Dearborn Heights Mayor Bill Bazzi delivers his state of the city address Feb. 7 in the Lincoln Ballroom at the Ford Community & Performing Arts Center in Dearborn.
By SUE SUCHYTA
Times-Herald Newspapers
HEIGHTS – Flood mitigation along the Ecorse Creek, public safety, the business climate and the Van Born corridor were focuses of Mayor Bill Bazzi’s Feb. 7 state of the city address at the Ford Community & Performing Arts Center in Dearborn.
Bazzi said flooding has presented challenges in Dearborn Heights, especially along the Ecorse Creek and the Rouge River.
“Last year’s flood, it was pretty devastating,” he said. “Three thousand homes were affected.”
Bazzi said Heights officials are talking to the county and are hoping for good news with respect to funding in March from the Wayne County Commission for Ecorse Creek flood mitigation, which is an issue for nine communities along its banks.
“It was pretty devastating to be on the ground and for me, I was just a few months in office, I was appointed the first year, so I had to put on my Marine hat and get boots on the ground to try to do things and see what my residents need,” he said. “It’s been challenging, but we have a great staff.”
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Bazzi said he brought a city engineer, Ali Dib, in-house, a position which had been subcontracted out in the past. He said Dib has been an asset on the combined sewer overflow project.
He said they had a drone flown over the Ecorse Creek from Inkster Road to the Southfield Freeway to pinpoint the obstacles where issues exist.
“We are shovel-ready, so, when the county or state or federal gives us the money for the Ecorse Creek, we know which areas to tackle,” he said.
Bazzi said that much of his leadership staff is new.
“They are really working hard,” he said. “I’ve got great leadership.”
Bazzi said his goal is to be a world-class city.
“That is what I am shooting for,” he said. “That is something I learned through the last several companies I worked for – Boeing, Ford and also in the Marine Corps. I really want to propel our city forward, and I have been saying that from day one.”
Bazzi said the Ordinance Department did a sweep last year for the first time since 2016 to address blight issues and abandoned cars, and this year Ordinance and the Police Department will team up to get the city “back on track.”
He said he brought the city’s information technology in-house after having Dearborn provide it last year.
In addition, Bazzi said the city kept its own police dispatch center, as opposed to joining Dearborn’s consolidated dispatch center, and the city is working to upgrade its equipment as well.
“We have a lot of great things happening,” he said.
Bazzi said the city is trying to eliminate some of the red tape and obstacles which discourage businesses from doing business in Dearborn Heights.
“I want to tear down any obstacle for any business that wants to come in and do business in Dearborn Heights,” he said. “I created a business commission and we are going to be meeting in the next couple of weeks or so, and we are going to talk about a DDA. In the city of Dearborn Heights there is nothing. There is no downtown Dearborn Heights.”
Bazzi said the development of the Van Born corridor, along the city’s border with Taylor, which has been neglected for years, is going to be part of his focus.
He said Taylor and Dearborn Heights hired a company to develop common standards for the businesses along the corridor.
“There is a lot of stuff that we are working on in this city where all of us are hands-on, where most of us are on the ground,” Bazzi said. “We are trying to do great things for the residents, and one of the biggest things is my police department.”
He said he has brought new leadership into the Police Department, and is very serious about propelling the city forward.
“We are going to do everything possible to make that happen,” he said.