City Hall Insider … 11/12/24

By Charles Sercombe
The city council met on Nov. 12, and all councilmembers, except Muhith Mahmood, were present.
A Detroit resident complained that his sister, who was in a traffic accident where her car was hit by another driver, was the one who was ticketed.
He said it was the other driver who was at fault, and that he has surveillance camera footage to prove it. However, he admitted that his sister paid the ticket anyway.
City Manager Max Garbarino said that, since the ticket had been paid, the issue is moot.
Police Chief Jamiel Altaheri said his department is reviewing the matter.

The council OK’d a series of contracts to replace lead water lines. In this phase, 259 lead service lines will be replaced on Alice, Danforth, Council, Berres, and Jacob streets.
The project costs over $2.1 million, and is being paid for by President Biden’s American Rescue Plan Act.
John Hennessey, of Hennessey Engineers, said this is the last phase of a citywide lead water lines replacement that cost $25 million from the national funding act.
Hennessey said that 1,700 lines were replaced in the last year. There are still more lines to replace, he said, but the city will have to look for other grant programs to continue on.

In another project this year, 243 lead service lines will be replaced on St Aubin, Roosevelt, Lehman, and Hanley streets. This phase will cost $1.9 million, which will come from the same funding source.
Moving on, the council approved the sale of a city-owned lot at 11551Lumpkin, for $10,000, to Abdu Dagenah, who plans to build a single-family house.
The council also approved the purchase of a Ford Explorer ST for the police department. The vehicle will be used by an investigator who will be assigned to a DEA task force that investigates fraud and narcotic sales.
The cost of the vehicle is $57,500.
Councilmember Khalil Refai questioned why the department needs a top-of-the-line Ford Explorer. Police Chief Altaheri said it matches the vehicles being used by other task force members.
Altaheri also said that the investigations could produce “possibly millions’ of dollars in revenue.
City Manager Garbarino said the city needs this model because it has a more powerful engine.
“You don’t want to be chasing them (suspects) with a Go Kart,” he said.
Council meetings for December were adjusted for the holiday season. The council will meet only once in that month, on Dec. 17, instead of twice.

An update on the Caniff repaving project was given by the city’s Department of Public Service (DPS).
But first, City Manager Garbarino said that the next phase in repaving the street, from Gallagher to Conant, will have to be delayed for the year.
“There is good cause to close the next phase in its entirety,” he said.
DPS Director John DeAngelis explained the reason: He said that the next portion of Caniff has a 2-and-a-half foot elevation difference, which he said has posed a serious risk to drivers for many years because of a weak foundation.
“I’m surprised nobody’s been killed yet,” he said.
That portion of Caniff has asphalt underneath the concrete. The reason for that is unknown.
Also, that portion poses another obstacle because the sewer lines that cross the street take odd angles, again for reasons unknown.
DeAngelis also said that the council’s wish to keep one lane open during the repaving process is not possible because it would pose a risk of injuring construction workers who may get hit by passing cars.
As for the current portion of Caniff that had been repaved, that work should be completed any day.
The council approved the hiring of Afiya Ali-Hussain as city treasurer. The position pays $85,000 a year plus fringe benefits.
Mayor Amer Ghalib welcomed her, and said he hopes she will remain on the job.
“I hope you don’t leave like the first ones,” he said. “We had two people who were appointed, and then they left before they started. I don’t know why.”

In another item, the council agreed to adopt an ordinance that prohibits vehicles with modified exhaust systems that purposely make the vehicle loud.
The resolution read, in part:
“… Modified exhaust systems creating excessive noise levels disturb the peace and pose a nuisance to the community, impacting residents’ health, comfort, and general welfare; and it is the responsibility of the City to protect the well-being of its residents by promoting a peaceful and quiet environment. …”
The council specifically directed the city manager to:
o Take whatever necessary actions to give relief to the residents on this matter
o Utilize extra overtime funds, if necessary, to create a dedicated traffic task force to aid in compliance
o Work with the Police Department to raise awareness about these laws and ordinances and the associated penalties to encourage compliance and promote a quieter, safer community environment.
Councilmember Refai pointed out that state law prohibits these modifications.
But Councilmember Mohammed Hassan said he is concerned about how officers are going to prove the noise is excessive.
Police Chief Altaheri said that officers can issue tickets based on observation alone. It was said that most of the vehicles with this modification are driven by young men.
“There is so much going on in our city because of these young guys because we are not enforcing it,” Altaheri said.
He added: “In a small town like Hamtramck, I don’t think we need those.”

In Mayor Ghalib’s report, he said the most significant event recently was the presidential election.
(Ghalib supported former president Donald Trump, the Republican nominee. Trump won the election.)
“Now that the election is over we need to go back to focus on our unity and working together to serve our people, our community,” Ghalib said.
“In Hamtramck, there is no loser, no winner. We all work as a team.”
While Trump did not receive the most votes in Hamtramck, he was only about 200 votes behind Vice President Kamala Harris.
Ghalib said the point of the local campaign extended beyond Hamtramck.
“Our mission was statewide, nationwide. It was accomplished,” he said.
Ghalib had met with Trump, both on the campaign trail and here in Hamtramck in the weeks leading up to the election. He said his connection to Trump could pay off for the city.
“Hopefully, good stuff will come to our community,” Ghalib said. “Hopefully, we will use this line of communication with the president to serve our community and to help our community.”
Ghalib further said that bringing the City of Hamtramck to attention of Trump has put the “on the map like it had never before.”
And that political recognition will resonate for years to come, Ghalib said.
“In the future,, people will come to us – both parties from the highest level, they will ask us for support because they know we can make a difference, and we did make a huge difference,” Ghalib said.
Councilmember Hassan, who supported Harris for president, said that Democrats “have to learn from their mistakes.”
Posted Dec. 13, 2024