Ahmed Said, 22, of Melvindale, brother of the late Police Cpl. Mohamed Said, speaks to city officials during the Aug. 7 City Council meeting.
By SUE SUCHYTA
Sunday Times Newspapers
MELVINDALE – Paperwork has been submitted to the state of Michigan to change the name of Melwood Drive to Said Street in honor of the late Police Cpl. Mohamed Said.
Mayor Nicole Shkira, who made the announcement during the Aug. 7 City Council meeting, said they didn’t want to rename the street on which he was killed because the people who live there have been traumatized enough.
The mayor noted that Melwood actually intersects with Furgerson Street, which is name after another fallen Melvindale police officer.
Shkira said that once approval is granted by the state, it has to go to multiple agencies for approval and for the updating of maps and directional systems.
It was mentioned earlier in the meeting that the Downtown Development Authority hope to honor Said by naming a hall after him.
Shkira said that by addressing the concerns with the trouble spots in town, such as high crime rate motels, where his killer had allegedly been staying, Said’s memory could also be honored.
She said requiring cars to park head first so license plates show allows police officers to run plates more easily to identify people with warrants or associated with other concerns.
“They are stealing vehicles, then backing them in to these hotels,” