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Local business owner urges council to act on downtown parking, rents and homelessness; resident raises trafficking and addiction concerns
Summary
During the public comment period a downtown business owner asked council for a liaison, rent protections and parking relief to boost foot traffic; another resident warned of human and drug trafficking and broader addiction and homelessness concerns.
Three residents addressed the council during public comment on Jan. 21, focusing on downtown business challenges and wider public-safety and social concerns.
Longtime resident and business owner Leslie Cortez urged the council to outline plans for the downtown business district, asking specifically about grants for small businesses, limits on annual rent increases and creation of a city liaison to work with downtown proprietors. Cortez said downtown parking is a barrier for customers and voiced concern about visible homelessness, saying, “I feel like we’re taking a step back” and asking the city to consider practices other cities use to address homelessness while supporting retail foot traffic.
Michael Bowell focused his remarks on illegal human and drug trafficking, and addiction. He described firsthand and secondhand observations from other states and urged attention to drug addiction and homelessness in Brighton. Bowell told the council he wants officials to be more active in addressing the issues and criticized slow responses from state and federal agencies.
Council members did not engage in extended dialogue during public comment but thanked speakers and noted staff follow-up is available after public comment. The council did not take action on these items at the meeting; public comment items were informational and for the record.
