The expanded budget finance and audit standing committee for today.

Um Friday, it is Friday, March 27, 2026.

Madam Clerk, good morning.

Morning.

You please call the roll.

Sure.

Councilmember Scott Benson.

Councilmember Letitia Johnson.

President.

Councilmember Denzel McCampbell.

Member McCamp will be uh tardees on this one.

Okay, the clerk will know.

Councilmember Reneta Miller.

Uh Member Miller is submitted a memo indicating that she will be absent today, so her absence is excused.

Okay.

Councilmember Gabriela Santiago Romero.

Present.

Councilmember Mary Waters.

President.

Councilmember Andrew Whitfield Callaway.

Council President Pro Tim Colman.

Yeah.

Council President James Tate.

Mr.

Chair, we have quorum.

Thank you.

We have a quorum, which means we're now in session.

We'd like to call the mayor's office forward for their budget hearing.

I told you already.

I believe Chief Staff is gonna be at the helm of this particular budget hearing.

Why don't you uh introduce yourself and the team and the floor is yours to begin.

Absolutely.

Uh to the chair, David Bowser, Chief of Staff, uh to the Mayor.

Good morning through the chair, Brian Peckenpah, Director of the Department of Neighborhoods.

Good morning.

Tricia Stein, Senior Director of Strategic Initiatives for Mayor Sheffield.

So here to morning to present the mayor's office budget.

So we do have a presentation here.

Um next slide.

So wanted to make the point that the mayor's office budget and the positions associated with it reflect the mayor's uh priorities, reflect the changes that the mayor's off that the mayor has been mandated by Detroit residents to sort of push forward in the city of Detroit.

Uh what I wanted to do with this presentation is walk you through essentially the org chart as it relates to the budget so you all can understand exactly who is funded, what they are um kind of charged to do, and then what capacities sit under them as well.

One of the things we want to make sure that we're doing is reducing silos and being trans very transparent about who to contact for what particular issues that you all may have.

And so it's going to bode well for us to understand exactly what positions do what and sort of what the missions and the charges are.

So in general, mayor's office staff are charged with prioritizing collaboration with as many stakeholders as possible, from youth to seniors, small business startups to regional partnership groups and beyond uh to develop holistic solutions and sustainable strategies that move Detroit forward.

Um mayor's office staff or mayor's office principals are here to build and lead coalitions, strategize at a high level, and reframe the way essentially that Detroit residents experience city government.

Um the mayor's office objectives per the mayor are to ensure equity and improve quality of life for all Detroit residents.

And so as we sort of move forward through the slideshow when to kind of frame this a bit.

Any position that has sort of yellow verbiage is directly funded by the mayor's office.

Um but I'll put the entire org chart under the individuals there to let you know what they oversee.

If there are individuals or capacities that are not in yellow, that means that they are funded through a different source, but this is a capacity that the mayor's office oversees.

So going through each one here, and uh we're going to kind of do this at a high level and then obviously welcome your questions.

Um Deputy Mayor is charged with leading local, regional, and federal partnerships, designing and implementing uh major reforms and ensuring that the mayor's key objectives are solidified as lasting policies uh that not only impact Detroit today but impact Detroit's in the future.

There is a large build-out around um partnership under the under the deputy mayor.

There's a labor liaison to ensure that we are in constant contact with our labor partners.

There's a director of state government affairs to make sure that we are directly connected in with what's happening in Lansing so that we can uh organize and push together uh strategies to improve the city.

Regional partnerships is a sound if you don't mind, Chief, just give us some names of these top-level individuals.

Uh, have those as well, please.

Absolutely.

Yep.

Labor liaison is Marlowe Sean Franklin.

Uh Director of State Government Affairs is uh Fred Durhaw.

Uh Director of Regional Partnerships is uh Larissa Richardson.

This is a this is a um position that is charged with increasing our level of connectivity with our suburb, our suburbs, with our counties, uh, with other regional sort of transit, other regional level partnerships, so that we can sort of make sure that we're all moving in the same direction together.

Uh Director of Federal Government Affairs is Mike Klotz.

He is making sure that we are aligned uh in terms of funding in terms of policy developments on the federal level, and media and press relations is John Roach.

One of information, Mr.

Chair.

Um Member Benson.

Director of Regional Partnerships is who again?

Larissa Richardson.

Thank you.

Thank you.

You may proceed.

Next slide.

So my scope, uh, the mayor has charged me with aligning the administration around responsive and results-driven execution.

We have quite a few strategies, quite a few mandates from our residents uh in terms of process uh reform innovation, uh making sure that city services are accessible, accountable, and centered on the needs of Detroiters.

As such, um, there's a senior director of strategic initiatives under my vertical.

This is Trisha Stein, senior director of mayor's office communications, um is uh uh Jamie Campbell.

Jamie Jamie Walters, senior director of uh city communications, Vicky, um deputy director of priority uh initiative uh initiatives.

This is Paris Blessman, director of scheduling, we have director of advance as well.

Um director of city government affairs is Malik Washington, as you all know.

Uh we have a performance uh and lien team as well.

This one is not funded by the mayor's office, but this will be driving sort of the way that we reform how programs are created across the city, making sure that we are aligning uh funding sources, aligning communications, and making sure that all residents have access to programs as they're created and not as an afterthought.

Um the front desk and constituent services.

I did want to speak about this a little bit as well.

And so the way that residents interact with uh with the mayor's office in terms of front desk and calling in for services is being completely reformed right now.

We're in the process of creating points of contact for each and every department so that they can be responsible for the inquiries that are coming in through our phone lines or through our in-person uh sort of walk-up at the 11th floor.

Um, and so we've also asked for points of contact from your offices as well so that we can make sure that we're all on the same page around uh answering the questions that come in to through constituents.

Eventually, this will morph into a larger initiative to put um all city uh programs and departments under one sort of intake system uh so that you can just call one number or reach out to one source to get any and all services.

So this front desk reframe is going to set a framework for a larger one-stop shop citywide approach.

So just so for clarification, uh, we got the uh director of city government affairs, who's the uh performance improvement lean representative.

So right now we have a deputy director, John Martinez.

One more member Benson, hold on one second, and then also front desk constituent services.

So this is led by Shanitha Moore.

Member Benson.

The number five, but through yourself, the number five underneath front desk, what are those numbers mean?

These are the number of people on the team that is actually funded directly by the mayor's office.

Thank you.

On the deputy mayor's slide, that includes the deputy mayor and an administrative assistant that's connected.

Yes, ma'am.

You may proceed.

Absolutely.

Next slide.

So this is an extremely important vertical to talk about in terms of how the mayor is pushing out a reframing of city services, and this is the chief operating officer capacity.

As you see, it is a robust capacity.

The org chart uh has multiple different departments under it.

The COO vertical has always been a robust one, but under this particular administration, uh the city services are going to be realigned under this particular capacity.

The vision is to create a seamless resident-centered experience across all city services from basic infrastructure to bill pay to zoning and permitting.

So there's a view here.

Well, if you go and pay a water bill, you'll actually have access, for example, to multiple different health human services and other resources that you need.

We do have data around where you live in terms of what needs you more than likely have.

And so there will be a needs assessment created where you, if you go and access the services, you'll be asked for additional needs in your household based on information we already have.

And our COO Winnie Lau is leading up uh that that vertical, and she's here today to answer questions as well.

Next slide.

This is an extremely important, another extremely important new vertical.

And so what uh the mayor has done is in reframing city government, we have condensed uh roles, we have eliminated roles in order to add other roles that more uh appropriately meet the mayor's directives.

This one is completely new.

The chief of health, human services, and poverty solutions, which is Dr.

Luke Schaefer.

Uh, Dr.

Luke has been charged with prioritizing poverty alleviation across the entire city of Detroit.

Um this is a large charge.

It is not um certainly uh sort of centered on this one vertical.

It is a position that's going to work across the entire administration to make sure that we are creating policies, programs, and approaches to reduce the root causes of poverty in the city of Detroit.

So the vision is to deliver an integrated residence-centered approach to meet residents where they are and increase well-being and economic mobility.

Under this particular vertical, uh, is the Office of Immigrant Affairs and Economic Inclusion as a standalone entity.

Uh, the Detroit Health Department and the department, the new Department of Human, Homeless, and Family Services that we have proposed, and that we will go into detail uh about in the next budget here.

Next slide.

This next vertical uh is a condensed version of what has existed in the past.

It is the chief of housing planning, workforce, and economic development.

This is where the large-scale economic development for the city of Detroit lives.

Uh, your planning, your relationship with Detroit uh uh with DEGC, your workforce relationship.

The point is to blend and braid and make sure that workforce is integrated in how the city moves forward.

It cannot uh be separate per our mayor.

We have to make sure that residents are involved in terms of workforce and how the city develops and how they inform the development of the city.

And so the vision is to foster an equitable development that is seen and felt in every single neighborhood, which is a little bit of what we talked about and touched on yesterday, uh, and that creates clear pathways to employment and upper mobility.

Again, this also factors into our poverty alleviation approach.

We have to make sure that as a city develops, Detroiters have access to the jobs um that are created from that process.

And we have uh interim chief here, Brittany Hoskew, uh, who is kind of blending and braiding again this this very large portfolio uh to make sure that all these entities are uh moving and rolling in the same direction per the mayor.

The Office of Workforce Development is another uh extremely important entity here, uh headed up by Terry Weems.

Again, this is where a majority of our economic mobility work will uh will take place as we make sure that Detroit is have access to employment and that we reach further upstream to our youth to make sure that they have jobs early and often.

Um and so again, Terry Williams is the is heading up this capacity.

The vision is to build a workforce system that expands access to economic mobility and supports sustained and long-term career growth for Detroiters.

Um the chief of neighborhood economic development and small business.

This is another completely new capacity that highlights the mayor's focus on neighborhoods.

Um the neighbor the the mayor ran on a platform that um ensured that neighborhoods would fill the development and the resurgence of Detroit.

Uh we wanted to make sure, and she wanted to make sure that this was not just verbiage that we were actually integrating this focus within the org chart.

So now that we have a a principal who is responsible for making sure that neighborhoods fill the development and receive the development.

So as we were talking about yesterday, this is where the sort of neighborhood level strategies live in terms of how to ensure that we are deploying tools specific to every neighborhood that needs development.

Under this vertical is a deputy chief of neighborhood economic development that has the neighborhood economic development strategy, Joe Lewis Greenway Strategy, and the strategic neighborhood fund, which will be sort of reframed, but that lives under this vertical here.

The deputy chief of business innovation and emergency emerging industries is uh has the mobility innovation and economic transformation capacities under there, and then the Office of Small Business Affairs and Economic Opportunity is ensuring that small businesses are uh centered in the neighborhood economic development process as well.

So this is a braided effort, is a new area in the administration to center neighborhood development and how small businesses will add to that uh process over time.

And also want to highlight the neighborhood affairs um uh vertical that the mayor has newly recreated as well.

So prior, the department of neighborhoods was an entity that reported directly to the mayor's office.

What this mayor wanted to do was make sure that there was a broader approach to understanding the specific needs of very particular uh populations throughout Detroit.

So an office of senior citizen affairs was created, uh, an office of youth affairs was created, uh, an office of neighborhood and community safety was created as well to make sure that we are addressing uh violence as a public health issue.

Um, this was all put under a new chief of neighborhood affairs so that we can have neighborhood approaches to these issues.

Uh, we'll talk a little bit more about what these particular entities do, but there's also a faith-based component where we are broadening our outreach to our uh faith-based institutions, making sure that they are being empowered uh, for example, to enact development in their areas, and the department of neighborhood is also being retooled to be much more accessible to residents and getting the messaging out around what's available and making sure that residents are involved in how the city develops as well.

So the chief of neighborhood affairs oversees the population specific offices that the mayor has created uh just to make sure that we we are uh understanding the needs of residents and that we're getting them residents the information they need to participate uh in the city's growth.

Uh and the vision overall is to build a stronger, more connected uh community and ensuring that every special population, every block is engaged and feels heard, supported and positioned to thrive.

I did want to talk a little bit more about neighborhood affairs because it does hold a bulk of the newer capacities in the city, and wanted to hand it over to Brian Peck and Paul to do so.

Thank you, Chief Bowser.

And through the chair, I'd like to touch on the population specific uh areas.

Starting first with uh Department of Neighborhoods Director, that is my current role, and uh the Department of Neighborhoods is very focused on community engagement and uh civil involvement uh within the city of Detroit.

And so it includes the director, deputy director, district managers, one in each district, and deputy district managers, one in each district, and district business liaisons which are funded by the DEGC.

Uh we partner with them and they meet with us weekly uh as we meet with our district managers and then community resource managers.

Next slide, please.

So again, the department of neighborhoods is focused on strengthening community engagement and civic involvement.

And we're doing this by balancing what the department of neighborhoods has done as well as well as what we can enhance uh going forward.

Along with the departments and the city departments and expand opportunities.

Uh, one of the things we want to do is expand uh block clubs, so we want to do more matchmaking with uh current block club leaders that can mentor new block clubs, as well as matchmake with faith-based and nonprofit organizations so they can have spaces to meet, because that will provide sustainability for the block club to have an actual space to meet in the neighborhoods.

In addition, by expanding our involvement in the neighborhoods, we have deliberate office hours.

Now, as of February, Department of Neighborhoods has office hours Mondays and Fridays, nine to five, and Wednesdays, two to six.

And so those office hours are at seven recenter locations, and we can provide that uh those locations to you.

As well as community navigators, we want to make sure that when uh folks come into the office, residents or businesses, nonprofits, and they want to access city programs that are the district managers and deputy district managers are trained to provide that access directly without having to do referrals.

