Committee hears repeated public pleas to engage youth downtown rather than rely on policing

The Public Health and Safety standing committee heard an hour of public comment on April 6 focused on treatment of young people downtown and alternatives to policing.

Residents urged the committee to prioritize engagement and services. Jennifer Onwenu, a resident of District 2, said downtown youth “were met with shunning, arrested, and disrespected” over the weekend and asked the city to seek inclusive, non-predatory approaches ahead of the Grow Detroit Youth Talent program. Parish Halsall told the committee that “public safety is not improved due to an increased police presence” and asked what services are being provided to welcome youth into public spaces. A caller identified as Owner Papa asked for more programming and regular updates about contaminated “dirty dirt” areas that he called a citywide health issue.

The committee chair (presiding) acknowledged the callers’ concerns and said members plan to coordinate with the administration’s youth outreach staff to review summer plans and staffing for youth services. The chair also noted ongoing discussion of de-escalation training and ‘‘wraparound services’’ to support young people rather than defaulting to ticketing or arrests.

Council Member Mary Waters said she enjoyed seeing large numbers of young people downtown and emphasized the importance of giving them a place to gather and programming to keep them engaged. Vice Chair Denzel Anton McCampbell and other members agreed, calling for more non-police responses such as peer educators and community-based responders; Waters also pointed to existing community after-school programs in District 7 that could be connected to city efforts.

Members suggested activating underused public spaces, including Hart Plaza, and asked the administration to present concrete summer plans. The chair closed the public comment period by asking staff to follow up with the administration’s youth coordinator and to return with additional information. No formal policy or funding decisions were made at the meeting; several related memos and items were set for one-week follow-up so the committee can review written responses and staffing plans.

What’s next: Committee members requested an administration briefing on summer youth programming and possible non-police response models; several memos about related services and enforcement were scheduled to return to the committee in one week.