City staff told the Dearborn Heights City Council on May 27 that Phase 2 of a citywide school safety-zone project has been designed and is planned for implementation during the summer recess.

The project, presented by city staff member Ali Deeb and licensed traffic engineer Lori Pollock, would extend high-visibility pavement markings and other pedestrian safety treatments out to about 1,500 feet around each of 21 schools in Dearborn Heights. Deeb said Phase 2 “has now been designed and will be ready for implementation, this season,” and the team recommended a set of near-term treatments — pavement markings, refreshed signage, parking-hour restrictions near schools and targeted speed limit reductions during school hours.

The presentation emphasized tailoring treatments to each site. Pollock told the council the study combined school survey responses with five years of crash data, field observations during arrival and dismissal, and on-site verification so recommendations match actual crossing locations and travel patterns. The study team found worn crosswalks, missing ADA ramps in some locations, mid‑block pedestrian crossings, low stop‑sign compliance and vehicle speeding in multiple school zones.

Staff proposed three pilot projects for experimentally deploying LED‑flashing stop signs and other devices at schools that have recorded crashes: Party Elementary School (where the presenters said a pedestrian fatality previously occurred), Highview Elementary School and Star International Academy. The presentation recommended monitoring pilot sites to measure effectiveness before wider deployment.

Engineered devices discussed included higher‑visibility continental crosswalk markings, raised crossings/speed tables, speed‑limit reductions during school hours, and rectangular rapid‑flashing beacons (RRFBs). Pollock said RRFBs and related devices are “warning devices” (not criminally enforceable stop signals) but cited evidence they significantly reduce pedestrian crashes; she reported the most expensive device shown — a mast‑arm RRFB variant — can cost on the order of $200,000 to install. The presentation also noted federal guidance and ADA standards as constraints for which treatments are appropriate at which locations.

Council members pressed staff on several operational and fiscal questions. Councilman Hassan Ahmad asked how many schools responded to outreach; Pollock said eight of the 21 schools completed the survey and consultants performed field verification. Council members also asked how the city would enforce speed limits or stop requirements associated with flashing devices and whether police coordination would be required for speed‑limit-hour signing and enforcement. Deeb said enforcement would require coordination with police and that some speed‑limit reductions would be proposed for school hours in particular locations.

On funding, Deeb said the city would use recently added school‑safety funds for the pilot work, and that staff is attempting to live within the amount added to the FY budget two weeks earlier. He also said County and state coordination would be needed for projects touching county roads and for any MDOT funding conditions. Staff asked for council direction to move into more detailed designs and a short-term testing program; council members generally expressed support for pilots but requested a study session with detailed cost estimates, a list of individual school treatments, and confirmation of funding sources before broader roll‑out.

Why it matters: the project targets the daily routes students use to reach school, and staff said the measures are designed to reduce pedestrian injury crashes and to reflect the unique crossing patterns at each school. The pilot approach is intended to test community tolerance (for flashing devices and raised crossings), measure safety effects, and limit larger expenditures until local effectiveness is demonstrated.

Ending: Staff left the council with a short timetable: most work would be scheduled during the summer recess to minimize disruption, pilots would be monitored after installation and staff will present a more detailed implementation package, including site‑level cost estimates and coordination plans, at a future study session.