Speakers criticize demolition practices and call for review of demolition spending and emergency-demo rules

Two public commenters questioned Detroit's demolition practices and called for more oversight of spending and emergency-demolition procedures.

Steven Haring said the city has spent heavily on demolition and that many demolished properties were intact and later remained vacant. "I feel like we just had so much money on demolition," Haring said, and he urged that the demolition budget be reduced and that feasibility assessments be considered before demolishing buildings that appear salvageable. Haring added he supported increased funding for DDOT this year but suggested the demolition department had overused its authority.

Carolyn Hughes criticized both emergency demolitions and the process that places houses on demolition lists. "In order for the house to be on that list, it has to be structural, unable to fix. I don't understand how paying property taxes takes it off the list if they've already deemed it unfixable," Hughes said. She also warned that emergency demolitions sometimes proceed without soil abatement: "You want to continue to keep the city contaminated even though we get city funds, we get, federal funds to clean this contamination up. So you keep calling the property, an emergency, even though that is to get around certain things." Hughes tied the issue to past sales and redevelopment, saying properties repaired with public money later transferred to private developers.

Speakers referenced the Renaissance Center redevelopment in passing; Haring said the project will include "2 towers" and called it a proposal he expected to pass. No formal council action, vote, or staff report addressing demolition policy took place during the public comment period.