Detroit City Council Formal Session, 10 a.m.

Agenda: https://bit.ly/3tzTWmF

Note: you can access relevant documents by clicking the 📎 icon next to each agenda item

The public can access City Council’s calendar, links to join meetings virtually and watch previous meetings on City Council’s website.

Watch live on Channel 10:

http://video.detroitmi.gov/CablecastPublicSite/watch/6?channel=1

If you’re following along with me today, watch for a ‘🚨’ to signify the start of public comment

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The meeting is called to order at 10:05am!🎉

Council President Mary Sheffield is absent today. President Pro Tem James Tate is leading the meeting today. https://t.co/cwVGDsDpFV

Invocation provided by Pastor Barry Randolph this morning.

Items under Sections 5-9 were referred to the appropriate Standing Committees

🚨Public Comment is starting now!

1. (left) Lives in Aviation Sub, received an $18K+ quote from Victors Roofing to repair her garage roof. She entered an agreement with them and experienced various other issues. She said the contractor was “predatory”. Council member Durhal said his office is on it. https://t.co/kF20zQW6gL

1. (left) Lives in area near AMC Redevelopment. Despite the fact that the proposed investment falling just shy of the threshold to trigger a CBO, she said neighborhoods concerns haven’t been addressed. https://t.co/98GuKyubhQ

1. Said the Hudson Site has helped employ skilled trades workers which has changed the life of Detroiters. Supports the Hudson development. https://t.co/76SG2utgrl

1. Expressed frustration about the lack of money that is allocated to support Detroit residents

1. Transit advocate, rides the bus to/from Southgate everyday. Wants to see the work DDOT has done related to ARPA continue. Also wants DDOT to apply for more funding to continue providing services and to support growth of the system further

1. Said a report about the Tiny Homes Program looks like it was written by Cass Community Social Services. Said it fails to report unpaid property taxes, lack of homeownership outcomes, and 31 people who signed a petition demanding safe living conditions https://t.co/d5jnE3KBVt

1. Asked Council to vote no on the Hudson Site tax abatement and to instead hold developers accountable by ensuring they are investing in the community

1. Shared her experience living in Cass Community Social Services’ facilities. Specifically, food has been stolen, drugs, fights, mildew in basement, showers not working, etc https://t.co/d25uuLFIcZ

Tate responded to #8 and asked someone from his team to connect with her to receive more info, noting they’ve received a number of complaints about Cass Community. He’d like to take a deeper look into what’s going on

1. Explained the circumstances surrounding Ms. Brown’s eviction. Specifically, retaliation after she spoke up when she discovered another Tiny Homes participant was being evicted. Shared @DetEvictDefense’s website https://t.co/OEvZOdDA51

1. Thanked Benson for having lots cut in her neighborhood. Has concerns about trees in the same area, especially during storms.

That concludes in-person comments. Now moving to virtual

1. Shared concerns about air quality in area near FCA plant and the lack of response the neighborhood is receiving

2. Prayed for the people in another language

1. Said they’re an “advocate against public wealth extraction” and financial tools that are “weaponized” living in poverty. Opposed to the proposed tax abatement for the Hudson site. Said his family is scrambling to find childcare due to the schools closing because of the heat

13 (cont’d) and the schools don’t have air conditioning. Feels it’s “ludicrous” for Council to consider giving more money for skyscrapers.

1. Said residents have been “suffering under the foot of Dan Gilbert”. Opposed tax abatements for Dan Gilbert.

1. Said there’s people that want to stay in Detroit and the city should be protecting them rather than developers. Opposed tax abatements for the Hudson site.

1. Opposed tax abatements for the Hudson site due to lack of affordable/low-income housing. Doesn’t think the city should subsidize millionaires

1. Said “tax abatements of any ind need to stop” and asked where poverty has decreased and employment increased due to tax abatements. Also said the findings in the Perforamnce Audit of the Public Lightlight Authority are “very disturbing”

1. Asked about the status of DDOT transitioning to paratransit services and if they’re requesting enought money to actually follow through. He and other public transit organizers are concerned the transitition isn’t happening in a transparent manner.

