Detroit City Council Standing Committee Meeting - November 10, 2025
Detroit City Council Standing Committee Meeting - November 10, 2025
The Detroit City Council Standing Committee convened on November 10, 2025, initially without a quorum, proceeding directly into public comments to address transit issues, zoning concerns, and community needs. Once Councilmember Waters arrived, a quorum was established, and the committee addressed several administrative actions and an ordinance regarding secondhand goods record-keeping.
Consent Calendar
- The committee approved the minutes of the previous meeting without objection.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Mr. Boyle: Expressed frustration with inconsistent route execution on Dexter Line (Bus Route 16) due to the Joe Lewis Greenway construction detour, noting a lack of signage and varying driver adherence to the memo. Requested full support for posting signs three stops before and after the detour area and for deploying a supervisory vehicle to monitor compliance. Also expressed strong support for downzoning the Kronos facility in District Three to mitigate dust issues.
- Renard Mosunski (Detroit People's Platform): Expressed concern that upzoning proposals prioritize density over transit needs, arguing that transit improvements are treated as a background benefit rather than a foreground requirement. Requested more time and consideration to develop comprehensive transit-oriented development measures that include anti-displacement strategies.
- Caller "Owner Papa": Critically opposed the council's process, citing violations of Charter Section 6-20-5 regarding public hearing opportunities. Opposed the handling of the election department's candidate list release and accused the council of rush jobs and ignoring community advisory councils. Strongly opposed the allocation of surplus dollars to corporate America.
- Betty A. Varner (Soda-Ellsworth Black Association): Requested funding for the 8-Mile Corridor (referring to it as "think corridor") to match investments made in other corridors like Dexter and Warren, noting a lack of current monies for cleanup or development.
- Not That Karen: Offered support for new bus shelters but expressed a desire for solar heating in shelters. Requested the relocation of the shelter at McNichols and Green Lawn due to safety concerns regarding icy conditions and tight turns. Strongly opposed a "fast track" for city retirees, stating a clear position that they simply want their money back. Advocated for open shelters and housing alternatives for the homeless.
- William M. Davis: Expressed concern regarding the lack of communication from the Detroit Police Department in community meetings (Metro Detroit ALL PAC). Called for the department to improve, borrow resources from other jurisdictions, and provide better support for city retirees.
- Miko A. Williams: Expressed deep fatigue and opposition to current city management, citing unresolved issues with police/fire pay, equipment failures, and affordable housing discrepancies. Opposed gentrification and accused city officials of favoring developers over legacy Detroiters.
- Jadante Smith: Implored Councilmember Scott Benson and at-large members to downzone the Kronos facility at 3405 Gaylord, citing toxic dust and contamination concerns from 800 properties owned by the family of the Maroon family. Threatened a recall campaign against Councilmember Benson if the facility is not shut down.
- Caller 169: Directed frustration toward the administration regarding "hate" and suggested using Keith Cunningham's payment services (CashApp) instead of Uber/Lyft.
- Owner Papa (Second Comment): Reiterated strong opposition to the council's use of surplus dollars for corporate America, arguing that the city is not utilizing taxes or federal dollars equitably given the threefold poverty rate.
Discussion Items
- Line Item 5.5 (Cronos Concrete Closure): Councilmember Benson's request for a legal opinion on closing the Kronos concrete facility was received and filed. The Law Department stated no objection to waiving privilege for the memo, directing the Council to prepare a formal motion to waive privilege for the next session.
- Line Items 5.2, 5.4, 5.6-5.8: The committee agreed to bring back various line items concerning emergency demolition contracts, food vendor data, travel reports, stormwater management, and flood mitigation solutions to the committee in one week for further discussion.
- New Business: Ordinance 2025-00-XX (Secondhand Goods Record Keeping):
- Proposal Description: An ordinance to amend Chapter 41 of the Detroit City Code, requiring junk dealers, junk vehicle dealers, and secondary goods dealers to maintain an electronic database for all transactions (previously paper-based) to combat the sale of stolen goods. The system (likely Leads Online) is currently paid for by DPD, incurring zero cost to businesses.
