District 5 Community Advisory Council Town Hall
Detroit City Council
Politics
8850 Woodward Ave Detroit, MI 48202 (Directions)
Topics of Discussion:
Introduction of the D5 CAC Board members Presentation : How do Community Advisory Councils work? Public Comment
Speakers - Public Safety Discussion
Charles Simms Fire Commissioners, City of Detroit
James White Police Chief, City of Detroit
Check the source website for additional information
Reporting
Edited and summarized by the Detroit - MI Documenters Team
Live reporting by
Anna Harris
Executive Fire Commissioner Chuck Simms, appointed last month, was introduced. The Detroit Fire Department will receive a new fleet of firetrucks, ambulances and drones.
At 6:07, there appear to be more presenters here than attendees. To be fair, there is little lighting outside the building, and only a handwritten sign on the side door to indicate the event. It’s possible people are not finding the location, or will be here later.
At 6:15, it is determined that we will begin. J. Gregory Love, CAC Chairman, opens the meeting. This is the last meeting of the year, and Love thought it would be a good idea to have a public safety summit.
Byron Osbern, Vice Chairman and Lynn Wiggins, Treasurer are also in attendance. The Secretary and Member are not present tonight.
Osbern offers some opening remarks as well. He thanks Detroit FD for being there for a couple of house fires, and for bringing an engine to the Boston Edison block party for the kids.
He says, “I want to leave the city in a better place than I found it”, which is why he is serving on the board.
Wiggins welcomes attendees to the Historic St. Matthew’s and St. Joseph’s, and provides some history on the church. He talks about his experience of Devil’s Night in the ‘80s, saying there was more violence and drug activity then. Secretary Sellers has arrived.
Sellers talks about some of her work in Detroit, including Detroit People’s Platform and @momjustice.
@momjustice Love talks about the redistricting of @CityofDetroit city council districts happening in 2024, and refers to the five maps showing possible redistricting options from which city council will pick the new district layout.
@momjustice @CityofDetroit Recently-appointed Fire Commissioner Chuck Simms introduces himself and his staff. He wants to improve morale in the fire department, and has surveyed DFD for opportunities. He is looking at the department’s processes, and wants to prioritize community engagement.
@momjustice @CityofDetroit Simms reviews some of the recent work of DPD. Starting with EMS: response times are 7m15s now, compared with 20 minutes in 2014. The dept runs 38-42 ambulances per day during peak times. Response to structure fires is 5 minutes.
@momjustice @CityofDetroit The fire marshall has upped inspections of critical structures - schools, gas stations, and other buildings. At 6:38, we have about 10 attendees, up from about 5 at the start of the meeting.
@momjustice @CityofDetroit Simms also mentions programs for kids to learn CPS. Love commends this, and asks about getting AEDs for more places in District 5. Simms says that city councilmembers submitted lists of sites. Detroit could be the first Heart Safe Community @AEDLocator HeartSafe Community…
@momjustice @CityofDetroit @AEDLocator Love asks if the proposed I-375 narrowing will impact response times. The department will be following up, as they don’t have enough information right now.
@momjustice @CityofDetroit @AEDLocator Love also asks about a recently apprehended “fire bug”, and generally about the recent rise of arson. Simms clarifies that this was a domestic violence situation, where a man set fire to his ex-girlfriend’s apartment with her and her two children inside. The perpetrator…
@momjustice @CityofDetroit @AEDLocator …was arrested within 24 hours, as he was caught on a Project Greenlight camera filling an old bleach bottle with gasoline, which he used in the arson.
@momjustice @CityofDetroit @AEDLocator Osbern asks about who to contact about “suspicious” fires - the arson tip line is (313) 628-2900.
@momjustice @CityofDetroit @AEDLocator Sellers asks about fire fighting procedure - does the roof have to collapse before the DFD will use water on the house? She mentions that people have conspiracy theories about this. Simms clarifies that the fire needs ventilation before it can be…
@momjustice @CityofDetroit @AEDLocator …extinguished to avoid the buildup of explosive gasses, because that could be dangerous. He acknowledges that the dept takes a defensive position on vacant dwellings, because it isn’t a priority to risk fighters’ lives in those cases.
