OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Public Health and Safety Committee Meeting - January 12, 2026

City Council — Monday, January 12, 2026
BodyDetroit, Michigan
SessionCity Council
DateMonday, January 12, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 46:33

Transcript — Verbatim
0:00

Now I'd like to call to order our public health and safety standing committee for today, Monday, January 12th, 2026.

0:07

Me, the clerk, please call the roll.

0:09

Councilmember Gabriela Santiago Romero.

0:11

Present.

0:12

Councilmember Dinsdale and Time McCampbell.

0:14

Present.

0:14

Councilmember Mary Waters.

0:16

Present.

0:17

I'm sure you have a call on present.

0:18

Thank you, Madam Clerk.

0:20

Given a call, we'll go right into the agenda for today.

0:23

We did receive our minutes from our last session.

0:25

If there's a motion to approve.

0:28

Motion.

0:29

Hearing no objections, our minutes from our last session will be approved.

0:33

For anyone listening and wondering where that information is, you're always able to look at that at the city websites.

0:41

The documents are linked on the dates of the meetings.

0:46

So just a reminder.

0:48

Moving us along to chair remarks.

0:50

Happy New Year, everyone.

0:51

This is the start of a new term.

0:52

Looking forward to serving once again with my colleagues, uh returning and new.

0:57

Um, and today's agenda will be rather short.

1:00

Uh so happy to provide two minutes for public comments.

1:04

We'll go into public comment, general public comments now.

1:08

For folks that are here in person, please raise your hands if you are making public comments.

1:13

I see Mr.

1:14

Foster, Mr.

1:14

Cunningham, are you here for public comments?

1:17

All right, so we got two here in person.

1:19

I'll cut off public comment in two minutes.

1:22

So at 10.05, um, we will cut off public comments until then we'll get started with the folks that we have here in person.

1:29

We will begin first with Mr.

1:30

Foster.

1:31

I saw your hands up first, followed by Brother Cunningham.

1:35

There are two minutes on the screen.

1:39

And whenever you're ready, Mr.

1:41

Foster, you can go ahead and begin.

1:43

Um good morning through the chair.

1:46

Just wanted to uh briefly speak.

1:49

Um like that.

1:52

Congratulations, I guess moving forward.

1:55

I did watch the um investure, and I think that it's important to hold you all accountable and to a standard that both the Board of Police Commissioners, the city council, and the mayor raised their hand and swore to God that they will stand by and support the constitution of the country and of the state.

2:20

Those things have not been going on.

2:22

And so we want equality here.

2:25

You're not lying to the people, you're lying to whoever your spiritual provider is.

2:30

Okay.

2:31

And so I just want people to go back and rewind and watch it for themselves, the process of you all our leaders raising your hand and making that pledge.

2:41

Secondly, while you guys boast about voting and things, and I'm happy about the election.

2:47

I think it's important to understand that it was a 19% voter turnout.

2:51

I wore black purposely today for the 81% of the people who have not been heard.

2:58

And so 77% of 19% is roughly 15% of the people here.

3:05

Okay, so just mathematics here.

3:07

And so with the propaganda, we don't want this propaganda moving forward.

3:11

We want real actual results.

3:14

Um, I appreciate you all listening and thanks.

3:17

Um I personally um have moved on a lot.

3:20

I have other things to be doing.

3:22

But I did want to come down and speak to what it is that I've seen, the oath of office that you all take and are obligated to be um accountable to the consequences for violating oath of office, those back doors and uh and meetings that go on that it's not to the public are consequences of violating oath of office.

3:43

We want to hold you all to your office.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Public Comment███████████████████████████████████████39%
Engineering And Infrastructure███████████████████████████27%
Public Transportation████████8%
Public Health████████8%
Procedural██████6%
Public Safety████4%
Human Trafficking███3%
Immigration███3%
Public Works██2%
Summary of Proceedings

Public Health and Safety Committee Meeting - January 12, 2026

The Public Health and Safety Standing Committee convened to begin a new term, reviewing minutes from the previous session and addressing public concerns regarding public safety, transit, and community accountability. The meeting featured significant public testimony focused on ICE activities, bus system reliability, and housing issues, followed by routine administrative approvals regarding dangerous buildings and right-of-way petitions.

