A Livonia musician and former city council candidate says he believes speaking out against the city led to both the loss of a longtime gig and banishment from city facilities – and he wants back in.
The city, on the other hand, points to trespassing as the reason for the ban, and a festivalwide push for fresh entertainment as the reason he was dropped from Livonia Spree in 2026.
Steve King, 72, is a longtime Livonia resident and frontman for Steve King and the Dittlies, an oldies and classic rock band that has performed for decades at community events and festivals throughout Metro Detroit.
He is also an outspoken critic of city government and publicly opposed the city’s failed August 2025 Livonia Built $150 million bond proposal.
“I joined a group
of citizens, a grassroots movement that was against the downtown millage,” King said. “I spoke at meetings, I wrote speeches and people responded to the stuff I wrote. And so when (the bond) failed, I got blamed for it. They blamed me. Ever since, they’ve been on a tear.”
Last year, he was banned for life from the Jack E. Kirksey Recreation Center and the Livonia Senior Wellness Center.
At a Sept. 14 Livonia City Council meeting, King asked council members to intervene and lift the ban, but Council Vice President Patrick Brockway said because the Parks and Recreation Commission imposed the ban, only that commission could lift or modify it.
The commission’s next meeting is Oct. 7.
Charged for trespassing
In fall 2025, King was running for a seat on Livonia City Council when he went inside the city’s senior center while it was under construction.
King said he had become skeptical of the project’s progress after its opening was delayed.
“Finally, I said, ‘What the hell is going on over there?’” he said. “So I started walking through to see.”
King, who has worked as a builder, said there were no locked doors or signs warning him to stay out.
He posted photos on Facebook showing what he believed were problems in the building. City records obtained through a public records request show King told city employees about the visit and asked about the issues he saw.
City officials objected to the visit and launched an investigation. The resulting police report paints a somewhat different picture of his access to the building, noting surveillance video shows King “physically moving a gate” to enter the site.
The report says Ted Davis, then-Livonia Parks and Recreation superintendent, told police only he, along with Mayor Maureen Miller Brosnan and two others, could authorize access to the site.
Davis told police King had previously asked to enter and was told he needed permission from Brosnan, to which King responded, “She’s not answering my calls.”
King later told police a construction worker had allowed him inside, but Davis said no workers were at the site that day and they were not allowed to authorize entry, anyway.
Court records show King was charged with misdemeanor trespassing and breaking and entering, stemming from the Oct. 4, 2025 incident.
Ultimately, the breaking-and-entering charge was dismissed. King pleaded no contest to trespassing and was ordered to serve three months of probation and pay $365 in fines and costs. The trespassing charge was later dismissed after he successfully completed probation.
Still, a permanent ban from the recreation and senior center remains in effect.
'Genuine curiosity about a public facility'
While King said he caused no harm and believes the ban was retaliation for his ongoing criticism of city government, Brosnan said the decision was about safety and King’s entry into a work zone that was “closed to the public.”
“The City of Livonia has a responsibility to keep our residents, employees and contractors safe and to protect our public facilities,” Brosnan said in a written statement. “The decision to ban Mr. King from the Kirksey Recreation Center was made in response to documented unauthorized entry into a secured construction site.”
The suspension, she noted, was handled through the established Parks and Recreation process, where King exercised his right to appeal.
City records show King sent several letters to appeal the decision, noting his visit to the site was not intended to cause harm, interfere with work, or violate rules.
“I entered the area out of genuine curiosity about a public facility that my property taxes help fund,” he wrote in the Nov. 6, 2025 appeal letter. “I now fully understand that access to construction zones is restricted, and I regret any misunderstanding that may have resulted. I respectfully request that my suspension be reconsidered or lifted.”
King said he believed a warning or conversation would have been more appropriate than a permanent suspension and noted he would follow all facility rules moving forward.
His appeal was denied.
“While your intentions may not have been to cause harm or violate any rules, we take these situations very seriously for the safety of everyone,” Davis wrote in a Nov. 11, 2025 response, noting someone with King’s level of construction experience should know accessing a secure construction site is dangerous and exposes the city and contractors to significant risk. “Your actions violate the law and are not tolerated.”
King again appealed the decision, this time to the Parks and Recreation Commission, which on Dec. 3 upheld the decision.
King says the ban is affecting his quality of life.
“It’s cruel and unusual punishment,” he said “People who are older need those social connections. I've lost contact with a lot of my friends. People I would see regularly at the senior center have passed away. I've gained weight since I’ve been banned because I'm not in the pool, not working out.”
Removed from lineup at Livonia Spree
King said the fallout extended beyond the facility ban. Steve King and the Dittilies were also dropped from Livonia Spree, where King said he had performed for about 45 years.
The band, he said, had already been booked for Spree when the performance was canceled, a decision he believes was also retaliation for his ongoing criticism of city government.
Livonia City Council President Kayleigh Reid, who also serves as executive director for Spree, flatly rejected the notion, saying neither city officials nor the mayor had any involvement in selecting Spree performers.
Instead, she said, a five-member volunteer entertainment committee went through a process to review acts and chose a new lineup for 2026.
“Steve King was on the list, and this committee of five people decided they didn't want him anymore,” she said. “They did all new bands this year. Our beer sales were not great in 2025, and we believe that the bands are what drive the beer sales. So that's why they wanted a refresh.”
Reid said no one on the committee works for the Livonia city government.
“I bet half of them wouldn't even know what his involvement is with the city and with everything that happened last year,” she said. “They just felt like they wanted a new band.”
King isn’t convinced.
For now, he just hopes to resume his exercise and social routines.
“I want the ban lifted,” he said. “I don’t care how it’s lifted.”
Flyers are circulating on social media asking residents to attend the Oct. 7 Parks and Recreation Commission meeting to “end the lifetime ban for Steve King at the Rec Center and Senior Center.” The meeting begins at 6 p.m. at the Jack E. Kirksey Recreation Center.
Contact reporter Laura Colvin: lcolvin@hometownlife.com
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Banned for life: Livonia musician locked out of city senior center