In addition, we are looking at installing uh hubs that can access services in the neighborhoods, 12 to 15 hubs, and we know that some other departments have mentioned those during budget hearings.

Next slide, please.

And these are all, as Chief Bowser said, these are all groups within the neighborhood affairs that are aligned to population and engaging with the community.

And this next one is the new Office of Neighborhood and Community Safety.

And their primary goal is to look at data, um, quantitative and qualitative data in the neighborhoods, and go through prevention programs through CVI and other measures to reduce violence in the neighborhoods.

So we're in lockstep with the community uh neighborhood and community safety group, which is under the director, senior director to ferry brands.

Next slide, please.

And then the Office of Senior Affairs, this is an initiative that Madam Mayor announced early on in her administration, and so one of the primary duties is to uh improve compliance of senior buildings.

There are 91 senior buildings in the city of Detroit, and our neighborhood or excuse me, our senior advocates have been very active in visiting those buildings, establishing relationships, identifying tenant councils in those buildings, and so far they have been in all but four of the 91 buildings since mid-January.

So they're finishing that up in the next week or so to establish all the relationships and also identify who has tenant councils.

So we have identified that there are uh 14 tenant councils in those 91 buildings, and so our goal through senior advocates and senior affairs is to increase that number of tenant councils because those tenant councils are key to advocating for services and engagement within those senior buildings, representing those tenants in each building.

In addition, um Ms.

Stein will talk about the senior fresh food program that's through the Office of Sustainability and Office of Senior Affairs is in lockstep and collaborative on that program.

And then faith-based initiatives.

Next slide, thank you.

Um we're looking at faith-based initiatives as chief of staff said a little bit differently.

We want to maximize and leverage the leadership of faith-based leaders in the neighborhoods.

They have active footprint, um, they have resources property.

So we want to leverage those assets through neighborhood revitalization and targeted areas and cooperation and collaboration with the faith-based community.

Also, we know the drainage charge is an issue.

So we've met with uh numerous times with Director Gary Brown regarding the drainage charge of faith-based organizations.

So one of the areas we are looking at is dedicated funding through a grant or philanthropic source to reduce the drainage charges by repurposing underutilized parking lots that cause that drainage charge to exist for those properties.

In addition, we have concierge services that we're offering through that faith-based initiative, which is under director uh Pastor Richard White.

And then our youth and education team, again, a new office that's under Dr.

Chanel Hampton, as well as uh youth affairs director, Joan Howard.

And they are ensuring that young people between the ages of zero to twenty-six have a voice in the administration and have access to services as well as outside and inside programs from school and throughout their neighborhood.

And I'll turn it over to Ms.

Stein to go over her slides.

Right, good morning again.

And through the chair, I'm uh here to share with you the um sustainability efforts uh that uh you can go to the next slide, Malik.

Thanks.

Uh so uh just sustainable sustainability, as we've talked about before, uh, and that we're in front of this honorable body during budget season is really a coordinated effort.

Uh it does uh take the direction and priorities from the mayor, but it is a cross-departmental, which is why um I lead it uh as on behalf of the mayor's office and under the direction of the chief of staff, and then um ensure that it is not just in one department in one unit, it is across everyone has priorities and goals and dedicated individuals that uh are uh living great in this every day, and we work with external partners as well, and we say with the Green Task Force, uh, that I'm sure that uh the chair will have um some good questions for me uh coming up as he always does.

Uh but but sustainability really is about building healthy and safe neighborhoods and uh preparing for extreme weather, uh improving the quality of life uh for our residents, and uh it's part of uh Mayor Sheffield's strategic uh vision.

Go ahead and go to the next slide.

I'll share with you some of the um accomplishments from the last fiscal year.

So, in part of the Detroit climate strategy, there are four priorities.

It's transitioning to clean energy, uh increasing sustainable uh mobility, uh accelerating energy efficiency and reducing waste and priority prioritizing vulnerable residents.

So some of the things that we've accomplished uh this fiscal year uh that we're that uh we're in is 88 homes as part of our solar neighborhood initiative have completed their energy upgrades.

Uh there'd be 250 that are completed uh across the 165 acres uh that uh are going to be developed uh for solar and and have clean energy here in the city.

Uh the impact areas surrounding them, it's 250 homes.

That's a 4.8 million dollar investment uh that our developers are are uh putting in the energy efficiency with new roofs, new windows, and uh from the residents, they have reported to us that on average it's a 35 to 45 dollar uh energy savings uh per month that they've seen so far with these upgrades.

Uh in addition to those 88, 52 homes are in process.

We are on track to complete all of those uh upgrades in this this calendar year, so it'll bleed over the fiscal years.

Uh also um we've uh continue our fleet transition.

Uh we have 135 uh hybrid vehicles.

Uh this is the light duty vehicles.

Also um there we've had uh D Dot has also uh been able to uh take on four everything okay, President Tate?

You know, we were uh adjusting the audio.

Okay, great.

Uh just want to make sure that ever that you can hear me okay.

Uh so D dot also is part of the fleet transition.

So um I know this has been a long time coming, and and Director Kramer also shared this last week during his budget, but I think it's worth lifting up again.

Four 45 new hybrid buses have been delivered, four electric buses, and they are absolutely a part of this uh transition uh to uh sustainable uh mobility.

Uh the the pilot uh composting uh uh program was also launched uh in this fiscal year.

And uh currently the Detroit People's Food Co-op is the the drop-off location, and um I'll talk a little bit about our aspirational goals in FY27.

But uh 8,500 pounds of food waste uh have been diverted, uh part of that composting uh pilot program, and we feel like that is is going well.

Um then um the resilience hubs.

So this is working with partner organizations uh like the East Side Community Network, Georgia Street Community House, uh AB Ford, uh so we've got uh resilience hubs and having this be a state, uh excuse me, a citywide uh uh network where there can be electricity and there can be um uh power when there is power outage for for medication and for um uh safety for folks to go to.

So we're we're embedding these again, working with um our our rec centers and then also community partners to make sure that this is a very comprehensive network uh to prepare for extreme weather and and so uh uh residents have places to go and then safely storage uh for their medicine and other um life-saving uh materials.

Uh let's see a few others that I want to lift up.

Uh you can go to the next slide is the uh food initiative.

I know the mayor shared with us during her budget uh hearing.

She was able to go visit one of the seven locations uh in uh the the city uh earlier this month, so we put a picture in there so you can see what it actually looks like.

Uh we this is something that we're testing out this this fiscal year.

So seven of them, uh seven senior centers uh have uh fresh food delivered, and the seniors are able to uh come and collect that food, and um it's operating for uh 16 weeks.

We're serving about 700 uh seniors a week.

Our goal for the next fiscal year is to take this citywide, expand it to 25 or expand it's still a citywide, but expand it to 25 senior centers and um 2500 uh seniors served.

So we feel like this is also something that is worth celebrating and lifting up and um expanding.

Uh okay, last slide for me is to really talk about where we're going in 27.

Uh so we want to uh continue the the fleet uh conversion, and I know that there's dollars in the FY27 budget to be able to uh purchase more vehicles, and it is our goal to have uh hybrid uh vehicles and and to ensure that we are being sustainable and being uh conscious of the options uh for our own municipal fleet, also our municipal buildings.

Uh, we've been doing some robust energy efficiency and doing some upgrades with uh smart lighting and smart uh heating and cooling.

We will continue to do that and take advantage of rebates and initiatives uh that are available uh from the state uh and our uh energy partners.

Uh also we will I also want to talk about the the data that we have collected.

There are 75 air monitors all across the city.

So I don't know if folks have have seen them, but I we will um certainly share the link.

Seven of those are our city uh air monitors, and this dashboard went live earlier this year.

It it's not in your deck.

I didn't really I didn't realize it until I started it that it's not in your deck, so we'll share the link.

Um I know, I know, uh but I wanted to share it.

So we're gonna share the link.

So it's a real, it's a real-time uh dashboard of our seven air monitors that um that uh show the air quality.

So what we've done at the Office of Sustainability is we've we've got that data that we have um internalized and integrated with the additional air monitors that Wayne County has a number of them in the city, Eagle has a number of them, and so 75 of them have all now been integrated, and we are gonna add those to the dashboard.

We're gonna do a quality data index, okay, community data index, uh, and push out uh that information real time.

Work with our health director, as we also talked about last Friday, is Health in All Policies is the direction of Mayor Sheffield and ensure that uh there are alerts and there are notifications uh for individuals because air quality is a huge issue in the city of Detroit, particularly for those that suffer asthma, so that we can push out real-time data and make sure that folks can make informed decisions and also work with um licensing and permitting and truck routes and using that data uh here at the city, not only externally for residents but internally to make our decisions.

So we're very excited that this year that we've been able to internalize and integrate that data, and then we'll start pushing it out and using it for smart decision making.

And I will turn it back to oh wait, one more.

I'm so sorry.

There's so much to show off about this.

Uh and uh now that Member Benson walked back in.

I definitely want to talk about the zero waste plan.

So DPW has worked um very hard with the community groups and worked across the city to do zero waste plans to reduce waste in communities.

And so that work is completed uh and is just wrapping up.

And so the next fiscal year our goal is to then push that out and make sure it's publicly available and that we're able to monitor that.

Uh, but it is really uh a cross-departmental and uh the community that we worked with the zero waste plan.

So now I'm done.

Thank you.

Um and then last few slides here talking about a couple of uh mayor's office strategic initiatives.

One is one to get a very high-level overview of an initiative um to reduce uh youth violence uh over the summer through sort of a holistic um resource uh and engagement uh initiative uh citywide.

And so we'll have more information about Occupy the summer moving forward, but the city will deploy a robust uh community and collaborative vehicle to want to make sure that we have um uh kind of a public health, public safety sort of wraparound services approach uh to reducing violence in the summertime.

Uh and then wanted to kind of go into detail about SERB Detroit, Halloween to D and Motor City Makeover, which are marquee initiatives.

Uh, I think Tony Stoball may be on to talk about those initiatives.

We will promote her if she is on.

I see Tony Stoble.

Wow.

Good uh can you all hear me?

Yes, ma'am.

Good morning.

Please introduce yourself and the floor is yours.

Good morning.

Uh through the chair, Tony Stobaugh uh special projects and volunteer coordinator.

Um so yes, uh, thank you for the opportunity to share a little bit about SART Detroit.

Um so we started out as the mayor's uh uh mayor's office initiative to connect residents and block clubs and groups to a resource of volunteers.

Um, and through these volunteer efforts, we are able to support our block flow and neighborhood leadership um through beautification and cleanup uh cleanup efforts.

And so um we also we engage over 800 volunteers annually, um, and through the support of council, we have been able to grow and operate the South Detroit tool library, but we are able to further assist our neighbor uh the neighborhoods and residents across the city um in a bigger way to provide the actual tools and resources to do more critical work and beautification in their neighborhoods.

Um and also supporting our most vulnerable residents in the city, so seniors and disabled residents are able to get smaller mobile services and looking to do um and also on occasion also the uh lawn cutting as well.

Um and then two of our favorite initiatives we have Halloween D, which is an opportunity for us to create a safe and fun way to um uh celebrate Halloween.

Through that, we activate and partner with our Detroit Police Department, Detroit Fire Department, and every Rex uh and every Rex recreation center, um, and we provide fun opportunities for families to engage and uh engage and come together.

Um, and through that we um have over 20,000 uh residents that come out to attend these each of these events, um, over a million pieces of candy, so a lot of fun um and festive uh activities through uh through Halloween and the D.

Um and then also with Motor City Makeover, which again uh this mayor, we are looking to highlight and extend this program to 365, really make it robust again, supporting our residents and neighborhoods across the city, all seven districts um with cleanup initiatives.

And so we kick this off every May and by district it is uh we provide the cleanup services and we support those organizations doing projects with the necessary tools and items they need to uh do their projects, and we get a ton of support over 600 community-led projects and over 1200 volunteers.

Um, and we partner with um different organizations and businesses um and corporate community to support this opportunity.

Thank you, Tony.

Uh thank you.

Um in conclusion, uh just to recap the mayor's office uh or organization chart reflects the values, reflect reflects the strategies and the directives of the mayor herself.

Um it has been sort of formed according to the areas that uh the mayor is prioritizing, and so the individuals who are funded by the mayor's office are responsible for deploying those strategies and ensuring that we have deliverables and that we are reaching out and making sure that uh community members are also uh integrated within our process to move the city forward.

And so looking forward to answering your questions uh and also working with you all uh to do this work.

Thank you.

Thank you, and thank you for the presentation.

We will start with questions with a member Callaway.

Thank you, Mr.

Chair, and good morning, everyone.

Good morning.

I just submit my questions on March the 14th.

Colleagues, I'm I'm sorry, if we can make sure we have the mic a little closer because they were hear me now.

Okay, can you all hear me now?

Okay, yes, ma'am.

All right, good.

Thank you, Mr.

Chair, and good morning, everyone.

Um, I did submit some questions on March the 14th.

Are you are are you in receipt of those questions?

They went to Malik Washington.

Are we in receipt of those questions?

Through the chair, yes, ma'am.

Through the chair, yes, we are in receipt, and you should be receiving those responses very shortly.

Okay, thank you so much, Mr.

Washington.

All right, um, I'll be real brief.

Uh some neighborhoods continue to experience long-standing issues such as illegal dumping, blight, and infrastructure concerns.

How is the administration identifying these recurring problems areas, these recurring problem areas and coordinating departments to ensure those issues are resolved rather than repeatedly addressed temporarily through the chair to council member Calloway?