- Implementation Plan: Businesses will be given a 60-day window from the system designation for training and registration. Enforcement will involve a notice period followed by accountability measures.
- Accountability Debate: Councilmember Waters questioned the vagueness of current penalties ("repeated and willful" failing to report) and expressed fear that businesses could evade penalties through "wiggle room." She proposed a specific numerical threshold for violations.
- Amendment: The committee agreed to modify the ordinance language in Section 4193 to specify that three or more failing-to-report transactions constitute a violation warranting license revocation or non-renewal. The Law Department confirmed this change is permissible and the ordinance will be moved to new business for introduction as amended.
Key Outcomes
- Motion to amend Ordinance 2025-00-XX: Passed without objection to change the violation threshold for secondhand goods dealers from vague terms to a specific count of three or more failing-to-report transactions.
- Motion to introduce Ordinance 2025-00-XX: Passed without objection to move the modified ordinance to new business for introduction and setting a public hearing.
- Administrative Actions:
- Line Item 5.2 (Emergency Demolition) and Line Item 5.3 (Emergency Alteration) were approved or brought back as requested.
- Line Item 5.5 (Cronos Legal Opinion) was received and filed with a directive to draft a waiver of privilege memo.
- Line Items 5.4, 5.6, 5.7, and 5.8 were brought back to the committee in one week.
- Procedural Note: The committee emphasized the importance of resolving substantive changes and debates prior to introducing an ordinance to ensure they are included in the summary and to avoid delays caused by additional public hearings.
Meeting Transcript
Standing committee will be called to order with the clerk please call the roll. Good morning, Councilmember Gabrielle Santiago Romero. Councilmember Scott Benson. Got Benson I. Councilmember Mary Waters. Mr. Vice Chair, there is no quorum. All right, not having a quorum, we will go right into public comments. And what we will do is open up public comments until 10.05. Then we will close public comments. We will give two minutes to each. And if staff we can make sure that everybody who is here for public comment gets a card and we will call on them. And then if we could please get a and we've now been joined by Member Waters. Uh so we now have a quorum. Mr. Boyle, you have two minutes. We'll give everybody two minutes a day. As some of uh the viewers know, I'm a bus rider and I uh frequent on the uh Dexter line, which right now has a detour for the Joe Lewis Greenway construction. What's happening right now is the riders are suffering from having inconsistent uh route around this detour. There are no signs posted regarding the detour on Dexter. And uh I would suggest that we get signs three stops before and three stops after because that is the width of the area that the drivers are deviating from the detour that was given to every driver in a memo. I confirmed that with one of the drivers that yes, they did get a memo, and only some of them are actually going to Doris, which is the street before the detour. Most of them are all coming out on Bork, Bork, Bjork, Burke, whatever you want to call it. And it's uh we've got the entrance going southbound on Burke is working. Exiting, sometimes they go to doors, sometimes they'll go to open, sometimes they'll go to uh evolved circles, sometimes they'll just I I don't even have a uh pattern for it. Every driver's got their own way they're doing it. I would suggest that we get a supervisory vehicle out there so that there's a actually a place marker and maybe a person there that they gotta actually see what's going on with these drivers. Uh I did miss I I was an hour late for work one day because the I looked to my right and there was the bus down the street from me. Um I do also want to put in a word here regarding the downzoning of Kronos uh facility in district three. It needs to be reduced, and we also need to look at the uh stormwater requirements on that as well, because the dust is a problem. Mr. Boyle, thank you very much. Do myself to member Gabriel Santiago Romero's staff. If you could please we will line item the D dot issue, and Mr. Boyle, what line number was that? What bus line, but number? Yeah, this is 16. Uh the Dexter role. 16. If we could line item um bus line, if we could line item for committee next week, the challenges around bus line number 16 and get feedback from the from D dot on that on those challenges. Yes, Mr. Chair. I'll make it thank you very much. The public would like to say thank you. Yeah, sir. Thank you. All right. Uh Mr. Munsonski, you're next. All right, good morning.
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