1. Opposed tax abatements for the Hudson site. Also asked that Council not allow the Mayor to use $100M in ARPA funds for demolition of industrial sites. Feels it should be invested in housing for Detroiters

1. Asked City Council to delay their vote on the Hudson site tax abatements so they can conduct an impact study on the impact of each mileage. Wants to know what will be impacted by such an impact specifically.

1. Said they want Council to vote no on “the welfare check” they want to give to Dan Gilbert. Wants the city to fund the people so they can obtain housing and to stop overtaxing them.

1. Said there has to be a balance between the city as a place for profit vs. a place for people. “Development has to be equitable” Said money generated from investments isn’t trickling down to Detroiters, resulting in them leaving the city to find housing and opportunities

1. Director of Community Engagement for Barton Malow (contractor for Hudson site) - said Bedrock continues “to make incredible commitments” related to jobs and opportunities to participate in these projects. Encouraged support for the tax abatement

1. Encouraged Council to delay their vote on the Hudson site abatements. Thinks they need more data for residents regarding the impact of the abatement. Spoke about the original request of 20% affordable housing and Bedrock representatives convincing Council they couldn’t

1. Doesn’t think the city should be giving out tax abatements until they repay Detroit retirees. They have asked for $1,400 to help them adjust to inflation. Asked how many retirees have died.

1. Believes “this development is a landmark for the city and deserves the abatements” noting their efforts to hire Detroiters and support for overtaxed residents

1. Virginia Park residents - shared various concerns related to economic development and TIF reimbursements

1. Kristin Lusn, Chairperson of the Detroit Board of Ethics and member of the NAC for the Hudson Site project. Spoke in support of the tax abatements, noting the CBO was completed to their satisfaction. Said the economic impact outweighs the upfront costs

1. Urged council to vote no on the Hudson site abatement, noting the city is in a housing crisis. Shared concerns related to the rate of office vacancies right now and marketability. Feels there needs to be more due diligence

1. Mentioned that council members have accepted campaign money from Gilbert companies and doesn’t think they should vote on the tax abatement because it’s “not a good look”

1. Discussed concerns related to four wheelers and reckless driving

1. Asked why the transfer of Tiny Homes (Cass Community) is still being worked out. If the goal is to become homeowners’ ad the program started 5 years ago, it should’ve been figured out by

The last two comments opposed tax abatements for the Hudson site development.

And that concludes public comment for today!

All items under Section 15 were approved. Whitfield-Calloway, Santiago-Romero and Young voted no on 15.3, 15.6 through 15.9.

16.1 through 16.3 were also approved

Now discussing the Hudson Site tax abatement.

Councilmember Durhal requested that City Council delay the matter for 2 weeks to address some of the questions raised during public comment today.

President Pro Tem Tate said they had a “thorough discussion” on Thursday when the matter was in Committee.

Existing property taxes are $207,812 right now. Taxes will increase slightly during the abatement period. After the 10-year abatement expires, taxes will be approximately $2.7 million.

Under the existing property taxes, approx. $33K is captured for the Detroit Public Library. After the 10-year abatement, the library would receive approx. $436K

LPD ran through the estimated increases to tax captures from their report. You can read more here: https://bit.ly/3MVbUqd

LPD also discussed the city’s ability to revoke the tax abatement if they find the developer hasn’t proceeded “in good faith”

Whitfield-Calloway said she hasn’t received any donations from Quicken Loans or any companies owned by Dan Gilbert.

Whitfield-Calloway’s comment follows a public comment earlier and a @freep article that was posted this morning about the developer’s contributions to the Mayor and several council members’ political campaigns: https://bit.ly/3OcqM4B

Whitfield-Calloway noted that 13 people were opposed to tax abatements for the Hudson Site this morning. She said this is a small sample, but it’s what the people are asking them to do.

Whitfield-Calloway: “This is an opportunity for us to stand up for the people that are saying they don’t want the tax abatement to be granted. This tax abatement is not even necessary for this development…”

Councilmember Young discussed the income generated from Detroit residents working on the Hudson development. He discussed the loss of jobs that would occur if that development was unable to see its way through to completion.

Council member Young about the jobs created as a result of the Hudson site development: “The best social program is a good-paying, high-paying job. That’s what these are.”