Thank you for that question.

Um, this work uh rests with our uh our COO, and so I'll hand it off to Winnie Lyle to answer.

Thank you, sir.

Hi, good morning.

Um, I think part of this is making sure that we have visibility and then creating uh the necessary systems and structures and workflow behind it to ensure there is responsiveness, there is actual uh uh you know resolution, and then there is actual uh you know, visibility into that resolution.

Um right now I think there's very sort of disconnected and disparate um uh approaches to that, and my job here is to make sure that we have a more unified approach on those things.

Okay.

Thank you for that through the chair.

Um, I was in Hobulk in New Jersey um not so long ago, and it's a very clean city, and they have signs up regarding littering, illegal dumping.

We don't have so many signs up, they're just sporadically peppered across the city.

Through the chair to you, Miss Is it Miss Lyle?

Well, how can we do better with respect to letting people know if you come into our city and you illegally dump or you live in the city and you illegally dump, or if you litter these are the penalties?

How do we do a better job of that?

Because right now, I hardly ever see any signs about littering or illegal dumping.

Uh yeah, and that is a great suggestion, and we will do um our our due diligence and research on that.

Um, having been four weeks in, um, I don't know that I have all the details to provide you with uh a full answer there, but we will certainly uh circle back and make sure that we do the appropriate due diligence and work with the teams to get you know a solution out there.

Member Calloway, before you um CO Lau, if you can please put turn that mic in your direction, please that would be helpful.

Thanks.

Much better.

Yes.

Um, do I need to repeat it again?

On the floor remains yours.

Oh, you you didn't hear the response.

No, I I responded.

I think you know, having been four weeks into the the administration here, um, I think it's a great suggestion.

Um, those are things that we are gonna do some due diligence on, and we'll make sure to to circle back on that.

Thank you.

Okay, thank you so much.

And I have already submitted my questions.

Is this the opportune time, Mr.

Chair, to make a motion?

Yes, whenever any members have the floor, you may move forward motion.

Thank you.

Thank you to all your responses.

Um, and thank you, Mr.

Malik Washington, for making sure that we get the answers to the other ones that we submitted on March the 14th.

For the closing, I'm gonna put it in both because this might need some funding, and it might require funding through DPW's budget.

I am not sure.

But I'm going to put in the um closing resolution and executive session that we have signs installed across this city regarding littering, what the penalties are, and legal dumping, and what the penalties are, especially in those areas that um are regularly illegally dumped on.

And I can give you a few in district two.

It's just it's just awful.

So that is my closing resolution motion and my executive session motion that we have signs installed regarding littering and illegal dumping throughout the city and what the penalties are.

There's a motion on the floor, colleagues.

Um with discussion, member Johnson.

Thank you, Mr.

Chair.

Um, Member Callaway, I believe yesterday we added into executive session and the closing resolution a litter campaign.

Can we fold that into that?

Um let me give that some thought.

Let me give that some thought because I don't know where you what your intentions were through the chair with yours, but this is my intent.

It's singularly focused.

So let me give that some thought.

So through you, Mr.

Chair, to Member Callaway, I thought we all said it was a um something on behalf of the council because we all had ideas on how to address it.

Okay.

All right, let me give that some thought.

Um, Mr.

Chair, that is my motion.

Thank you.

Member McCampbell with further discussion.

Uh for uh I would just like to join on this.

All right.

There's a motion on the floor, colleagues.

Any objection?

See none, that action shall be taken, noting Mr.

Corley, that member McCampbell would like to join on that particular motion.

Thank you, Mr.

Chair.

All right, thank you.

Uh member Johnson.

Thank you, Mr.

Chair.

Um, thank you all so much for the presentation.

I will uh say this would have been wonderful for this to have been our first budget hearing after the mayor presented, because with all of the changes, um, it would have been nice for us to know how we're looking to move forward as a city, uh, to know who's who.

Um, so I did just want to say that initially.

So as I look at the um presentation that was provided to us, I see that the planning department is under the chief of housing, planning, workforce, and economic development.

I'm interested in knowing how the planning department works with or perhaps the interim chief, Brittany Hoskew works with the COO because I believe the planning department should really help to lead the direction for all of the departments that are under the COO through through the through the chair, uh the council member Johnson.

Um I also wanted to touch on the littering question super quickly.

Um there are a couple of initiatives like Motor City Makeover that I think we can have a more robust approach to when it comes to making sure that there are penalties around not only cleanup but penalties around folks that dump.

There are also applications that we have that residents can sort of report where littering happens, where dumping happens, we just have to make sure that we have more efficiency in the follow-up process around those applications.

So there's some immediate improvements that we can make to our processes.

Um, but also there's some uh some ongoing strategies that we can sort of implement the change and make sure that there's tougher penalties too.

So wanted to put that there.

Um to council member through the chair to council member Johnson.

Um one of the qualities of this particular administration is making sure that there are no there's no error between the even though we do have verticals in the administration that there is no error between them, meaning that we are making sure that all uh principals are sitting at the table together to talk about these issues, and so we have sort of a meeting cadence that brings together different individuals across the administration, regardless of what their discipline is to tackle the issues that residents see.

And so um I'll hand it off to to Brittany here to kind of describe how her interaction and contact with the COO will be uh sort of managed moving forward.

Thank you for the question, Councilmember Johnson and through the chair, um Brittany Hoskew, interim chief for planning housing and economic development.

Um under Madam Mayor's current organizational structure, um we are aligning planning um housing workforce and economic development under a single vertical to help ensure that the community engagement that helps inform um citywide and neighborhood plans are are what informic development strategies both under uh my vertical and an interim basis, but as as well as Marlowe Rentra's vertical for neighborhood economic development.

While these departments exist in in verticals, I think it um to to um chief uh Bowser's comment um is is important and critical that the engagement that the planning department does, oftentimes in partnership with with each of your offices that identifies strategies informs the work that we're doing.

Uh COO LAO and I have already had conversations around as planning plans and economic development implements, how we then work with her vertical to marshal the resources necessary for those strategies to be effective, right?

So we look at the success of the strategic neighborhood um platform that identified three then ten neighborhoods across the city, and how we were able in partnership with a variety of departments, including council offices, mar and and the philanthropic community and private sector to marshal resources around these neighborhoods to advance economic development strategies, and I think the same is true.

And so while you will see these um these departments exist within individual verticals, um I think that the broader intent around data informed strategies, um community and engagement informed strategies that um marshal resources and um the work is is the goal of the administration.

Thank you for that.

I think it's important to ensure that the planning department is um working alongside of throughout the entire process because it's really about when implementation happens, right?

If the planning department is no longer involved, um I think then what gets implemented maybe the the community's aspect of it may be lost, it may get lost.

So and I've seen that happen um relative to Jefferson Chalmers and the flooding and you know how everything gets addressed.

So I just want to ensure that the planning department continues to work throughout the process, not just initially working with the community, engaging the community to understand how the community would like to see their neighborhood improved, but as projects come online as implementation happens, there has to be a continual connection and tie to the planning department.

Thank you for that.

And within that, Mr.

Chair, I'd like to make a motion.

Um I was thinking about adding this to the closing resolution for the Detroit Water and Sewage Department, but I will place it here now because DWSD is under uh the chief operating officer.

I would like to make a motion to strongly encourage the water department to add a closed loop system.

Um instead of removing the stop box to add to put a closed loop system there so that uh let me I'll just make the motion and then I'll explain why I'm saying that.

The the motion is for the Detroit Water and Sewage Department to um install a loop as opposed to removing the stop box.

All right, colleagues there's a motion on the floor.

Any objections?

See none, that action shall be taken.

So the reason I bring that up is because when Director Brown was before us, um he indicated that he was going to have a contract come before us to um to remove the stop box from a number of properties, vacant properties in particular, that helps to address stagnant water so we can address lay it as he's addressing the layout layout service lines.

Um but what it also does is it makes it more challenging for future development on those vacant lots.

So if there's just a loop that's put in there to prevent the water from being stagnant, when a developer comes to develop the land, they don't have to cut into the street and pay probably $25,000 to access water to tap into the water line.

Um so that is the reason that I put that there.

Thank you all.

Um my other question is relative to let's see, which one am I going to choose?

Um I'm looking at Ms.

Stein.

So I'm really interested in the composting pilot as well as the expansion.

I think that is exceptionally important, recognizing the challenges we've had with um in field and recognizing the growth in our urban farmers and the work that they're doing.

Can you talk about how the composting pilot program went, and if you can give a little bit more information about the expansion, that would be great.

Uh of course.

Uh uh through you, uh President Tate to uh Councilmember Johnson.

Uh so as you know, you uh have some very robust urban uh farmers uh in your district.

Uh and I am also proud to say that 87 uh urban gardens uh were permitted over the last fiscal year, and that is something that we will continue to lean in on and have a very robust uh initiative under Tefera Rushton's leadership at the Office of Sustainability and Patrice Brown as our uh urban ag uh uh associate director.

And and so that really grew out of their leadership and and and their expertise uh and experience in this space.

And so we we tested a pilot.

It's been going extremely well.

8,500 uh, as I as I mentioned, uh pounds of food waste have been diverted, where we're partnering with the People's Food Co-op, which we think is also an incredible partnership, and uh been working with with BCEed and and local farmers to just do some lessons learned before we we roll it out citywide, and it has been going so well that yes, in the next fiscal year we do want to expand it to other uh drop-off locations and other uh partners with with urban farmers and so that we can continue uh to divert uh the food from the landfill landfills and to um uh assist and and partner with with urban farmers in the community.

Thank you for that.

Um and the the motion that I just made relates to the farmers as well.

I've been in communication with um with them and the Office of Sustainability, and really is trying to identify ways to make it easier for them to access water from the city, and I think that loop that closed loop will actually help them as well.

Um so just looking to provide additional support to them for them to be able to grow uh and to do the work they do more effectively at more cost effectively as well.

So um looking forward to the expansion, as you may know, there are um urban farmers in District 4 that are interested in being involved in in composting as well.

So um look forward to continuing the work with you too.

Thank you.

Member Johnson, uh, know that uh Chief Bowser wanted to respond as well.

Yep, uh, through the chair to council member um Johnson.

You made a point about continuous engagement.

Um the mayor is also charged sort of that reworked um uh neighborhood affairs vertical to be making sure that we're making continuous contact with residents throughout planning processes and throughout development processes as well.

Now there's a capacity to engage youth, engage seniors, engage neighbor neighborhoods through the dons as one sort of collective strategy to do that over time.

And so it's kind of like a planning plus strategy to make sure that we have very specific population level engagement happening too across across time, whether or not there's a development happening right now, we always need to be engaging and making sure we know what residents are thinking and feeling in different areas.

So that one large vertical was really why the mayor put that there to make sure that we're always having those conversations and creating those tables.

Um that's gonna be another sort of layer on top of what planning is able to do uh to ensure that we hear the voice of the residents.

All right, thank you so much.

And if I can respond to your response to Member Calloway in regards to littering, um I will say yesterday when we were having this conversation.

One of the things that I think is important is to have continual conversations with the community.

If we're doing public service announcements or what have you, um, just to make sure that we're all pitching into addressing or not littering.

Um so if we can have some thought around that as well, um, I'd love to continue the conversation.

And then lastly, Mr.

Chair, I'm not sure that Mr.

Peckin Paul introduced himself or told us what position he's in.

Okay.

You did.

Can you repeat it?

Yes, through the chair, uh Member Johnson.

Say it with the chairs.

What's that?

Say it with the chest.

Oh, yeah, okay.

I got you.

Through the chair with to member Johnson, um Brian Peckapah, I am the director of the department of neighborhoods.

All right, I thought I knew that, but I just I wanted to make sure.

Thank you.

Yeah, thank you.

And and if I may, Mr.

Chair, uh, just to add to what Chief Bowser said about engagement.

That is one of the what we're leaning into for the Department Department of Neighborhoods is to make sure that we're having those continuing conversations, and that while we're saying we're having office hours three days a week, we're making sure that there's two days to three days, depending and the evenings where they're engaging with the community and doing blight rides and other activities throughout the neighborhoods to make sure we have eyes on issues, we create opportunities and forums for people to share their ideas and talk about uh revitalizing the neighborhoods as well as addressing blight.

Thank you.

Thank you for that.

And just uh uh a word of advice uh of advice for you.

Um my district four residents like to have district four conversations in district four.

So um I got some feedback about um a meeting that took place in district five for district four, uh, but just wanted to give you that advice that has come to me on a numerous on numerous occasions.

So thank you.

Thank you.

Member McCampbell.

Thank you, Mr.

Chair, good morning, everyone.

Um happy Friday to you.

I uh want to start off by one, uh I want to give kudos for the strength and other youth affairs um department and the creation of the senior affairs um office as well.

Uh I had a question on the senior affairs office because the the highlights really focus uh and we do have quite a few senior buildings that are in need of services, but the highlights focus a lot on senior buildings, and we know that of course there are a lot of seniors outside of the buildings.

So could you go into what efforts the office is carrying out for those seniors who may not live in senior buildings?

Uh through the chair to councilmember McCampbell.

So what I would say before handing it off to Brian about the longer term strategy is that we saw an immediate need for better conditions in senior buildings and more accountability for these property management companies to make sure that our seniors had uh uh livable conditions in these buildings.

So it's just a starting point.

Uh we are exploring the larger strategy around engaging seniors.

Um there is a nexus there with parks and recs um with other sort of departments too, but we're also um building that out right now, and so I'll hand it off to uh to Director Peck and Paul here.

Through the chair, thank you, Chief of Staff Bowser.

