The future of mass transit in Detroit

Transit station - Photo by Ted C/FreeImages.com

Earlier this afternoon, representatives from Macomb and Oakland Counties blocked a key vote that would have allowed voters in southeastern Michigan to decide on a millage to improve mass transit in the region. This is the 27th time that funding for a regional transit authority has been blocked due to parochial interests.

There are many across Michigan who a disappointed by this news. Many are even confused since the bulk of new transit options that would have been created under this plan would have been in Macomb and Oakland Counties.

While I join the echo of disappointed Detroiters, I must admit that I am not surprised by this development. Many in the northern suburbs, particularly the more distant suburbs, have long been hostile to public funding for mass transit.

The question that I believe all Detroiters must ask now is: where do we go from here?

There are no doubt those who will simply give up. Others will attempt to appease Macomb and Oakland Counties with an even greater share of transit benefits, most likely at the expense of those who live Downriver and in Western Wayne County.

I, however, advocate for a different option. The City of Detroit as well as Wayne and Washtenaw Counties are the three entities that were eager to move forward with improving mass transit in southeastern Michigan. There are also a few communities in our northern suburbs, such as Ferndale, who are also eager to see a better transit system in place.

Bus stop - Photo by Andre Montejorge

Rather than continue down the same path that we've been on for decades - of constantly trying to convince our holdout neighbors that this is in everyone's best interests and constantly being rebuffed - I believe it is everyone's best interest for those communities who see the value in transit to move forward on our own rather continuing to spend more time and resources convincing the holdouts that they're wrong.

By moving forward without these skeptics, we could improve upon the QLine and take it to 9 Mile. Build upon the walkable communities in Ann Arbor, Dearborn, and Ypsilanti. Provide coordinated support to the DDOT and AATA systems in Detroit and Ann Arbor.

Based on what we've seen in other parts of the country, people and business will likely flock to those parts of our region where transit is improved. (For a detailed accounting of this trend, please see Transit-Oriented Development in the United States: Experiences, Challenges, and Prospects by Robert Cervero available for free here.)

The holdouts will likely circle behind once they see the progress and realize that they cannot extract even more from the people of Wayne County. If they don't, it's more their loss than anyone else's.

The bottom line is that I believe it is time to stop allowing a relatively small group of individuals to hold the transportation needs of more than 2.1 million Michigan residents hostage. It's time for us to move forward, with or without the holdouts.

2,500 GM employees to help Detroit's neighborhoods

teamGM Cares - File photo

It’ll be all hands (and arms and legs) on deck when 2,500 General Motors employees return to Detroit’s Cody Rouge community, which includes much of Warrendale. They will volunteer the week of August 15. Employees will donate their time and talent to board up vacant homes, clean empty lots, spruce up streets, and tackle other neighborhood and school improvements.

The transformation is part of teamGM Cares, a company-wide volunteerism initiative that is partnering with the Cody Rouge Community Action Alliance (CRCAA), Cody High School and additional corporations. Several of GM’s senior executives will join employees throughout the week.

The CRCAA and residents have been working with GM and The Skillman Foundation since early 2016 to determine the community’s needs and develop plans. “Our organization has been working for 10 years to create a strong, sustainable community for residents and businesses,” says Kenyetta Campbell, CRCAA executive director. “We are excited to partner with GM to help amplify our work.”

GM’s improvements to Cody High will include a concession stand, fitness park, dugout, soccer field, pavilion and a complete field cleaning.

“GM’s employees made great progress two years ago and now we are returning to work with residents and community leaders to create a safer, sustainable neighborhood where families and businesses can thrive,” added Heidi Magyar, director of GM Community Outreach.

Other partners working with GM in Cody Rouge include Quicken Loans, DTE Energy, The Skillman Foundation, PwC, Roncelli, Inc., and Oak Pointe Church. Their projects will include:

• Employee volunteers from Quicken Loans will clean and paint boarded-up vacant structures and renovate the walking path at Rouge Park;
• DTE Care Force employee volunteers to support board-up efforts by clearing trees, assessing utilities and service reliability and by planting new trees in the neighborhood;
• The Skillman Foundation will provide logistical support to all employee volunteers;
• PwC will do cleaning and painting at Cody High School;
• Roncelli, Inc. will provide project management oversight; and
• Oak Pointe Church will provide onsite support at Cody High School.

The week of sweat equity concludes with an Employee and Community Family Fun Day on August 20, where residents and employee volunteers will relax over food and music. GM employees will distribute backpacks filled with school supplies to neighborhood students at the Fun Day. GM employees stuffed 5,000 backpacks at Cobo Center in June alongside attendees at Points of Light, the world’s largest volunteering and service conference.

47 years later

Astronaut on the Moon - Photo by NASA

Today, I feel an urge to set aside the needs and stories of the Warrendale neighborhood to focus on what I believe is an important anniversary. 47 years ago today, humanity left this rock we call Earth and took a stroll on the surface of the Moon.

