Advocate for city charter proposals explains his position

Scott Klein

By Charles Sercombe
Hamtramck’s ballot proposals (1 and 2) ask voters whether they want to eliminate the city charter sections that establish the police and fire departments, along with each department’s chiefs.
If voters agree to this change in the charter, the city council would be given authority to come up with an alternative way to provide those services.
As one can imagine, the proposals have stirred vigorous debate in the community – which is mostly being played out on social media.
This week, we asked the person behind a website (Keep Hamtramck Safe, which can be found at https://mimaps.org/ ) dedicated to promoting “yes” votes on the proposals, Scott Klein, to explain his position.
Klein is a former resident, city councilmember and member of a now-defunct City Charter Commission, which delivered the current city charter.
Next week, a representative from the Hamtramck Firefighters union will have his turn to explain the firefighters’ opposition to the proposals.

Review: What is the purpose of your website?
Klein: The purpose of the website, www.mimaps.org, is to offer a reasoned, sensible, and rational voice that is often lacking in debates around public safety, a voice that otherwise would have been absent as voters consider Hamtramck’s future.

Review: Why are you concerned about a Hamtramck charter revision issue?
Klein: I’ve been involved in Hamtramck politics and elections for nearly 25 years. I served on both the Hamtramck Charter Commission in 2002, and on City Council from 2003 until 2010.
I am heavily invested in the success of Hamtramck, which includes finding solutions that keep Hamtramck solvent. This ballot measure very much speaks to solvency.

Review: Are you being paid to work on this website? If so, by whom?
Klein: Beginning with Preserve Our Park’s campaign to save the ball field at Veterans Park the first time, in `1996, I have always volunteered my time because I believe in Hamtramck.
There is support for passing the charter amendments. What is lacking are people willing to step forward and speak in opposition to the status quo, because they know how mean and nasty campaigns can be in Hamtramck.
This certainly continues to be a deterrent to civil engagement in the city. This creates a space for someone like me who has been maligned over the years, sometimes rightly and sometimes not. Obviously, I have pretty thick skin.

Review: What would you like to see happen with providing police and fire services? Is there more than one alternative you have in mind?
Klein: There is a strong argument for replacing the sections of the charter with an ordinance. I expect the city manager’s administration, which has shown itself to be both careful and conservative, to approach any change cautiously.
What would be in order is a study group appointed by the city manager, which would include residents and stake holders to make recommendations on ways to move forward. Based on that report, the city manager could make recommendations and craft an ordinance governing public safety in Hamtramck going forward.

Review: How will the city save money by adopting a different way of providing police/fire services?
Klein: It depends on the changes ultimately recommended by the city manager, and what the council adopts. There is a ceiling, somewhere in the million-dollar range, that can be reached without effecting the quality of service provided.

Review: If a public safety department is one alternative, that approach seems to have a negative reputation, and some communities that tried that have even switched back to having separate police and fire departments. How do you respond to this?
Klein: I do not remember anyone in city government saying public safety department is what will happen when the proposal passes, other than voices in support of the status quo.
This campaign is saying is its time to start the discussion on how public safety is delivered in Hamtramck going forward. The only way to have that discussion is to vote yes.

Review: Would residents still get the services they are used to?
Klein: Yes. Nothing in the proposal will prevent Hamtramck from continuing to provide public safety services from the day it passes. Anyone who says different is just trying to scare people, which is what happens around this sort of issue.
Fear works, and that’s why opponents of this proposal are engaging in fear mongering instead of presenting their own vision of how public safety can be reformed.

Review: What are some misconceptions about changing the charter as proposed?
Klein: There is no legal requirement that public safety departments be included in the city charter. Excluding public safety departments from the charter does not mean that the departments would disband. In fact, other than the position of city manager, the rational for including any department head in the city charter is questionable.

Review: The reaction from people on social media has been largely in opposition to these charter revisions. What would you say to those folks?
Klein: Vote. There are 13,164 registered voters in Hamtramck.

Review: Anything else you would like to add or comment on?
Klein: Currently, Hamtramck subsidizes the Detroit Fire Department. Hamtramck firefighters are paid more than Detroit pays their firefighters.
The vast majority of fire runs Hamtramck preforms are responding to Detroit calls. Last year, Hamtramck reported an average of two calls in the city every month. The rest of the calls in a month are for fires in Highland Park and Detroit. There’s nothing wrong with that, we all are better off when we work together.
The best question to ask is, are you getting the best value for your tax dollars under the current arrangement, which benefits Detroit more than it does Hamtramck? They (Detroit) get an extra firehouse full of highly paid firefighters for free.
And if you agree that this is not the best value, the only way to replace the status quo is to vote “yes” on proposals 1 and 2.
Posted Oct. 2, 2020