Uh member can't McCampbell.

Um through the Office of Senior Affairs, we are focused first on senior buildings because of the compliance issues as well as uh making sure the tenant councils but uh in the long-term strategy we want to make us sure to focus on the front end that um the senior affairs senior advocates were trained just like the Dons.

They received the first two weeks, we did intensive training with the Department of Neighborhoods.

We had every department, every agency, the city of Detroit come in and meet with the department of neighborhoods as well as the senior advocates, including the faith-based director, to make sure they're in the know of protocols, policies, DPW services, Detroit Water Department services, and so that they can address uh if anything comes to them from an individual resident, the senior advocates are able to address that.

They have received some uh episodic like uh tree issues in front of um individual homes with senior residents, so we're able to partner with the advocates and the district manager in that area to resolve it as well as our partners at GSD.

And uh, but long term we are gonna start leaning into uh more individual and apartment buildings related to seniors.

Thank you for that.

And welcome.

Glad to hear that there's the long-term strategy.

Uh I wanted to as a follow-up on that, um, thinking about because I I love that the expansion of the um senior food access program.

Um I as you are has there been thought or as you are building out the long-term strategy, has there been thought of how we get food access, more food access programs to those seniors that may not be in buildings.

And I will also, as because I know don't want to go over my questions, but I will also add that going back to the buildings.

One thing that we have heard from seniors is that um, in addition to these food access programs, that there were some companies that have shuttles that would take folks to grocery stores because we know we um the issue of having grocery stores around um our neighborhoods.

Has the administration explored any type of shuttle program that could get seniors to uh local market or some for uh groceries?

Through you, Mr.

President, to um Councilmember McCampbell, absolutely.

Uh and it's something that we lean in with our partners uh both at Eastern Market uh and I know that they were here and and talk to you about expanding uh not only at their the physical location but also out into the community and doing markets in the community and and then transportation and and working through how we can do access, uh particularly for food insecurity and particularly around fresh food.

So we are always looking for uh ways to expand that and capabilities uh within the city, but also external partners.

So um thank you for the question and the idea.

And I know my team is listening.

Uh so we will uh figure out how best to make that an expansion, not only at the senior buildings, but also uh available to seniors throughout the communities.

Thank you.

Um thank you for that.

I'll probably have a motion later, but um Mr.

Chair, I know that was a that was a one of them one point two question.

Um but I just have a quick question on the youth affairs.

Um so I want to talk about of course Rec Centers are a good place for our youth to gather and have those activities.

One thing that we also know that we have to meet our young folks where they are.

So as we're thinking about youth affairs, how how are we evolving that into the strategy um of meeting our young people where they are and then especially engaging them to make sure our programming and services match what they need uh through the chair to council member McCampbell?

Um is Chanel on While we're checking to make sure uh to see if Dr.

Hampton is on, uh wanted to kind of talk a little bit about the access to fresh food for seniors.

We are in active conversations with retailers right now to see if they can kind of facilitate some senior programming as well as some transportation for our seniors.

Um we have an active sort of grocery strategy as well to make sure that there are more um grocery stores that are going to be available for residents all across the city, but especially to service the needs of seniors too.

So there's a robust strategy that's being built through the um economic development vertical to actually have a strategy to get more retail into the city, including primarily grocery stores.

Uh and seniors play into that quite prominently.

Um, the mayor has been in lockstep with our seniors since her time on city council, and so uh seniors definitely play into a lot of our strategies uh moving forward, but wanted to get to the education question as well.

All right.

Dr.

Hampton, we see you on the screen.

Please introduce yourself for the record, and you may proceed to good afternoon.

Can you all hear me?

Yes, ma'am.

Okay, thank you.

Uh Dr.

Hampton, Senior Director of Youth and Education.

For the chair, it's a council member McCampbell.

Um, I believe your question was how are we meeting young people where they are, and how does our youth that their strategy serve that?

Yes, and how we are involving the input from young folks as well.

Yes.

Well, I think I can start with the latter question of how we're involving the input of young people and then talk about how our uh division is being built out, and then also continue to talk about ongoing youth input.

Um we have been engaging in community lessing sessions.

Um, I know you actually joined us at our youth in education forum earlier this month.

And so we're continuing to create spaces where we're gathering input and feedback, not only from young people, but from families and parents as well as educators, nonprofits, anyone who's wrapping their arms around young people.

Uh that allowed us to really get clear on the first three priorities that we're focusing on around absenteism, transportation, and out of school time.

In terms of our strategy and how we're meeting young people where they're at, when we say young people and youth, we're defining youth as zero through 26.

And so within our division, we are building out a strategy that focuses on early childhood and early learning, K-12 school partnerships, out of school time and workforce, and that component of workforce, think of growth and talent, high school internships and externships.

We're hearing from young people and educators that there aren't enough opportunities at the high school level or even early exposure in middle school and also college and career.

We also have our uh Office of Youth Affairs as well, led by Director Howard, and that is actually where we're going to continue to ensure that we are bringing young people to the forefront with us.

Um so we are currently building out a mayoral youth cabinet uh that we are including young people from across nearly 40 councils, youth councils across the city, to ensure they're helping us and making decisions every single day.

We also have about 40 mayoral youth fellows who will be joining us shortly to help us across several departments in the city.

So for us, uh one, I want to share the infrastructure around youth and education and those various focuses, zero through 26, um, but also we are looking at how our young people are priority and focal point across the city and all of our departments.

Does that answer your question on through the chair, Councilmember McCampbell?

Yes, thank you.

Thank you so much.

And I that sounds great, and appreciate you um laying that out.

And I especially love the aspect of having those youth fellows and and the um council as well.

I know uh our courage, I know we are in our office are thinking about the same and how we engage our youth in district seven.

So we just want to make sure that those conversations are happened together and that we can be in connection to make sure that the information flows to where it needs to go.

So thank you so much for that.

Um, and I would just add to also as we're talking about littering um anti-littering campaign.

I would plus one on PSAs and a continual engagement.

There's actually residents in District 7 that have started a small campaign, and we are in conversation on making a district wide anti-littering campaign.

So if there is a citywide effort, it would be good to plug into that, especially around added resources.

So thank you, Mr.

Chair.

Thank you all for being here.

Thank you.

Uh member Ben.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Uh, thank you all for being here, and welcome to uh our new members of the city who have committed to uh helping our residents.

And I'm just really buoyed to hear all these conversations uh around anti-littering.

This is something this council has talked about for a number of years now.

Uh the Green Task Force has a chair.

We had an anti-littering campaign about four years ago.

So it's really glad.

I'm really glad to hear that the administration is leaning in more on anti-littering, and you see it all the time.

People driving down the street in Detroit, and they utilize our streets as their trash can.

As I tell people, the world is not your trash can.

And so just having us have a strategy and thoughtfulness around how to reduce that is huge to clean up our city.

Uh, number one, a number of years ago, we went uh last year with the Green Task Force, took a number of decision makers and government officials from the administration to Philadelphia to see best practices there.

And two of those came back, or one of those was the partnership with their equivalent of GSD and DPW partnering together on massive cleanups and infrastructure investment.

And so they will coordinate.

And once we came back, you have both GSD and DPW working on those type of coordinated efforts.

Just where are we with that and what is the future hold for that type of collaboration uh between departments?

And that will be our new COO, I believe, uh, in that space.

CEO Wow.

Floor is yours.

Yeah, so as far as that initiative is concerned, um, I don't have the the details to that, but um you know, as the new chief operating officer leading 17 departments across the city, my commitment to the city is to ensure that we are um actually collaborating and um you know creating uh you know strategic solutions around these these problems, right?

Um this is this is something that we're working very hard uh hard at.

Um one of the approaches that we're taking is establishing these CO mini cabinets where we do meet weekly and talk through uh wins, misses, uh risks, issues, uh really upcoming milestones, but like really those are uh the day-to-day tactics, but um you know, ensuring that we have um the appropriate time set aside also to work through these very intentional plans is going to be really important moving forward.

I hope that answers your question.

It's very helpful and looking forward to having future conversations around those type of efforts and what your plans are to uh achieve that.

Um I know that once we came back from Philadelphia, both department heads started working closely, um, haven't talked about that in a while, but looking forward to hearing how you plan to move forward with that.

Um, and a number of the through the chair, uh Mr.

Bowser.

Yep, through the chair to council member Benson.

Um, there have been some sort of cleanup pilots that we've done.

So, for example, it sounds like last year we had sort of city departments volunteering to do neighborhood cleanups, for example.

I think as we build on and move forward, um, there are strategies that we need to be implementing that has to do with departments talking to each other to have larger scale solutions.

But to your point, this is something that we're going to be focused on for sure.

It's not just a sort of administrative or or Sheffield administration focus.

We have to be interacting with you all as well.

So even now, there are ways that we can um sort of collaborate around media services, um PSAs, for example, with each one of your districts to say this is uh the district's approach to littering in this area and and put out messaging that way too.

So there are some district-specific ways that we can put out messaging, but I think uh we have to get our departments together to figure out what our long long-term citywide strategy is going to be.

We're definitely willing to prioritize that and make sure that it's something that we have some impact on.

Fantastic.

I know the residents are going to be excited to hear that, and everybody's obvious obviously shown how much the residents are willing to get involved and get engaged uh every year.

We do our citywide cleanups, and you have tens of thousands of people who turn out to support the city of Detroit.

So looking forward to see how you do that.

Um on the sustainability side, and glad to see that we have such a large emphasis around sustainability uh in the city of Detroit, and this is not how it's always been, and so we continue to grow and lean in into this space.

I'm really uh glad that we have the Zarina who is still here and continue on to uh be a leader in this space.

And we talk about in your presentation, and I had a chance to go to Georgia Street um collective yesterday, and they're talking about the new compost um pilot that we're working on, hoping to see how that's going to turn out in the future with the cities and residents' ability to go get hopefully free compost if people are turning in their organic waste and food scraps into a central composting site that will actually be able to get residents to go out and utilize the the offshoot of that, the spin-off of those type of food waste, which in the form of compost they can use in their yard and other places, and hopefully the city will use that type of compost in its own landscaping needs.

But looking at the expanded citywide publicly available EV infrastructure as well as a continue to city fleet conversion, obviously DTE will play a huge role in that situation.

We've been trying to get EB charges onto the KMAC property here, takes a long, long time.

DTE has to be a part of that, and so their capacity has to meet that, and then we're having that conversation around data centers as well.

So we really need to be able to have DTE be a partner there and provide the level of energy that all these new resources are going to require.

So where are we with that conversation?

What is our expected timeline here?

And then what is our our ultimate vision?

Uh through the chair to council member Benson, we have just recently uh spoken with DTD, uh DTE about convening a table where our principals are speaking directly with theirs to discuss a variety of issues, this being one of them.

Uh but they the administration is in lockstep uh with making sure that we have a direct connection so that we um are kind of agreeing on on next steps here.

Um but I'll uh hand off to Tristan here.

Yeah, thank you so much.

Uh through you, Mr.

President, to um Member Benson.

So it uh in previous years there have been disparate uh conversations and and separate uh coordination efforts uh yeah or lack thereof with the city and and DTE, and as uh Chief of Staff Bowser just said, uh we are really leaning in and centralizing that.

And so I'm the point person uh for the city.

Uh Yvette Johnson at DTE is the point person uh from CEO uh uh Joy uh has has identified her, and so we have uh five top uh uh initiatives uh and energy efficiency and energy savings is certainly one of them uh that goes for single family and multifamily.

Uh and so uh and then our own uh municipal is a separate working group.

Uh and so we are uh we have identified working groups, identified individuals.

Our first joint meeting is uh in two weeks' time, and so we will be uh working and leaning in very hard because you're right that that partnership is is essential.

Uh we can't do these initiatives without them.

Uh, and so we're on it.

Yes, sir.

All right, thank you.

And so looking forward to continue work in that space.

That's gonna be the future of the city of Detroit as well as the country.

And so I know that we're currently administration is pushing us back, but they won't be there forever, and so just glad to hear that we're still looking forward into the future.

And if I'm counting, I see about 10 people within this room who have been on site visits with the green task force, and we're hoping to get new leadership to participate on our next site visit when it comes to the green task force to look for best practices around the country and what we can bring back here.

A number of those best practices have already been implemented.

So thank you all.

Uh, looking forward to these future conversations.

Thank you, Mr.

Chair.

Thank you.

Uh I would like to again thank you all for this presentation and echo uh member Johnson in this statement that it would be helpful to have this information in advance because it's a lot of good stuff here, and it really helps provide a bit of a roadmap to uh some of the questions we had in previous uh budget hearings.

Um again, see a lot of good stuff here, and I just need to put out front that you know it's mentioned that these are all services that are being put forward to help the residents of the city of Detroit.

But we talked about it earlier how there's not much wiggle room as there has been in the past for council to make uh council's priorities come to life.

So uh there's gonna be some some push and pull and some trading because there's no I don't see any here in in here any capacity, you know, what what numbers you're looking to reach necessarily.

So there may be an I'm just saying in advance because there's a lot of great things coming from this side of the table as well, in addition to what I see uh that is before us.

Uh so there may be a need to downsize some of these um priorities to allow for the priorities of council to emerge, unless there's some additional funding that's found elsewhere.

So just one again as the president of council put that out there, uh noting that uh my colleagues are truly looking to impact residents uh in the way that we have seen uh necessary based on our experience and our conversations as well.

But again, good stuff here.

Uh I would like to know uh for from C O O Lau again welcome.

I'm sure you're familiar with uh I gotta bring it up sure you're familiar with uh my neighborhood, Brightmore.

