City of Dearborn Heights

This Master Plan for the City of Dearborn Heights serves as a comprehensive roadmap to guide future land use and development decisions over a twenty-year period. It establishes a framework to protect and enhance the community's residential, business, recreational, and environmental character. Key strategic priorities include strengthening existing neighborhoods, revitalizing business districts, ensuring new development is compatible, developing efficient transportation and traffic management, and promoting sound environmental approaches. The plan provides goals and policies covering neighborhoods, business and corridor investment, economic development, recreation, open space and the environment, circulation, transportation, utilities, and city services.

The meeting commenced with roll call and the pledge of allegiance, followed by the approval of the amended agenda. The council proceeded to approve the minutes for a special meeting held on February 10, 2026, a regular meeting held on February 10, 2026, and a special meeting held on February 17, 2026. During the public comment period, residents addressed several issues. One resident provided updates on the status of local high school basketball teams in the MHSAA districts. Another resident repeatedly inquired about who sets the fines for speeding in school zones, receiving clarification that traffic fines are generally set by the court based on state guidelines. Significant discussion arose regarding the city's tree ordinance, focusing on accountability for city trees, resident costs for removal and replacement of sycamore trees, and the general lack of tree canopy in certain neighborhoods. A representative from the Recovery Action Network presented their free services funded by opioid settlement funds, aimed at community support and recovery. Finally, a resident formally requested the nullification of the contract with Flock automatic license plate readers, citing concerns over constitutional violations, data sharing with federal agencies like ICE, and lack of crime reduction correlation with the expense.

The primary discussion focused on the Neptune 360 customer portal software, which allows residents to monitor their water usage data down to the hourly level, set usage alerts, and view up to two years of usage history. Key benefits highlighted include enabling residents to quickly identify leaks, potentially receiving leak adjustment credits if they are proactive in reporting issues, and reducing customer service workload for the water billing department by providing self-service access to data. The cost of the software is approximately $30,000 annually, which is proposed to be covered by the water fund rather than directly charged to residents. Discussions also addressed concerns regarding seniors lacking digital access, potential solutions involving assistance at senior centers, and the timeline for returning to regular bi-monthly billing once the new water meters and BSNA cloud system are fully implemented, scheduled for August.

The meeting commenced with opening remarks by the Mayor, including a moment of silence for Vince Dowski, who recently passed away, and a recognition of the community's unified effort in the search for Ysef Naim. The agenda included the reorganization of the City Council, featuring nominations and elections for the Council Chair, resulting in the selection of Councilman Hassan Amad. The Mayor introduced several new department directors: Rachel Ao as the new Water Billing Supervisor, Yousef Niso as the new Director of Ordinance, Ahmad al-Zayat (Emo) as the new Emergency Manager and Community Liaison, and Hussein Daja as the new Communications Director. The Mayor emphasized the need for the new council body to work collaboratively for the city's advancement.

The special meeting commenced with the call to order and pledge of allegiance, followed by a council recognition segment honoring Hassan Alhaj Hassan for his outstanding academic achievements, particularly earning the outstanding delegate award at the Harvard Model United Nations conference and his political engagement. The council approved the amended agenda for the special meeting. Key discussion points during public comment included encouraging the council to select a contractor for the new fire station quickly, as grant funds must be utilized by September 2026. A commissioner also brought up the need for the commission to work on disability issues. The primary business item involved the motion to approve the AIA contract document A141 PDB-2024 between the city and Partners and Architect Design Build LLC for the new fire station project, which was supported by extensive due diligence and negotiation to ensure the cost remained within budget constraints. There were no approvals of previous minutes mentioned.