Sheffield said. 

ALLEN PARK — The Detroit Lions are boosting their cornerback depth with a familiar face after waiving him two weeks ago.

Detroit signed cornerback Athur Maulet to its main roster, waiving tight end Ross Dwelley in the corresponding move on Tuesday afternoon.

Maulet, 32, helped fill the void at nickelback when Amik Robertson was initially forced to move outside earlier this season.

The journeyman defensive back played six games, notched one interception while playing 105 defensive snaps with another 65 on special teams. Maulet played 81 of his defensive snaps from the slot, with most of his playing time coming between Weeks 6 and 11. He allowed 13 catches on 16 targets in coverage for 144 yards and one touchdown.

Detroit’s defense lost Brian Branch to a season-ending Achilles injury in last week’s win over the Dallas Cowboys. Branch, while a safety by trade, is as versatile as they come in this league. The Lions aren’t just replacing a strong safety; they are working to find nickel depth and to figure out what to do with all of the roles he was handling on the fly.

Branch had played 149 snaps in the slot, 53 aligned at the line of scrimmage, 236 in the box, 282 at free safety and another 26 at cornerback before his injury.

On top of that, Robertson has been splitting his time between outside and the nickelback with Terrion Arnold out for the season (shoulder). He and Rock Ya-Sin have filled the role on the other side of top cornerback D.J. Reed for most of the season.

Maulet gives them another battle-tested option to deploy in the slot, with those three doing some heavy lifting down the stretch.

“No, if the game’s on the line, it’s going to be Arthur Maulet in press man, and he’s going to find a way to get the ball out of the basket,” Lions defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard previously said of his belief in the defensive back.

Dwelley had appeared in 11 games for the Lions this season. Both of his two catches on the campaign have come in the last two games, with top tight ends Brock Wright and Sam LaPorta on injured reserve.

The Lions have Anthony Firkser and Hayden Rucci on their 53-man roster. Rucci was claimed via the Miami Dolphins last week but was inactive against the Cowboys on the quick turnaround. The Lions also have Zach Horton and former Western Michigan standout Giovanni Ricci on the practice squad. Horton was elevated for the preseason game, handling some work out of the backfield.

Shane Zylstra had his 21-day return window opened recently. The Lions have also been testing undrafted rookie wide receiver Jackson Meeks at tight end in practice for another option.