Um if you're not you should have been made aware uh as you're coming into the city of Detroit, a major neighborhood that has for uh a long time had disinvestment, um disengagement from the city.

We have now put a lot of emphasis and a lot of heart and soul and effort into redeveloping that that that neighborhood that truly deserves it.

Um when we start talking about uh a community that is on average uh earning 24,000 a year, there's no way that you can um compete, survive, you know, really or thrive.

Let me put it that way.

Because we have a lot of folks who are surviving right now, and we want to transform that.

So there's got to be a collaborative with a number of entities, certainly within your wheelhouse, uh Brittany, uh Ms.

Howski, where did you go to?

Yes, sir.

Oh, there she all right.

You as well.

Um as we try to uh get the residents a bit more uh financially resilient in that neighborhood.

We started a framework framework project two years ago where we engaged the neighbors, brought them out, they said what they want to see, uh there's no funding uh available for that particular project.

We uh over the last number of years have renovated Eliza Howe Park, which is one of our largest parks in the city.

Beautiful, beautiful space.

Um, but the neighborhood again that surrounds it needs a lot of help.

We've got storm uh major major infrastructural projects that are happening or that are going to be happening in the Brightmore neighborhood very soon.

And I would like to know how you know from your perspective, uh what your thoughts are as we engage this new um opportunity that we have in the Brightmore neighborhood to transform it with the community to ensure that we do our best to not um leave anybody behind if we want to call it that.

Um one of the issues we have one of the initiatives we have, we have a project called uh Be Next, where we are looking to upskill uh residents within that community.

But I want to know with the infra city infrastructural projects that are taking place.

How how could we prioritize uh hiring residents within that neighborhood to help build, construct, assist on the projects that are taking place uh where they live.

It would help with transportation, it would help with a whole host of things.

So just want to get from you from your experience.

Everyone said that you can you got that magic line.

I'm ready to see it.

Uh thank you, Mr.

President.

I have not had the pleasure of visiting Brightmore, so I'd love the opportunity to do that with you and a few other stakeholders in the near future if possible.

Um but the way I see it, and it's not just Brightmore, right?

I think when you think about city services, yeah, but I'm talking about Brightmore though.

Right.

Yeah, I'm I'm talking solely about Brightmore, not umbrella.

Right.

Well, um again, uh, we'd love to you know get some more information and do some due diligence there, but when we think about just uh broader city services, though, I think we all exist in this flywheel, right?

And it's about creating uh really reliable accessible services that the whole city, um, you know, residents, employees, and uh businesses and stakeholders that um can access those.

Um when we do that, business and residents want to stay here, that generates revenue, revenue generates growth, growth generates investment.

And so it is our you know, combined duty across the entire administration to make sure that that happens, and I think you know, I have a big part of that, but all my colleagues here um also have uh a role in that.

And so uh it is really a collaborative effort, and we need to think strategically about that.

Um so while I can't speak specifically on the initiatives currently going on at Brightmore at this moment, um, again, we'll be working with the team to make sure that that happens, but um it goes back to ensuring that we are um really uh planning out services in order to you know be part of that flywheel that I just described.

Okay.

Sort of kind of just from your perspective, again, if you're not familiar with the neighborhood, I would uh love to introduce you to the folks who are over there, uh take you around to the community.

Um, but even more so would like to see those who have been here um prior to you uh fill you in with information on that particular neighborhood.

Very important part of our community, and uh it's time for uh a change in that neighborhood.

The neighbors want it, they deserve it.

Absolutely.

Thank you.

So so uh Ms.

Hoskew, talk to us a little bit about the training.

Um, while we we may have uh programs where we provide folks stipends, that is in my opinion, a short-term band-aid, but getting folks trained and upskilled um and providing them with an opportunity for upward mobility and growth.

Uh, I think, you know, again, as my colleague says, teacher man to fish, they eat a life for a lifetime.

What what plans do we have?

And I'm saying this specifically because we've got to now target certain neighborhoods.

Every neighborhood doesn't need the same thing.

But some neighborhoods need a little bit more intensive care in certain areas.

The neighbor in in in Brightmore, it needs help in many, many different spaces.

So talk to us about the collaboration and uh Dr.

Schaefer, you as well um giving you an opportunity to answer that question too, please, about the collaboration.

Because I really want us to focus this term uh on on Brightmore.

We've been making incremental changes and improvements, but I'm really looking forward based on what I see here, the heart is there.

It's now about the execution of strategy and the collaboration.

Thank you, sir.

Um, thank you for the question.

I believe Terry Weems may actually be on virtually, and so I don't know if she may be promo promoted because certainly as you lifted up under your leadership, um, creating opportunity, accessibility to opportunity in that in that Brightnore neighborhood is something that you've advocated for, and I know Terry under her leadership has begun to operationalize to make sure that we can get folks skilled in a manner that they can take advantage of those opportunities.

I think the first activity opportunity I have, I view immediately, is to create cohesive strategies between the economic development apparatus, the investment, and the accessibility or uh um of those opportunities, meaning the workforce vertical.

And so some of the work that we've done, um my team in partnership with Terry who I see has joined us, um has looked at um immediate, short, immediate term, mid-term, and long-term opportunities to create alignment between what are the projects that are coming before council that are creating these immediate job creation and making sure that we are um creating pathways for Detroiters to receive those immediate jobs, what's coming down the pipe and and the job creations associated so that we can start to forecast where the where the skills are going to need to need to be, and then long-term economic development strategy as we lurk look to the different sectors that the tr that Detroit has the greatest opportunity to compete in.

How do we ensure that the workforce um strategies align with those economic development sectors so that the we're building skills for the future?

Um and so some those are some of the more macro scale activities that that I see again in an interim basis, I think are immediate opportunities to strengthen um and connect opportunity with accessibility, which to your point that teach Amanda Fish and making sure that while these um individual one-off programs are necessary in addressing immediate needs, how are we thinking more long-term and positioning not only Detroiters but the Brightmore neighborhood and the city overall in a um in a more sustainable manner?

Um and I don't know, Terry, if you want to speak specifically to some of the programs that um council president lifted up here.

So I hope that answers your question.

Yeah, that part.

I mean, I uh I definitely would love to hear from Terry.

We've talked numerous times and they're working on the be next, but I'm looking for beyond be next, right?

Um we've got projects that infrastructural projects that are taking place in the neighborhood.

So would love to know how we can get folks from the neighborhood working on those particular projects.

And it may not be the one that's happening right now, but this is a long-term plan.

And I've told the folks in the community while you are looking for an immediate uh transformation, that is the worst thing that could happen to you.

Because once we start moving shovels and and and dirt, rents go up, you get pushed out.

So this is a long-term process.

So I'm looking for some system that is built that we intentionally go into the neighborhood, identify the folks who live there who want to be a part of this process, place them in an opportunity where they can uh gain their skills, and some of them already have it, but we provide that opportunity to them so that it will transform their life 24,000 a year for a family of four.

That's I don't know how you survive off that.

I don't know how they've been doing it, but they've been they've been doing it thus far, but we want to transform that in Dr.

Schaefer, they've got uh housing that is subpar in many, many, many of the the uh homes that are there.

Uh we've got lawsuits against uh uh landlords that are treating people the wrong way.

Um how can you fold in?

Again, I I want to make sure we got the three of you.

Um I love the fact that three of you are right next to each other.

What's your thoughts on uh transformation in uh Brightmore with the neighbors?

Uh to the chair, Council President Tate.

Um I think uh much of what I've said we've said I I agree with.

Uh I think we need to look at the tools that are disposal, the assets that we have.

Uh one of those is city employment, uh, for example.

So I think uh the um the mayor is uh the administration took a big step on increasing wages to living we uh living wages for all city employees.

We have 11,000 uh jobs, and I think we can start to create some of the pathways that you described uh to living wage jobs through that.

So I know uh that uh the city HR, for example, has created programs for mechanics as well as uh I think we're going to some of the other positions that have clear sort of pathways to economic mobility uh that would include training uh in a task uh uh and task employee situation where people could be paid for training and then uh move into a permanent position.

Um and I think we should be looking uh very closely uh we're partnering with you to do uh job fairs in uh Brightmore that would focus specifically on these pathways to mobility to to real jobs uh that you can start, you can get paid while you're uh training, and then uh have a uh full-time position that then there's uh a clear uh career trajectory.

Uh council president Tate, you've also mentioned um a number of uh entities that are working on affordable housing uh in Brightmore, uh having challenges with zoning, and I think that's something that the administration is taking uh strong steps to try to improve those uh processes, uh, clean those up.

Um, and that's gonna have the effect of bringing more residents uh into the community, uh which I think also then leads to more dollars circling through the community.

Uh finally with Brightmore, I think the uh the challenge of transportation is one that we have to figure out what are solutions that we can do at scale.

Um so uh there's pilots I think that we can look at, but we need to be thinking about how do we make sure that uh residents uh uh can get to and from jobs, training opportunities in and out uh based on the geography.

In terms of home repair, that's absolutely um uh a priority.

Uh I think we'll see that uh a lot of the uh a lot of coverage in uh the Brightborn community uh in the programs we have, but uh obviously we want to continue to see how we can um uh leverage those dollars for even more as we go forward.

Thank you.

Chief, anything you want to add?

Absolutely.

So to the chair, I think what we're sort of getting at is what is the Brightmore specific plan.

Correct.

And I think what we're going to end up landing on is sort of a multi-layered approach to making sure that Brightmore gets the resources that it needs to move to the next level of development.

Now we talked a little bit yesterday about every neighborhood needing different tools, but I think we should have a strategy and a touch point about specifically what tools are we deploying in Brightmore and what are our expected outcomes.

I think we have plenty of information about what is sort of uh what the gaps are in Brightmore.

But I think it's gonna take four or five different departments and principals within the mayor's office to sort of create a touch point to make sure that we have a specific plan that layers on sort of maybe programs that get deployed specifically to the issues within Brightmore, whether it's an apprenticeship program, uh deploying targeted resources, business attraction plan, what is that layered approach?

Um and so uh what I'll do is is have uh a working group created to make sure that we're giving you those answers and coming up with a plan that makes sense uh for your residents in that area that layers on each of the principles that you're talking here uh with today.

Uh it's a it'll be a relatively easy thing to do to make sure that we have that touch point.

So I think over the next few months we'll land on a strategy that starts to deploy resources specifically to the areas that you've identified as gaps.

Okay.

So I I've got only one other question.

Uh when do we start this work group post-budget?

I think we start as soon as the budget process is over.

Um we have the personnel to do it now.

We have the capacity to do it now, and um we're even internally, we're realigning, we've realigned to this to this uh presentation, the administration to talk more holistically.

So, for example, the workforce capacity is directly under the economic development capacity to make sure that residents are going to be involved in the new projects that are coming.

There's also a procurement layer to that that we need to make sure that we are observing, and then there's a labor uh layer that we need to uh uh uh layer on top of that.

Uh, but that ultimately we need to make sure that Brightmore residents are benefiting.

So I would say as soon as the end of the budget process uh comes, we start this work group um so that we can create and then operationalize a Brightmore specific plan.

Okay, and I would like for members of my team also to be a part of that work group as well.

Absolutely.

Absolutely.

Thank you.

Can I turn a motion uh for uh executive session, actually closing resolution, we could language uh for the uh next phase of the Brightmore framework uh plan to be uh funded uh that will focus on prioritizing uh training and employment uh for projects for city infrastructure projects uh initially uh taking place within the Brightmore neighborhood.

Uh is there a motion?

Oh, sure.

Thank you.

With discussion, Coachim Young.

Uh President Tate, thank you.

Not not to tell you what to do, but you sure you don't want to put that in executive session.

I think that deserves a thorough, robust discussion, and I think we should at least be talking about how we can advance that and put that forward and try to put some money to it.

Now, if it doesn't work out, that's fine.

But I think we should at least have that executive session as well, so we can really thoroughly discuss that because it's been long overdue.

We'll discuss it.

I just want to make sure when I do I've got got the dollar amount and all those uh things, so that'll be part of the conversation as of right now.

I appreciate the uh the offer though.

Okay would like to keep it in closing resolution at this moment while I start to uh peel back the layers because right now it's conceptual.

Um and by the time we get to uh approving this budget, we'll have a lot more uh meat on the bones, at least ideologically and um some kind of structure.

So, colleagues, there's a motion on the floor, any objections?

See none, then action shall be taken.

Thank you.

Uh member Waters.

Okay, thank you, Mr.

President.

So good morning.

Good morning, good morning.

Jeez, nobody wants to speak back to me.

Well, first of all, let me just say that I um I certainly look forward to working um with this administration uh and and and and the president is right, but there's a whole lot of information here.

Um so and I know my focus has to be on on just a couple of things, and so I'll stay there, but I I just want to say that I look forward to um working with uh you all uh when it comes to our seniors and um as well as uh technical assistance that both our businesses need as well as our faith-based uh community needs.

So I'm looking forward to that.

The other thing is that I'm glad that you're headed in a direction to empower communities.

It is it is truly long overdue.

They do so much of the work themselves.

We need to identify ways to assist them financially.

You know, we used to do that years ago with block clubs.

We empowered block clubs, we gave them some sort of financial assistance that could help them keep their communities clean and safe.

I'd like to see us uh go in that direction again.

I think that you guys are kind of kind of headed that way.

Um we have certain communities that have that requested some assistance in this budget cycle.

Uh you have the FICA quarter.

Uh Ms.

Vernon calls in every day talking about the FINKA quarter and the assistance that that they need over there.

They want their community to look really good.