47 years ago today, we lived out President John F. Kennedy's famous challenge to this nation.

47 years ago today, we did what so many skeptics said could never be done.

That, however, was 47 years ago.

Today, for the first time ever, the Hubbel Space Telescope examined the surface of two Earth-sized planets that are orbiting a star other than our Sun. While all of this is going on, NASA's Juno Mission to Jupiter is still exploring the largest planet in our solar system and some of the best engineers in the world are getting ready to have the next generation of astronauts land on an asteroid and on to Mars.

It's all one small step for man; one giant leap for mankind.

Guest column: Summer safety tips

Please share with family and friends the following summer safety tips:

1. Drink water;
2. Visit elderly people who live alone;
3. While vacationing, have mail and newspaper deliveries stopped;
4. Ladies: have a used pair of men's work boots on your porch;
5. Call your local police department and have your home placed on special attention
6. Place an alarm company sign in the front yard;
7. Surveillance cameras are helpful on the home;
8. Cut shrubs, trees, and grass on a regular basis;
9. Introduce yourself to neighbors and tell them what you want them to know (i.e. my nephew is a police commissioner);
10. Have your lighting/sprinkler system on a timer;
11. Fireworks are dangerous, be careful;
12. Basketball hoops and illegally opened fire hydrants should be reported immediately;
13. Squatting is illegal, call the police;
14. Don't get directly involved in police matters...be a good witness instead;
15. When throwing away boxes from expensive purchases, reduce boxes to fit in trash cans;
16. Get a shredder for old paperwork to reduce the chance of identity theft;
17. Change up your travel pattern, times of departure and arrival times;
18. Stop telling people all of your business;
19. Don't volunteer information over the telephone; and
20. Don't leave items you care about to be kept in open view for all to see

IMPORTANT: This is going to be a hot summer.....please look after each other!!!!

This guest column was submitted by Commissioner Ricardo Moore, who represents the Warrendale and surrounding neighborhoods on the Detroit Police Commission.

Triple murder on the west side of Detroit

Police officers respond to shooting - Photo by Frank Nemecek

There was a shooting this morning at 6523 Brace St. that resulted in three people being killed. The location is a known drug house, according to published news reports.

Police officers stress that they are very early into their investigation. However, it appears that an unknown individual or individuals entered the home at approximately 5:30 this morning through a basement window in the backyard of the home. The shooter then executed two individuals who were asleep before fatally shooting a third man who was standing outside in the driveway.

After word spread through the neighborhood of this shooting, a crowd of more than 100 people began to congregate outside of this home. The Detroit Police Department, with assistance from the Michigan State Police, managed to maintain order. People were allowed to watch from a distance, but had to had to stay behind a taped-off area to preserve evidence.

This investigation is still on-going. Anyone with information about this case is asked to call the Detroit Police Department.

Minority Business Development Agency invests $1.5 million in Detroit

The U.S. Department of Commerce Minority Business Development Agency today announced that the Michigan Minority Purchasing Council will receive a grant to operate an MBDA Business Center in Detroit.

This federal funding will be distributed annually during a five-year period with a start date of April 1, 2016.  The agency intends to release $301,225 per year for each of the next fives for the center in Detroit.

This grant program is designed to help minority-owned firms across the nation create jobs, develop their business, and compete in the global economy.  A key component of MBDA’s Business Center Network is providing minority firms with access to technical expertise and resources to grow their businesses.    

According to data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2012 Survey of Business Owners, minority-owned firms in the United States increased from 5.8 million in 2007 to 8 million in 2012, and employed 7.2 million people in 2012. In Michigan, there are currently 158,946 minority-owned firms, that contribute more than $23.6 million annually in economic output.  These firms employ more than 147,000 local residents.

The need for change within the Detroit Police Department

Mayor Mike Duggan and Chief James Craig have made a lot of progress bringing improvements to the Detroit Police Department. There are, however, moments that show just how much work needs to still be done.

One particular resident of the Warrendale neighborhood, who lives on Tireman Street near Rouge Park, discovered that two men were burglarizing her home on the morning of Wednesday, January 27. She called 9-1-1 to report this a total of three times, with her final call being logged at 9:47 a.m.

At 9:49 a.m., records from the Detroit Police Department show that her complaint was routed to police dispatching. The problem is that there weren't any police officers available to respond to her call.

And so her plea for help sat in their system.

Three Detroit Police vehicles drove past her home and this resident tried to flag each of them down to let them know that these intruders were still in her home stealing her belongings. Unfortunately, none of them stopped.

Each of those police cars were already en route to another call where someone else desperately needed them.

It wasn't until 12:06 p.m. - almost two and a half hours after her last call to 9-1-1 - that police officers with Scout 6-2 finally arrived at the scene. By that time, the perpetrators had already fled the scene. The burglary on Tireman Street has become another in a long series of unsolved felonies in Detroit.

Mayor Mike Duggan and Chief James Craig have made a lot of progress bringing improvements to the Detroit Police Department. Moments like this, however, show just how much work still needs to be done.