Ypsilanti city council meeting canceled after one arrested over debate about downtown safety
YPSILANTI, Mich. (CBS DETROIT) — An Ypsilanti City Council meeting on Tuesday was cut short after one person was arrested and some council members had to be escorted out the back of the building.
Ypsilanti Mayor Nicole Brown had to adjourn after one hour when community members became heated and emotional while giving public comment on a resolution aimed at addressing public safety in the downtown area.
Many business owners at the meeting shared that they no longer feel safe going to work and regularly witness open drug use and sales, prostitution, and, in some cases, have been physically threatened or witnessed assaults.
"There is daily intoxication," said A2 Vintage owner Kelly Callison during the meeting. "My children watched people having sex on the sidewalk as we were walking down Washington [Street] picking up trash. That is an issue that needs resolve. I don't know what the solution is, but it is not fair to expect citizens and property owners and building owners to shoulder that burden when we are doing the best we can as it is."
"If this continues, you can just add three more vacant storefronts," said Brian Brickley, longtime owner of The Tap Room. "And I'm not kidding, and it won't take long. You can probably hear the emotion in my voice."
"We're experiencing some challenges right now, and we had hoped those might be addressed or go away, but they really haven't," said council member Patrick McLean. "I brought the resolution forward this week, and the intent is simply to address the safety issues before they spread, before theY get worse, and to do so in a way that is going to be respectful of everyone's civil rights."
Local resident Brenna York said she avoids Washington Street, which can double the time she takes to walk across town.
"You're unsettled in your town, you don't really trust the ground underneath your feet when you feel like you can't do kind of your normal everyday routine," said York. "And we just see a lot of need, you know? A lot of this is, I think, coming out of big needs in the community."
On Washington Street, community volunteers with FedUp Ministries said there is an increasing need to help people with nowhere to go.
"People not feeling safe because of the environment – but what are we doing systemically to change that environment so that our community can feel safe as a whole?" said community volunteer Brielle. "I mean, people that unhoused on the streets – they may also feel unsafe, but are we considering their feelings?"
"This resolution and the people that are supporting it, in other words, the business owners and downtown, they're constantly complaining about things, but not offering any solution whatsoever," said Ypsilanti resident and volunteer Jim Clark. "All they want is for police to come through and sweep. And we know that this doesn't work."
"Some of these guys are just down on their luck, and they need a place to live," said community volunteer Ted.
Meghan Miller works as a server and bartender at a local establishment on Washington Street.
She said the issue is not the homeless population in the area.
"I have watched my unhoused brothers and sisters," said Miller. "And I know these folks by name. I talk to them every day. They're trying to get resources and trying to get help, and there's another group of people that are preying upon them and keeping them in these situations and keeping them addicted. And those are the folks that we're worried about."
City Council hopes to vote on the resolution on Oct. 15.