Hamtramck’s new city manager and police chief preview their plans

Newly-appointed City Manager Adel Al-Adlani introduces himself at a meet-and-greet held Sunday evening at the Hamtramck Public Library.

By Charles Sercombe
Residents were introduced to the city’s new city manager and police chief on Sunday evening in a meet-and-greet.
About 60 residents attended the event at the public library, to learn about the goals and vision of the city’s top officials, and listen to their strategies going forward.
City Manager Adel Al-Adlani, who started his new job this week, said he will spend the first two weeks “crafting a vision” that includes a “top-down” and “bottom-up” review – with an emphasis on paying closer attention to the “bottom-up” power structure.
His review of the city will include sitting down with city councilmembers, department heads and stakeholders — meaning residents and business owners.
“So that is the vision for the city,” said Al-Adlani, who is the city’s first Yemeni-American to be appointed to the position.
Acting Police Chief Hussein Farhat, who was introduced by Mayor Adam Alharbi as “Smiley” because, well, you guessed it, he has a perpetual smile on his face, said he wants to educate the public on “how not to be victims.”
Other plans call for eventually assigning an officer to the schools — something the department last did when there was federal funding from the D.A.R.E. (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) program in the 1990s –and also increasing the number of officers and patrols.

Acting Police Chief Hussain Farhat also met with city officials and the public at Sunday’s event.

Also on the top of the to-do list for Farhat, who last served as police chief in Dearborn Heights, and is also retired from the Romulus Police Department, is emphasizing more training for officers.
“We’re going to invest in our officers, our leadership, our building,” he said.
As for those who prey on Hamtramck to commit crimes, Farhat has this warning:
“You come here to do a crime, we’ll find you”
One of the tools used by a growing number of police departments to identify and apprehend suspected criminals is the license plate reading device, FLOCK.
Farhat said he will seek to invest in more license plate readers and drones. A number of people across the country are concerned about those surveillance devices, saying that they could endanger privacy rights and civil rights.
When City Manager Al-Adlani was asked about diversifying the city’s workforce, he said: “It is diverse right now.”
Farhat responded to the same question, saying: “I value diversity. … It doesn’t matter the color of your skin.”
But above all, he said that what he asks new recruits is: “What can you bring to the community?”
As for transparency, which was on the mind of some who attended, Farhat said that everything the department does is documented.
Posted Feb. 20, 2926