Whitfield-Calloway said Dan Gilbert has more than enough money to complete the project without this abatement. Related to job creation, she said she doesn’t see anybody who looks like her on the project

Whitfield-Calloway said the city continues to award companies who are in violation of the Mayor’s executive orders that require contractors to hire over a certain % of Detroiters.

Whitfield-Calloway said she would be “foolish” to say there were only 13 people opposed and 4 in support of the tax abatement. She supports Durhal’s motion to delay the vote for two weeks

Johnson said she doesn’t wear her emotions her sleeve and loks at numbers, facts, etc. She said she’s heard misinformation about the development and thinks it’s important to ensure City Council is educating residents and providing accurate info.

Mr. Head, LPD, explained the transformational brownfield certificate they received. For transformational brownfield projects, 50% of state income tax generated by employees and sales tax is captured for 20 years.

As a result of that 20-year abatement approved in 2017, it was estimated that the Rock Companies would get a $600 million tax break. However, Mr. Head noted that there was $700 million in benefits expected to be generated as a result of the development.

Council member Durhal said that “education is a dangerous thing”. He discussed his time in the state legislature when brownfield tax credits were a positive thing for economic development because there was less red tape, meanwhile it’s a negative thing on the ground in Detroit

Durhal and Benson both discussed their efforts to educate the public about the process of tax abatements and how they work. There’s an upcoming educational workshop that Benson is a part of (details to follow this meeting)

📢City Council has agreed to delay their vote on a tax abatement for the Hudson site development. They will now vote on the matter next week. President Pro Tem James Tate was the only objection.

Moving forward on the agenda, 16.5 was approved.

16.6 will be brought back at the end of the agenda.

17.1 - 17.4 were approved.

The administration asked to remove 17.5. Gail Fulton, Mayor’s Office, said they are working out tax clearance issues and will resubmit the contract once it’s resolved. This is an emergency demolition contract for $61,320 with Rickman Enterprise.

Whitfield-Calloway said Rickman is one of the companies on CRIO’s list of contractors that aren’t in compliance with the mayor’s executive orders. She noted that this may be a larger systemic issue with the orders, suggesting the city may be too strict on hiring requirements

17.5 was removed from the agenda.

All items under Section 18 were approved.

Items under Sections 20-24 were referred to the appropriate standing committees.

Returning to 6.6 (held until the end of the agenda) - this was approved, as amended

And we are at the end of today’s agenda!

Now hearing Member’s Report

Durhal welcomed everyone to attend tonight’s Evening Community Meeting at 7:00pm. More info: https://bit.ly/3mRPqMc

Johnson wished her Chief of Staff a happy birthday.

Santiago-Romero shared info about the District 6 Community Meeting on Thursday. It will be in person at 6:00pm at Patton Recreation Center.

She thanked Council for supporting her resolution for Immigrant Heritage Month.

Young wished everyone a happy Juneteenth and said he looks forward to addressing the reparations report.

Waters said she had the opportunity to serve on a panel with the Boys and Girls Club. They listened to presentations from aspiring entrepreneurs and decided who would receive a scholarship based on creativity. She said it was rewarding to hear the thoughts/ideas of young people

Benson shared details about the first of DEGC’s Tax Incentives Educational Series will be on June 13th at 6:00pm at the Farwell Recreation Center.

Benson also said the restaurant grading ordinance he’s been working on has been submitted and is now in committee.

Benson cont’d - They’re doing outreach and want to ensure stakeholders are award and educated on the ordinance and its impact. First engagement event will be on 6/23 at 7:30pm at the Majestic Theatre

Whitfield-Calloway said she participated in the 3 Mile Walk in Palmer Park on Saturday with Friends of Palmer Park. She also attended the MacDowell Community Assn and a podcast with New Prospect Missionary Baptist Church

Whitfield-Calloway cont’d - she also joined Adopt A Block for the 2nd time to clean up blight and illegal dumping

Tate thanked everyone for their patience as he sat in for Council President Sheffield. With nothing further on the agenda, the meeting was adjourned at 12:30pm.

This concludes the Detroit City Council Formal Session on Tuesday, June 14th, 2022.

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