He may not be a county commissioner anymore and his new office may not be in Lansing, but Birmingham resident and former Oakland County Commissioner Dave Potts has a new job: member of the Oakland County Zoological Authority.

The Oakland County Zoological Authority works to provide zoological services for Oakland County residents and students, funneling tax revenue to various countywide programs as well as the Detroit Zoo in Royal Oak.

Potts, a Birmingham attorney, formerly represented the 20th District on the Oakland County Board of Commissioners, representing Birmingham, Bloomfield Hills and parts of Bloomfield Township and Troy.

However, redistricting after the 2010 census stuck Birmingham in the county's 12th District (formerly the 16th), represented then and now by Commissioner Shelley Goodman Taub (R-12th District).

Announcing that he wouldn't be challenging Taub for the county seat in a Republican run-off, Potts sought the Republican nomination for the 40th seat in the State House of Representatives. Potts eventually lost that race last August to current Rep. Mike McCready (R-Bloomfield Hills) after spending $100,000 of his own money on the campaign and collecting more than $114,000 in contributions.