Consent Calendar

  • Minutes from the last session were reviewed and approved without objection.
  • Two items (6.1 and 6.2) regarding "Dangerous Buildings findings and orders" for November 21 and December 12, respectively, were received and filed.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • Mr. Foster: Expressed full support for holding the Board of Police Commissioners, City Council, and Mayor accountable to the oath of office. He opposed the perceived lack of constitutional adherence by leadership and criticized low voter turnout (19%) as a failure to represent 81% of constituents. He demanded an end to "propaganda" and called for accountability regarding alleged back-door meetings.
  • Brother Cunningham: Expressed strong opposition to the current Detroit Department of Transportation (DDOT) service levels, characterizing the situation as "gentrification on steroids" due to poor bus cleanliness, lateness, and the impact on low-income and minority residents. He argued that infrastructure investments like the Q-Line are prioritized over the needs of "natives." He requested that the council push for free transit pilots.
  • Caller ending in 169: Expressed full support for Brother Cunningham, invoking Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s philosophy to advocate for love over hate regarding public transit improvements.
  • Jadante Smith: Expressed support for downzoning the Kronos site in District 3. He voiced concern regarding the dire homeless shelter and housing situation, opposed the use of eminent domain for solar farms, and supported initiatives to increase entry-level jobs in skill trades. He expressed strong opposition to ICE activities within neighborhoods, describing the organization as "terrorist." He praised Councilmember Santiago Romero's resolution against ICE and supported local business efforts like Cure Auto Insurance.
  • William M. Davis: Expressed concern regarding lease costs for "100 Mac" and utility fees at the health department. He advocated for regular health assessments and called for transparency regarding ICE agent identification, suggesting that face-covering agents create safety risks. He questioned transparency in city leases.
  • **Caller

Meeting Transcript

Now I'd like to call to order our public health and safety standing committee for today, Monday, January 12th, 2026. Me, the clerk, please call the roll. Councilmember Gabriela Santiago Romero. Present. Councilmember Dinsdale and Time McCampbell. Present. Councilmember Mary Waters. Present. I'm sure you have a call on present. Thank you, Madam Clerk. Given a call, we'll go right into the agenda for today. We did receive our minutes from our last session. If there's a motion to approve. Motion. Hearing no objections, our minutes from our last session will be approved. For anyone listening and wondering where that information is, you're always able to look at that at the city websites. The documents are linked on the dates of the meetings. So just a reminder. Moving us along to chair remarks. Happy New Year, everyone. This is the start of a new term. Looking forward to serving once again with my colleagues, uh returning and new. Um, and today's agenda will be rather short. Uh so happy to provide two minutes for public comments. We'll go into public comment, general public comments now. For folks that are here in person, please raise your hands if you are making public comments. I see Mr. Foster, Mr. Cunningham, are you here for public comments? All right, so we got two here in person. I'll cut off public comment in two minutes. So at 10.05, um, we will cut off public comments until then we'll get started with the folks that we have here in person. We will begin first with Mr. Foster. I saw your hands up first, followed by Brother Cunningham. There are two minutes on the screen. And whenever you're ready, Mr. Foster, you can go ahead and begin. Um good morning through the chair. Just wanted to uh briefly speak. Um like that. Congratulations, I guess moving forward. I did watch the um investure, and I think that it's important to hold you all accountable and to a standard that both the Board of Police Commissioners, the city council, and the mayor raised their hand and swore to God that they will stand by and support the constitution of the country and of the state. Those things have not been going on. And so we want equality here. You're not lying to the people, you're lying to whoever your spiritual provider is. Okay. And so I just want people to go back and rewind and watch it for themselves, the process of you all our leaders raising your hand and making that pledge. Secondly, while you guys boast about voting and things, and I'm happy about the election. I think it's important to understand that it was a 19% voter turnout.

SUMMARIZED BY OPENPUBLICA AI
TRANSCRIPT VIA PUBLIC VIDEO
openpublica.com