@momjustice @CityofDetroit @AEDLocator Wiggins says his mother recently moved into a senior high rise building, and says it is poorly managed. He wants to know what the frequency of fire drills is, and then talks about the need for more inspections. DFD: such buildings are considered critical infrastructure.
@momjustice @CityofDetroit @AEDLocator There should be annual fire drills, and the sprinkler systems and other fire mitigations also get regular inspections. Notably, DFD inspects all schools, DPSCD and otherwise, in the city of Detroit.
@momjustice @CityofDetroit @AEDLocator Love closes out the Council Q&A to move to questions from the public.
@momjustice @CityofDetroit @AEDLocator 🚨 Public Questions 🚨 The first speaker compliments the DFD, saying they are “an example of the love of the city of Detroit”. There are no other questions or comments at this time.
@momjustice @CityofDetroit @AEDLocator Simms mentions that the department will be getting 14 drones for increased surveillance of events and incidents. Love says the relationship between DFD and DPD is the best he’s ever seen, citing the teamwork on the recent arson arrest mentioned earlier.
@momjustice @CityofDetroit @AEDLocator Osbern notes that budget season is coming up, and asks what residents can do to support DFD funding. Simms is optimistic, as next year’s budget includes the largest increase ever ($187 million for FY2025).
@momjustice @CityofDetroit @AEDLocator With 10 new fire trucks on the road and 24 nee ambulances forthcoming, Detroit has one of the newest fleets of fire fighting apparatuses in the country.
@momjustice @CityofDetroit @AEDLocator Love invites up a staffer for Mary Sheffield to speak. He mentions the “Bloody Creek”, and expresses concern about soil remediation there. Upcoming events: 12/13 from 4-6 at Durfee, there will be a toy giveaway. 12/15, 6-8pm at Pistons Practice Facility: senior holiday party.
@momjustice @CityofDetroit @AEDLocator 12/2, 3pm at Northwest Activities Center: reparations task force meeting.
@momjustice @CityofDetroit @AEDLocator A resident asks about a leaking fire hydrant at Grand Blvd that impacts her residential water pressure. Simms notes that the Water Board handles hydrant maintenance, but plans to follow up directly.
@momjustice @CityofDetroit @AEDLocator A rep from Councilmember Mary Water’s office thanks the council for having her, and compliments the AED program.
@momjustice @CityofDetroit @AEDLocator Love weighs in on the emergency management of Detroit, saying he thinks it wasn’t handled “efficiently”. (In response to a prior question: the redistricting vote will be at the end of January)
@momjustice @CityofDetroit @AEDLocator Love closes out the meeting by requesting prayers for the CAC member who could not be here because she is in the hospital. Sellers asks attendees to take the D5 survey on the @CityofDetroit website. Osbern wishes the group happy holidays.
@momjustice @CityofDetroit @AEDLocator Simms notes that the dept just hired a social media manager as DFD is undergoing a rebranding, and encourages folks to follow @DetroitFire on all platforms. The meeting is adjourned at 7:34pm.
@momjustice @CityofDetroit @AEDLocator @DetroitFire For more meeting coverage, check out . #detdocumenters documenters.org
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@momjustice @CityofDetroit @AEDLocator @DetroitFire If you believe anything in these notes is inaccurate, please email us at documenters@outliermedia.org with "Correction Request" in the subject line.
Agency Information
Detroit City Council
The Detroit City Council is the legislative body of Detroit, Michigan, United States. The Council is responsible for the creation of local laws—called ordinances. Additionally they pass resolutions, motions, and the proposed city budget. The full-time council is required to meet every business day for at least 10 months of the year, with at least eight of these meetings occurring at a location besides city hall. The council may convene for special meetings at the call of the mayor or at least four members of council. Areas of responsibility for the Budget, Finance and Audit Committee include, Budget, Finance and the Auditor General.
City Council members are elected on the same cycle as the Mayor and will be elected in 2021. Seven members represent the seven council districts, while two members are elected at-large.