We received a very well thought out proposal from Boston Edison.

I need you guys to take a look at that, you know.

I mean, we often talk about lending of credit when it comes to certain things, but I believe that these great minds can figure it out so that we can help um our communities.

And so I I look forward to that.

Um I'm I'm looking on this page here where it says Chief of Housing, Planning Workforce and Economic Development.

Um last cycle, budget cycle, I put something in the budget.

I start with that piece.

Um it said um it was regarding the um housing workforce housing uh development fund.

It was a one-time request, and it's for cap it was for capital improvement.

And I went back, staff went back and found it last night.

It was $500,000.

I did have a brief conversation with HRD about a few months ago, and we discussed, you know, AMI and so forth.

But the the whole workforce piece, the purpose of it is so that we can help some other folks in our community, folks who actually go to work every single day of their life, and they never get a leg up.

I mean, nobody ever, we don't help them.

Just just a little bit, at least once.

And that was the purpose of starting that fund.

Then once we had the fund, the purpose was to go on to maybe state, federal, um, philanthropy, try and build on that fund so that we can help people in the workforce.

So I need you all to really take a look at that fund that I established last year.

The other thing I want to point out is that I also had put skill trade and I'm looking at your departments when I when I when I say these things.

Um skill trade, one million dollars in that fund.

Uh and it went to DSC, DESC last time, and it was recurring.

So I found out at the table a week ago that has been zapped.

Nobody talked to me about it.

I want this team here to know what happened.

I did make a motion to put it back on the table back in the executive session, uh, because we work very, very hard every single day and month to bring people to meetings, and we get hundreds of them there to, you know, because they want to take advantage of the skill trade opportunities.

And I wanted to make sure that there was something right here at the city to do exactly that.

And so um that was that was zapped.

I I need you guys to take a look at that as well.

It was recurring for sure.

Um, I want to ask this question on behalf of the Fink Accorder caller, Ms.

Varner.

Um, she talked about land use, and I see that you've got land use in here in the second paragraph on the new objective.

$1,500 for land use.

Uh I need you all to respond to her and the community.

Why is that fee so high?

Communities who want to be able to do things in in their neighborhoods.

It's very difficult for them to come up with uh $1,500.

Could someone respond to that please?

Whoever has a response.

Whoever has a response may proceed.

I am not sure, excuse me, through the chair.

Um, I'm not sure specifically what you're referring to, but I'm happy to follow up with your office offline and to address the question.

Okay.

Um, through the chair to member waters, I do want to touch on that first comment, Member Waters about block clubs and associations.

So we don't lose that.

Um excuse me.

Uh we want to mentor, as I said earlier, block clubs.

So we want to align longtime leaders with current block clubs to mentor new ones.

And the key, the the smaller block clubs is creating a group of block clubs to create associations.

Associations then can be 501c3s, and they can apply for grants, federal, state grants, other uh resources.

So we want to lean in to create more block clubs and have a longer term strategy of getting more associations.

Aviation sub has finally created an association in District 7.

It's been a long time coming, and so there's other areas where we can do that to support that from the DOM department neighborhoods level and as well as uh faith-based organizations.

So we had a summit last week.

There was 283 faith leaders at Greater Grace last week on March 19th to lean in and talk about opportunities to mentor faith leaders and align them to leaders such as uh Bishop Ellis and Bishop Edgar Ban who are already doing development work in the city, and how can they mentor other organizations, other churches that uh want to get into that development work and want to create CDC's community development or organizations?

So there are opportunities that we're leaning in and into the neighborhoods to access funding for the type of work that you mentioned earlier, Madam Member Waters.

So thank you for that.

Um of these uh uh community organizations already have 501c3s.

I I did mention a couple of them, especially I know Boston Edison does, and you have other areas like Sherwood Force and Palmer Woods and Green Acres, they all have a 501c3s, they are organic community organizations.

Are they not, can they not apply for any city grants?

Do we have any grants that we can offer them?

I mean, I know they can go for state and federal grants.

Can they not apply for city grants?

I think there will be or should be grants that they could apply to, some of them being CDBG, so that's a federal level, but more locally we do have some.

Yeah, uh, through your uh Mr.

President.

Uh uh Member Waters uh reminds me of one of the first budgets that I did here and yeah, with you all in 2014.

Uh NOF opportunities is what uh Chief of Staff Bowser is talking about.

So there certainly are uh ways that uh community groups and and block clubs can participate with city that's and the neighborhood beautification is something we did with URPA funds, but hopefully we can um bring those back with other funding, but absolutely there are opportunities uh to go through the city administer while there might be state or federal dollars, but they're city administered.

Well, well, we certainly um look forward to them having that ability to do so.

And on the faith-based piece that you mentioned, um sir, uh yes, I agree with that because what we need from our faith-based community is them being engaged, helping us, for example, with our housing issues.

You know, faith-based community can can build uh uh housing right there uh where their churches are in those surrounding areas.

There are a lot of things that they can do, and I'm happy that you're going to offer technical assistance to them, but we also wanna make sure, as you indicated, that they're able to do some sort of development projects too.

Uh they probably have some people right there in their own church who needs that type of help.

So I I certainly I did a um workshop uh a few months ago uh geared towards the faith-based community and and housing, you know.

Uh so you're you're on the right track.

I look forward to it.

Please let me know how I can assist with that uh as well.

Um I wanna go to just another piece here.

And it's it's the DLBA Detroit Land Bank.

You know I had to do it.

So but listen, I'm I I'm not as angry as I was, you know, a week ago about it.

I'm not because there's nothing I can do about it at this table.

I don't have I'm one vote.

That's it.

So here's my thing.

You all have decided to wrap your arms around uh this land bank.

I don't know why, but okay.

So what I want to know is that you know, I can't even go to a grocery store.

I can't go anywhere without somebody complaining to me about the land bank, and they call my office all the time.

You all should have a designated person in your office who can receive land bank uh issues.

I'd like to be able to forward them there, uh frankly, so that they can be addressed.

Um when that land bank, though that those members sat at this table a couple of weeks ago, they felt fully empowered.

It was as if whatever I had to say, it didn't even matter.

In fact, they dissed me on a couple of questions.

So I know what's up.

They're like, you're just one voice, Member Waters, and we don't give a so-and-so what you think or what you say.

That was that was the vibe that I received from them.

So my thing is if I don't have to deal with them, I don't want to.

But we want to make sure that our residents have an avenue to get their issues addressed.

I'm gonna give you one example here now.

Zatam meeting last night, Boston Edison.

Resident homeowner over there was told that she could not purchase her side lot.

Now, have we changed that program?

Anybody?

I don't think so.

We haven't changed that program.

But essentially, what they told her, they came back and says first they said she could purchase the side lot, then they turn around and said she could not purchase the side lot because guess why?

Because they are going to build a duplex next door to her.

That's the response that she received.

We haven't passed that dog on the ordinance, yeah, to allow duplexes to be built.

We haven't done that yet.

But she is already being told that I'm sure if she's being told that that there are others who are being told exactly the same thing.

They're already ahead of the game.

So we're gonna just tell people you cannot have that side lot.

We still have a side lot program, and she is entitled to that side lot.

I did email Director Daniels this morning as it relates to her issue.

I don't think it's right.

And I know that you guys say that you want to empower communities about the neighborhoods, then let's respect what they want.

We have a side light side lot program, allow her to have that side lot.

That's what that's what I want to see uh happen uh with that.

So the other piece of it is that the land bank is touting, you know.

Oh, we've we've infused two billion dollars into the economy for the city of Detroit.

I'd like to know where it is.

I'm I'm trying to understand.

And then I was surprised too to hear that 82 percent of the homes that were purchased by by Detroit.

Okay, I don't know.

I don't know.

When we do get this audit, maybe it will show us.

Um but I want you all to tell me how that is true, number one.

Because you know what has been happening is that we've been paying them for the last 10 years, they've been receiving subsidies uh from this city, unwarranted subsidies, because they don't give any money back to us, unwarranted subsidies, to the tune of over 100 million dollars.

We we can't afford we cannot afford that.

And based on their presentation last time, looks like they'll be asking for more subsidies.

That's that's what I received from it.

I don't I haven't seen an official request, but uh, you can tell if you can kind of read between the line, if you're able to discern, you can say, oh yeah, they're coming back for more subsidy.

So, you know, um I'm I I'm not here because Madam Mayor has made a decision about this this land bank.

She wants to be in control of it, so that's fine.

But I all but I do want you guys to identify a person where we can send those complaints to an individual uh when we receive them because I can assure you that we receive them.

I just got one last night.

So I'm gonna need your help with this lady from from last night.

I just she was just really really bothered by that those that response from the uh from the land bank.

And I believe that you guys can assist her.

So through the chair to member waters.

First, um, I want to apologize if you felt dismissed by any entity that is related or even tangentially uh coordinating with the city.

That is not um something that that that's not a part of uh of how we operate, and so want to make sure that you know that we all respect you and we appreciate you for your partnership uh overall.

Um two, uh the mayor has spoken quite a bit about this administration being a reset, uh making sure that as we sort of move through the transition that we are taking a moment to pause and figure out what the issues are so that we're not moving forward in the exact same way, uh expecting to have a different outcome.

And so we've had we're we've had quite a few conversations about what the land bank will look like moving forward.

Um, and so I don't suspect that you will see sort of um the exact same approach as you've seen in the past, um, and we are still sort of landing on exactly what we're going to have the land bank do um and how they're gonna operate.

So I don't want to uh give the impression that there are any foregone conclusions about what happens next in that space.

We want to make sure that there's a certain capacity that the land bank does uh give the city to um to sort of maintain properties to hold properties and to uh facilitate economic development.

So understanding what the pros and cons are, what uh should stop, what should start, what should continue.

That's exactly what we're doing now, and we want to bring those sort of concludes or those considerations to you to make sure that we're all on the same page.

There is some utility there for the land bank, but there are some pretty um obvious changes that need to be made to make sure that it's responsible, it's responsive to residents and has transparent um programming operating.

So we are well on our way to figuring out what that new strategy is going to be under this administration, but no conclusions have been reached right now, as far as the two billion dollar um sort of uh in fusion to the economy.

So I will guarantee you're gonna see some changes.

Uh, but we'll be communicating what we're thinking about as we as we go along there for sure.

Okay.

And let me just finally say, you know, everybody believes that they know what's best for this city.

You know, people that are that most of them outside of this city believe that they know what's best.

So there's now this whole thing with what they want to do with Bell Owl in terms of housing.

I mean, you know, we don't we don't have to get into that conversation right now.

But you know, that would certainly be excluding majority detroit for something like that, you know, for the filthy rich and the wealthy uh to have a city within a city right there on Bell Al.

I just wanted to point that out because I'm pretty frustrated about that as well.

I'm just even hearing about it, a method, uh poor, poor methodology that was used to say, oh, a third of Detroiters want uh to have that done at Bell Al.

I don't believe them.

I do not believe them.

Anyway, Mr.

President, that is it.

Thank you so much.

I'm I'm done carrying on.

Yes, ma'am.

Thank you.

Just for clarity.

Was there a plan about Bell Al pushed out by the city or removed?

It was not.

Yeah, I didn't think so.

Okay.

I just wanted to make sure because so I can clarify.

Yeah.

Okay, because it sounded like there was an outside entity that's trying to make that happen with the state.

Okay.

Just wanted to clarify because it was gonna open up a whole bunch of other questions.

All right.

Member Santiago Romero.

Thank you, Mr.

President's through you.

Good morning, everyone.

Um, gonna jump right into it.

Uh, looking at the chief of staff um organizational charts, uh, the lean team.

Um, wondering why this is not under the COO's office, um, thinking about making sure that we are streamlining processes.

I truly believe in the lean team.

Um, it I they do really important work.

So just wondering how we came to this decision and if it's possible to move this under the CEO, because I think that makes sense.

Yeah, through the chair to Councilmember Santiago Romero, um, there are efficiencies that need to be you know discovered or created throughout the entire entirety of the administration.

So, what I would say is right now the lean team uh from before is not probably not gonna be the lean team moving forward, but having a lean team there does not mean that the COO will not also have a team to establish efficiencies throughout that 17 or so um department vertical as well.

So I I don't see that as duplication at all.

I see that as we need to allocate resources where there are issues um uh appropriately, and so there will be a capacity built in the COO vertical to do strategic improvement to make sure that we are streamlining services, exactly what the mayor has um as instructed the COO to do.

It's not just an instruction, we're also gonna empower the COO to make decisions around how she builds the team out.

Uh and it could be a capacity around uh actually she's already talked about resident centered design, user experience, reframing, and bringing in professionals to do that, um, even in coordination with the existing team that exists.

The one that the lean team that exists now was was it's it's lean lean processing is a little bit different than what we did in the COO office is uh a complete reframe of services is what we need there, and there's a more appropriate team that I'm sure that can be built, but I'll hand it off to uh the COO uh to answer that.

Yeah, thanks, Chief Bowser.

And so I think he addressed it exactly as such.

Lean is a practice that was centered around manufacturing.

Uh we are a municipal government and we are not uh producing widgets necessarily.

We are uh providing service to humans and we need to be more human about it.

So um part of the approach that we're gonna be taking is a more human-centered uh approach with empathy built around that um with user experience at the heart of it.

So while I think lean is a very important approach, um, in some cases, we are gonna uh be looking at um capabilities to build a more HCD lean approach.

Okay.

It does.

Thank you through the chair.

Thank you.

And I know lean well, you learn it in business school.

Um, and frankly, I think we need to not run a business, but have streamlined services, processes, and systems so that we are better able to better serve our our residents um and and really want to bring that into here because um I don't believe we're running a business, I believe running a home.

