Mayor Bing speaks about safety, schools & neighborhoods

Detroit Free Press ran a long interview with Mayor David Bing on last week that touched on some of the items in DPN's Agenda for Detroit Kids - a list of the most important issues for Detroit parents.

In the SAFE COMMUNITIES category, The Mayor didn't promise that he won't cuts to the police department, but he'll try not to:

I can't take that position, but public safety is the last department I would look at for any reduction. We're woefully undermanned as it is, and our citizens are more concerned about public safety than anything else.

For BETTER SCHOOLS, The Mayor is looking to Mayoral Control of Detroit Public Schools as a way to improve the system:

...I believe that mayoral control is something that could work. It's working in other major cities -- Chicago, New York, Boston. We don't need a new playbook. Those cities are doing things that are reasonable and effective. I would like to model the City of Detroit's education processes after some of those cities'.

To create FAMILY FRIENDLY NEIGHBORHOODS, The Mayor is looking at ways creating incentives to help consolidate population:

There are also solid neighborhoods that are losing population, and we have to pay attention to them, too. We have to start moving people back into those neighborhoods, giving them incentives that will make them come back and live there.

Urban farming also has to happen. I think you'll see us, in 2010, moving in that direction.

Go check out the whole interview - it touches on other things parents told us they care about, including transportation and eyesore buildings.

It's good these ideas are being discussed - let's hope Mayor Bing, City Council and State government can work together to make some of these work.

(image from Mayor's Office homepage)