Mount Clemens commission weighs bench removal, targeted patrols and lighting to address downtown safety

The Mount Clemens City Commission met in an off‑week work session to address downtown safety after business owners and residents reported growing problems in Rotary Park and nearby corridors, including drug use, assaults and public defecation. The meeting focused on enforcement, public‑space design and coordination with nonprofits rather than adopting new laws.

Business owners and residents told commissioners the issue goes beyond homelessness and often involves people with untreated mental‑health needs and substance use disorders. "This is not a homeless issue. This is a mental health and an addiction issue," said Steven Saff Jr., a downtown business owner. Several other speakers described customers who avoid downtown after seeing aggressive panhandling or fights.

Sergeant Scott Jones, the daytime sergeant for the sheriff's substation, said deputies have expanded foot patrols across shifts and can set up targeted daily patrols at specific times asked for by businesses. Jones reported an increased number of people arriving by bus from outside the city and said many will not disclose where they came from. "A handful have said Detroit, Wayne County, but most of them won't talk to us," he said. Jones warned deputies are time‑limited and that people often return after being moved on.

Commissioners and attendees discussed practical steps the city can take within legal constraints. City Manager Shipman said previous attempts to add tougher loitering or vagrancy language were reviewed by the city attorney and found to risk violating state law; some suggested changes were tabled for that reason. Commissioners cited an existing dawn‑to‑dusk park closure ordinance that is enforceable but not always enforced, and asked law enforcement to concentrate patrols at problem times (identified by businesses and deputies as early morning, around opening and late evening).

Participants debated modifying public seating in Rotary Park to discourage sleeping or loitering — removing benches, adding bench 'toppers,' or replacing low benches with standing‑height tables — and installing clearer signage that the park closes at dusk. Business owners called for better lighting and suggested cameras on private corridors; some commissioners warned that removing benches can have humanitarian consequences if people simply sleep on the ground instead.

Several speakers recommended coordinating with nonprofit service providers rather than relying solely on enforcement. Commissioners noted that daily feeding and service patterns at local nonprofits and churches can draw people downtown, and they urged a roundtable with agencies such as the Salvation Army, McREST and other regional partners to plan what happens to people after they receive a meal or bus ticket. "If there's a plan for after they receive those services, maybe they won't end up back downtown," said one commissioner.

The meeting identified a set of next steps rather than formal policy changes: staff will pursue better enforcement of the existing park closing ordinance, schedule targeted patrols at the times requested by businesses, explore improved lighting and signage for Rotary Park, discuss bench modification options with property owners, and consider forming a smaller working group to coordinate city staff, county resources and nonprofit providers. Commissioners encouraged downtown businesses and residents to call dispatch for incidents that should be investigated.

No new ordinances were adopted at the session. A commissioner moved to adjourn at the end of the meeting and the commission voted in favor. The commission said it will continue the conversation at committee level and at upcoming scheduled meetings.