We need to make sure our bills are paid, that we are cared for, that our home is safe and um and um and accessible.

Um, and just bringing in that thought process is important.

I'm glad you mentioned human-centered design.

Um, incredibly important uh work.

And um just as we're talking about this, I know Sevilla did a lot of this work with our Secretary of State many years back.

You would wait for hours at the Secretary of State for things to happen now.

It's very, very quick.

Um, so as we're thinking about lean, I agree.

Let's think about more people-centered thinking, um, and then potentially bringing in those experts that have done this already in the government um to help us with our processes as well.

Um, want to share more about this as well.

So, our office, just some ideas on what we've been working on.

Um, we have a resident hub because our website is so confusing.

Um, there's a lot in our website, and I and thank you to to do it.

I know they've been going through it literally and and and trying to enhance that.

Uh, but our office has created, and we'll share this with folks.

Uh, we created a a resident hub.

Um, our resident hub is a one-stop shop where if you're looking for information for any departments, um, any one of our staff members, any questions regarding block clubs in our district, um, things that residents need, it's right there on one page.

Um, so can we replicate this for maybe every district office for the city itself?

These are I think the creative solutions that our residents are are looking for.

Our office is also working on an ordinance suite.

We are beginning the process for an ordinance for a centralized fee schedule.

This is really a best practice for all governments that we don't have here, and we often hear from residents you know, how much is the fee for my garbage bin, or how much is the fee to start a new business?

Um, it's confusing, it's all over the place.

I think this is really my hope is that with you here we leave the city better than how we found it.

It is my actually that's my goal as a council member.

When when I'm done with my service at the city, I want to leave um it better than how I found it.

And and I think establishing these processes and systems and transparency will be really helpful for residents moving forward.

So I share that um all around uh the the bettering of systems.

I will now turn over to my my second question and in line of thinking.

Um so I see here that we have media services under the mayor's office.

Is this a different media service, or is this all of it is going to be under the the mayor's office and why uh through the chair to council member Santiago Romero, just wanted to um put a little bit back.

So what you were talking about, the Secretary of State streamlining.

Um the mayor was actually able to recruit the individual who is responsible for that streamlining uh to the administration, and that's let's call it an alley.

That was an alley oop right there.

I was waiting for it.

Yep.

So um media services, yes.

So the city's um communications strategy and related entities are under the mayor's office under the chief of staff.

Um so media services sits with the larger sort of or beside the larger sort of communication strategy in the city, and so um the org chart it is under under my vertical with all the other communications uh entities in the city.

Through the chair, so it's all going to be under you.

So I I ask this because media services to be shared with council, and we have a lot of things that we want to share with residents as well, and not just that around capacity.

Frankly, I'm really asking this because of um I've mentioned before in PHS and and we've talked about this as well around just uh information on littering, right?

That's a discussion we're having here.

For me, I think it's less about information on our ordinances and and you know how to clean up and etc.

It's about creating a culture of care and actually doing the thing and showing the difference and and being a part of that.

So as as we as you have media services under the mayor, I want to make sure that we are also able to share the efforts and the stories of this council and and how we're able to do this work together.

Um and and sticking to the subject about um littering and a cleaner city.

Actually, I have one more question, and I'll wrap up here.

But you have served Detroit and we have like mortar city makeover.

What is the difference?

Because I see an opportunity here for us to be able to work with the administration and identify.

We know the alleys that need to be cleaned up.

We know the neighborhoods that are that that need to do this work.

We know which ones have block clubs and which ones don't.

I am ready and willing to take me, my staff, and our neighbors to do that cleanup for the neighborhoods that don't have the capacity to to so I I ask these for us to be able to work together and plan together and just wonder if we have capacity to do that.

Um and I guess if you wouldn't mind also just sharing what's the difference between serve Detroit and Water City Makeover.

Uh through the chair to Councilmember Santiago Romero.

What I would say initially is that we always have capacity to collaborate.

Um this this mayor is all about collaboration and not moving in silos and making sure that our partners are right there at the table, not just to involve them in the result, but to involve them in the in the creation of the solution in the first place.

Um and so I don't know if Tony Stovall is still on to talk about the two initiatives.

We will promote her.

If she's not on, then uh director Peck and Balkan can touch on it as well.

Uh through the chair to member Santiago Romero.

Um good afternoon.

And we do want to collaborate with your office and all of your offices on volunteer opportunities.

So serve Detroit is a volunteer framework.

So we recruit volunteers.

Tony Stoval manages the group, and we do volunteers for Motor City Makeover along with the SNAP matter that was last fall that uh Miss Stein led.

And along with other areas that we're looking at, in fact, um senior buildings.

We found out through our advocacy work since January, our senior affairs group that when they do uh pest control in senior buildings, the seniors can't move their items around in their um unit.

So we're looking at how can we engage youth and volunteers through Serve Detroit to help the seniors move their items so the pest control is effective.

So there's different ways we can lean in and also the motor city makeover related to volunteer is uh works up into serve Detroit and Tony's uh efforts that she has there.

Um we also heard from uh prior folks last year, last couple years that they didn't like us to have Motor City makeover on Mother's Day weekend.

So as of this year, it will not be on Mother's Day weekend.

So we were able to pick three weekends in May without touching Mother's Day weekend because there's actually uh I believe five weekends in May this year.

So we lucked out on that.

Uh so we are listing to your offices and to the neighborhoods about how to improve our services and volunteers and also we're looking at partners on how uh we just talked yesterday on grass cutting for seniors in the summer.

We do snow removal for their sidewalks with uh volunteers and senior houses, and they can apply for having their snow removed.

Um, and so we're looking at opportunities to partner with um associations and businesses in the city of Detroit to help with grass cutting for seniors who have homes.

So we'd like to partner with your office to to do that.

We'll make sure that Tony connects with your team, as well as uh the neighborhood's website.

I do want to touch on your hub uh member Santiago Romero.

Um the neighborhood's website is very outdated.

We understand that.

So uh newly appointed member Mr.

Ken Haddad, which was another great win for May Mayor Sheffield uh that was recruited from Channel 4.

Uh he is working on reframing the neighborhood's website and making sure that gets updated because that is a hub, whether we move it to the current city website as a section, that is a hub for the districts and the block clubs.

Through the chair.

Thank you.

Okay, thank you.

I I appreciate that.

And um I I think what what I also heard um my council president say is we just I I think we need to set a tone of what this collaboration looks like and and how we we plan for our neighborhoods.

Um because I I want to work on changing the culture, creating a culture of care, um, doing best practices of how we maintain our neighborhoods, you know, sharing that through our social media through through um uh through media, making sure it's in Spanish, Arabic, Bengali, and French, so that every neighborhood is is a part of of this work with us.

Um so I'm going to ask uh to add to closing resolution, um, a a commitment to meet with every council office, uh the neighborhood of of uh department of neighborhoods, and we can work on this, but there has to be a cadence for us to meet and um and and talk about what the needs are, the opportunities and how we can work together.

Um because sometimes our office just needs a dumpster.

And and you know, if the if the maybe she can help us figure that out, um then we can get the the the cleaning done, help maintain our neighborhoods.

Um so thank you all so much.

Thank you, Mr.

President.

Was that a motion?

Oh, that was a motion, sir.

Yes, motion.

There's a motion on the floor, colleagues.

Just if you can just uh reframe it, please.

Um, would like to add to closing resolution a a regular cadence uh with the department of neighborhoods and city council offices.

All right, there's a motion on the floor, colleagues.

Any objections?

Seeing none, that action shall be taken.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Pro Tim Now.

Thank you, Mr.

President.

Um, before I begin, I just want to say Mr.

Packy Paul is good to see you.

I was wondering where you was at.

I didn't see you with DS DWSD.

And uh it also warns my heart over to see Tony Stovall.

Uh I that was not on my bingo car.

She got she got a job, a jizzab, a jizz of another job.

But I was so happy that warms my heart that she got that.

Did not see that coming.

Now to the Office of Sustainability.

I want to talk about energy.

I want to talk specifically about what are your plans involving PISO energy.

What are your plans involving?

Bladeless turbines.

What is your plans involving geothermal and how does that relate to the renewable energy credits within the inflation reduction act?

Through you, Mr.

President, to President Pro Tem Young.

Uh always appreciate the thought partnership and the uh collaboration on uh thinking big.

Uh we uh uh Mayor Sheffield uh just cut a ribbon uh a couple weeks ago on a housing development that is geothermal.

So that's very exciting, and we are constantly looking for ways to partner with our uh departments and and and think through uh energy uh you know innovation and and work with uh new lab and and and test some innovative um ideas uh and and also the partnership with with DTE that uh member Benson uh lifted up is is is think through uh battery and and think if there's a way that we can um uh regulate uh the energy distribution is that solid state or lithium.

Uh we are working on that and and figuring out what what it does, what it makes sense depending on the use and depending on on the distribution, so that we can uh level level lever level uh you know equalize the energy level of energy that's delivered through our neighborhoods and and hardening uh the the infrastructure and and being thoughtful about that.

So that's part of the work group that we're doing with DTE and thinking through these innovative approach and working with entrepreneurs uh to test some.

We we we are incredibly fortunate to have uh so many tech centers around the city and and in and building off of the concentration of of engineers and entrepreneurs that are here to test uh those types of initiatives.

So would love to talk further with you about those and and as we we think through uh very big uh ideas.

Uh but I will tell you the next thing that I would bring to is probably gonna be around battery and and thinking about storage again to then um uh smooth out the delivery of energy because we do know uh particularly around extreme uh uh uh weather events, particularly heat, uh the levels of of energy and and and try to minimize the level of um outages.

No, that's good, and I appreciate that.

I just wanted to come back to uh piezo electricity.

Is there is there a plan for that at all?

Or a kite generation electricity or uh or hydrogen, green hydrogen, particularly especially when we're talking about the issues of um data centers and artificial intelligence factories and things that nature.

You know, I mean if if you're talking about chips, you're talking about the difference between I think this be superconductor chips more so than semiconductor, but that requires hydrogen to cool that have we have we had discussions of that at all?

It kind of like lay it on thick for me here, really kind of like give me a presentation.

Through you uh uh President uh Tate uh President Pro Tambang, I wish I could lay it on thick.

Uh we do have plans for green energy.

We do have plans for for um hydrogen.

However, in this federal uh administration, yeah, uh we are trying to maneuver uh and and really find our way in this.

Uh there are plans, and we are partnering with the state.

You know, we got awarded a hydrogen hub, and we're very excited about that from a transportation.

We should we are a corridor, we should be partnering with Canada.

Uh again, another uh fractured uh partnership that we are trying to find our way through.

I um long for the day where I could layer it on thick for you.

No, I agree.

And figure this out.

So we're trying to um uh in and working with uh my colleagues in economic development to figure out what a thoughtful approach looks like, uh particularly around data centers.

I've had a spirited conversation uh with uh council president Benson, which I appreciate always on any topic, uh, to figure out what it looks like and and and figure out um what uh good growth looks like and what some parameters.

I'm taking a uh tour with SEMCOG.

It's it's I think still available uh to tour data center in Selffield uh in April 7th, I believe, to see what that looks like and and and look for some best practices.

So I'm I'm trying uh to to to be thoughtful and still maneuver in this framework that we're in in the the f the federal landscape.

No, I I I totally agree, I totally understand it.

I know it's gotta be very difficult.

And there's only so many grants, only so many things private sector that you can get to be able to do that.

But I think it'd be really good for us long term in terms of energy generation and being diverse in terms of how we do that and how and usually I would ask is part of what I ask about solar, particularly on rooftops.

But I think because our housing stock is so old, most of it I think was built, I think before 1970 or something of that nature.

I forgot.

So I yeah, 1978, I believe like 80% of it.

So I think a lot of it is too brittle for us to be able to do that, but uh I have that conversation next.

My next two questions I'm gonna ask like this, because then I gotta go because I gotta go to a funeral because my cousin uh passed away.

So yeah, so forgive me just getting up and walking out, but that's why.

Um but secondly, I wanted to um ask particularly about what are you and I don't know who this whoever this is to, but what are your plans for implementing artificial intelligence?

We talked a lot about efficiencies and effectiveness.

I think that really can help you not just on the energy front, but also just an office in general.

So I kind of want to know what your plan was to be able to uh deal with that, and I'll give you and I'll give you some statistics of why I think you should do that, because I believe you should implement all my ideas.

And uh I think we'd be so much better off if everybody did everything I told them to.

But um I think that's what I wanted to ask you first, and then secondly, I wanted to ask about the fresh food program, particularly at Butzel Family Center.

But if we can restore that for recreation centers, that's where we were actually feeding senior citizens through that program.

So I'll uh so let's just talk with the artificial intelligence piece first, and then if you can address the uh rec centers, and uh then I'll give my spiel why you should do artificial intelligence and I'll be done.

Through the chair to Pro Tim Um Young.

I think we all believe that there are some absolutely valid applications for AI.

I think that implementation is going to have to follow pretty robust framework uh to you know protect the information and and make sure that we have um valid kind of constructs built around it so that we can have sort of a compliant uh observe compliance and how we apply AI across the city.

What I'll do is hand off to um uh COO Lau so that she can talk a little bit about uh the compliance measures that she's looking at.

I was actually hoping you would ask this question today, so thank you for that.

Um I've been following along the other budget hearings which uh in which this has come up, and I think in my previous role I had the opportunity to really uh learn from the best um in the brightest in the AI field, and they've uh have been studying this for for many decades, and you know, AI nonetheless has spread like wildfire throughout uh the globe, and you know, I don't think the uh uh city of Detroit is is not immune to that.

