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Community groups, state senator's office urge council to block Kronos expansion and street closures over air-pollution concerns
Summary
Residents and advocacy groups told the council that Kronos (Crown Enterprises) operations and a proposed expansion would worsen air pollution, and a letter read from a state senator's office urged denial of street closures and stronger community protections.
Representatives of neighborhood groups and a constituent director for a state senator urged Detroit City Council to deny street closures and oppose an expansion by Kronos (also referenced as Crown Enterprises) after residents said the company's concrete crushing and other operations have harmed nearby communities.
"The Kronos plant has significantly harmed the health and well-being of nearby residents," Senator Xiu Chang wrote in a letter read to the council by Allison Bone, who identified herself as the senator's constituent director. The letter asked the council to deny street closures and require Kronos to develop a community agreement addressing environmental and public-health concerns, noting that airborne pollutants including silica dust can be linked to respiratory illnesses and that children and the elderly are especially vulnerable.
A representative of We Care about Van Dyke 7 Mile said regional air-quality measures already rate Detroit poorly and argued the proposed work at a site known as the Hercules Cement Company at Jerome and Moran would worsen outcomes for nearby residents. Another commenter who said they had observed Crown Enterprises' prior activity in Southwest Detroit described vacant, deteriorated parcels and urged the council to scrutinize any incentives or street-closure requests tied to the company's proposed work.
Speakers asked the council to require stronger community protections, to deny street closures that would enable expansion, and to hold polluters accountable. Because the meeting lacked a quorum, the council did not respond substantively; speakers were told to submit documents to the clerk for the record.
No formal action was taken at this session.