Um I think before we um you know have any application of AI um into uh the you know across the city, um, you know, Chief Bowser mentioned that we do need to make sure that we have um a pretty good understanding of policy and governance.

Um and I think we really as leaders um need to take an effort to understand its capabilities and the limitations of it as well.

Um I think you know, doing so will position us uh within the city to thrive.

Um so I I think the ask that I have across the organization as well as here um you know with city council is to really tune out the hype and let's focus on you know scalable return on investment.

Um in order for us to do that, we have to actually pinpoint the the realistic use cases that will actually get us uh the the value for it.

Um so there's a lot of productivity tools out there, um, and that that's really just the beginning, but we can really transform how we operate um as city government and through our services.

Um and really it's also ensuring that we have transparency around the data that we use and that we have um really just uh uh understanding about the vulnerabilities involved as well.

So um we can certainly um you know tackle the routine tasks, but uh again collectively we have an opportunity to think about this more strategically so that we can actually get the return on the investment while we're protecting the best interest of our residents and our citizens.

Hope that answers your question.

No, no, it does.

I really appreciate that.

It was really kind of a bare bones thing.

I you know you you I I you I I really like how real that was, you know what I'm saying.

I uh I I I I didn't know if you were gonna like give like flowerly language or you were gonna be a little bit more uh uh beat about, but I really like how straightforward that was.

You're right about a lot of that stuff.

Yeah, I just I I'm just a little bit different.

I just I just like you know, when I want to do something, I want everybody to say, yeah, we should do this and why.

But you're right though.

We need to be serious about what this is and how this works.

We need to have more policies in terms of regulating it because these are the things that can be very dangerous.

I'm not saying we're at a singularity level yet, but it's going there.

And it's growing faster than most industries grow.

So I I I I totally agree if you need some rules or role with be careful with how we do this.

So if I may, I just want to add that it does have potential implications on workforce and workforce development, and so we want to ensure that we're partnering across the city as long as well as other uh stakeholder organizations to understand the implication and opportunities, if you will.

No, no, listen, I no, I appreciate I I I appreciate that.

You you are you you are absolutely right, and and I and I need someone to temper the enthusiasm and the gusto that I have to be able to do this, and also just my personality.

You are you know, I'm kind of like a bull to China catch cabinet when I want to do something.

And so I I I really I really appreciate that.

Um I also had a question.

Usually I give you all the reasons and flowery introduction of why you should do what I tell you, but I have to get going.

So um I want because I'm running behind, so I just want to give my the answer to my question that I'm done, Mr.

President, as to why we don't have why we can we restart the fresh food program at Bustle Center or recreation centers, why that stopped.

Yeah, and uh how much would it cost to start that back up?

Yeah, uh through you, Council President.

I flag this uh uh to uh member pro tem.

Uh I I was like this with our uh sustainability director uh to fair rushing, who's probably cheering uh for listening to this and and Patrice Brown, our urban ag uh we'll figure this out and we'll figure it out either with uh Eastern Market as either one of their community uh partners, but uh we'll figure it out.

Excellent.

Thank you so much.

I like to move it to executive session, uh bringing back the uh food restoration program within um recreation centers in the city of Detroit.

Motion made.

All right, colleagues, there's a motion on the floor.

Any objections?

Hearing none, that action shall be taken.

Thank you, sir.

Thank you.

Sorry about that, that's my problem.

Uh member Benson, is everyone prepared for additional motions or we absolutely okay?

Uh motion, this goes to the closing resolution.

Um strongly advocate and encourage support by the administration for the continued support of the millage to support our historic institutions.

There's a motion on the floor, colleagues.

Any objections?

See none, that action shall be taken.

Motion to the closing resolution, the return on investment for millage support for our cultural institutions.

There's a motion on the floor, colleagues.

Any objection?

See none that action shall be taken.

And then through yourself to LPD, what is the status of the city council's resolution urging the administration support for the millage campaign for our cultural institutions?

You have to wait until Mr.

Whitaker or that wing comes down, Mr.

Corley.

Yeah, thank you, Mr.

President.

Um City Council, yeah.

That would be a better question posed towards um director.

Um Mr.

Whitaker.

Also messaging in the questions, Mr.

Chair.

Sir, there's also messaging in the questions.

Yes, sir.

I understand.

All right.

Any additional okay.

All righty.

Member Calloway.

Thank you so much, Mr.

Chair.

Um I'd like to um put into um the closing resolution.

I'm not sure if I need to put this back into executive session.

This was placed in executive session two years ago.

Um I put in 350, we put in 350,000 into executive session about two years ago for a disparity study through CREO.

So I threw yourself to um, I guess Mr.

Corley, do I need to reintroduce it since it was never used for that purpose through the chair to Mr.

Corley?

Mr.

Corley.

Mr.

President, um to member um Canaway, yes, if if if you desire to reinstitute that idea, because it was not followed up, you know, in the previous administration, as we all know.

So if you want to reinstitute that, yeah, I will suggest that you put that back into executive session.

Um through your through the chair to you, Mr.

Corley.

Executive session and closing resolution or either or if you're looking to provide um through the president.

If you're looking to provide funding again, yes, then second session, and if you want to flesh out what your goals are with that program, then closing resolution.

Okay, so properly both.

Okay, thank you.

Thank you, Mr.

Corley.

Through um uh Mr.

Chair, I make a motion to put um in executive um session and closing resolution, three hundred and fifty thousand dollars for the creole disparity study.

Colleagues, there's a motion on the floor.

Any objections?

Seeing none, then action shall be taken.

Thank you, Mr.

Chair.

My next motion would be to add an additional 40,000 dollars into executive session and and also add this to the closing resolution for the historic Fort Wayne um feasibility study.

Um we gave them a hundred thousand dollars last year, and Mary Member Waters joined me on it, but they said they need an additional 40,000 dollars to get that study done.

So, Mr.

Chair, we'd like to add, I make a motion to add 40,000 to executive session and the historic Fort Wayne conversation into closing resolution, and we will work on the language.

There's a motion on the floor, colleagues.

Any objection with discussion, Member Santiago Romero.

Um to member Callaway, what was the historic Fort Wayne discussion again?

It well, we were asking for some type of feasibility through the chair, a feasibility study.

We've been working with the director over there, and um member waters and I put a hundred thousand dollars into the budget last year and it was supported, but they have been in touch with our office saying they need an additional 40,000 to complete the study because the historic Fort Wayne is just sitting there and it needs a lot of upgrades, and it is a national jewel.

So I'm just reintroducing it and adding 40,000 dollars because the 100,000 dollars was approved last year.

Got it through the chair to member Cali.

Understood.

If you wouldn't mind, uh we can talk offline because um I represent District 6, and this isn't something that's been brought up by any residents.

I just want to hear your thoughts um so that we understand and can support okay.

Absolutely.

Thank you, Mr.

Chair.

My motion remains.

I'll have that conversation with through yourself to um Member Santiago Romero.

I'll have that conversation with you.

But the 100,000 was already approved.

I'm just simply adding 40,000 dollars um to executive session, and we can flush out the conversation during the closing resolution.

That is my motion.

And uh, member waters and I'll be turning.

Is there further discussion, Member Waters?

Yes, sir.

Member Waters.

I'm gonna join her on it this year as well.

Thank you.

Representing the whole D and everything, you know.

There's a motion on the floor, colleagues.

Any objection?

Say none, that action shall be taken.

Ms.

Quarley, if you note that member waters would like to join uh member Callaway on that motion.

And thank you, Mr.

Chair, and my last um uh motion would be for the blight patrol.

It was an ordinance that we um passed unanimously.

Um we put $50,000 into the budget last year.

I'd like to um keep that same $50,000 because it was never spent, and I'd like to put it into executive session again this year and into the closing resolution, the whole conversation about the blight patrol and how we need to roll that out.

There's a motion on the floor, colleagues.

Any objections?

Seeing none, that action shall be taken.

Thank you, Mr.

Chair.

Thank you.

Member McCampbell.

Thank you, Mr.

Chair.

Um, just a two uh motions on closing resolution, a motion to add to the closing resolutions language, um, urging the administration um to uh extend their food access program for seniors um sorry the senior homes.

Colleagues, there's a motion on the floor.

Any objections?

Seeing none, that action shall be taken.

Thank you, Mr.

Chair, and the second is to add language to the closing resolution to ensure that our youth affair to urge the administration to make sure that to ensure that our youth affairs programming um is outside of recreation centers and um with community organizations and on the blocks as much as possible.

But I can follow up with more thank you, sir.

There's a motion on the floor.

Colleagues, any objections?

See none, then action shall be taken.

Thank you, Mr.

Chair.

Mr.

If through the chair, if you can just give us the list of that those 25 locations that suspend the two, that would be great.

Thank you.

Thank you, Mr.

Chair.

Thank you, Member Waters.

Thank you.

I um I didn't state this motion correctly yesterday, but I want to restate it for today for this group in particular.

So a motion to add re-add what was in last year, workforce housing fund with a focus on capital improvements.

So that we'll have private partnerships for existing homeowners.

That total is $500,000.

It's my motion.

Colleagues, there's a motion on the floor.

Any objection?

See none, that action shall be taken.

And Mr.

President, I'd like to place in closing resolution encouraging uh the mayor's office to um hire a um a liaison, someone that we can send land bank um issues to that's gonna go in a closing resolution.

There's a motion on the floor, colleagues.

Any objections?

Discussion with discussion, Member Benson.

Um support that but just want to re refresh my colleagues that we're also looking for a resolution and a process to actually have our own uh appointment to the land bank authority as per the current um handshake agreement.

Looking to codify that, just want to uh refresh that.

Thank you.

Um discussion with further discussion, members.

I don't like handshake deals.

Um if we can approve, we can have our own appointment where we actually select the person and appoint the person, then that's different.

But I'm telling you, a person is loyal to that person who appoints them, and that's just that's been proven time and time again.

So I just want to say that for the for the record.

Thank you.

Um with further discussion, just to let you know there is a this conversation happening right now that will actually make that happen.

It has not happened yet.

So the handshake deal is still in effect today, but moving forward, there is negotiations that are taking place to allow for council to have uh an appointed member that is directly assigned to council.

That you would do we choose ourselves.

Yes, ma'am.

Okay.

Feel free now to submit that name because there's an opening if you have someone that you're interested in.

Because I am you are okay.

Yes, ma'am.

Well, that's fine.

Okay.

I mean, as long as I know that my vote will allow me access to them.

Yes, ma'am.

Yes, ma'am.

Further discussion with further discussion.

And just I appreciate the conversation.

I also have submitted a name for that, and that motion was made in the Trental Ops to assign LPD to prepare the resolution and the process to codify our appointment of a land bank member.

We trust what we verify.

Handshakes are great, but codified language in an ordinance is even better.

And that's what we're working on now.

Thank you.

Thank you.

One of the challenges that we have right now is that there is no technical, technically, no uh members that are sitting in that seat.

So the reappointments are happening, appointments are happening.

Will we have to add that to the intergovernment agreement that council will have an appointment?

Again, as we've discussed.

That is already in the um but it could be in the MOU as well as bylaws with that particular entity.

Yes, ma'am.

That is part of the conversation that's taking place.

Well, I I'm glad I'm glad to be uh privileged through the information at this time, so thank you.

Yes, ma'am.

I will I will follow up with you personally, ma'am.

Yeah, okay.

But my CS said my motion still stands for that.

What's your motion again, ma'am?

Yeah.

Um just put in closing resolution to encourage the administration, the mayor's office in particular, to um have a uh liaison for so that we can send land bank complaints directly to the to her office via them.

All right, thank you.

There's a motion on the floor, colleagues.

Any objections?

See none, then action shall be taken.

All right.

Uh we will now go to member Johnson, followed by Member Santiago Romero.

Thank you, Mr.

Chair.

I'd like to make a motion to add to the closing resolution that DPW, the Department of Public Works, the Detroit Police Department, and the Planning and Development Department work together to examine crime hotspots and identify priority areas for crime prevention through environmental design.

So who is this here?

Colleagues, there's a motion on the floor.

Any objections?

Seeing none, that action shall be taken.

Thank you, Mr.

Presidents.

Uh, since Fort Wayne was brought up, and I'm sitting here thinking about what residents are asking of us and myself in in our office.

What they're really asking the city to do is to fix the fields so that they can play soccer.

I played soccer there as a kid.

Um and if you go there any summer, it is full of of people.

Uh, but it is horrendous.

Uh people get hurt all the time.

So we'd like to add uh to executive session um upgrades to the Fort Wayne fields and don't have a number, don't even know if we need that just now.

Maybe this could go to closing resolution, but we'd like to have those discussions.

Colleagues, there's a motion on the floor.

Any objections?

See none, then action shall be taken.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Colleagues, I would like to place uh into executive session a discussion uh regarding mosquito abatement programs surrounding um neighborhoods within neighborhoods surrounding the Rouge River motion.

There's a motion on the floor, colleagues.

Any objections?

See none, then action shall be taken.

Uh any further.

Okay.

Thank you.

We'd like to uh provide you with an opportunity for closing remarks.

Um just to the to the chair.

Uh just wanted to say thank you for the opportunity to sort of present um the mayor's objectives through her direct org chart.

Um looking forward to following up on each one of these um uh suggests for collaborations and um again looking forward to the work.

So thank you again.

Thank you.

This now closes out the budget hearing for the mayor's office.

Thank you so much.

Jeez.

Now transition to the budget hearing for make sure I get the name right.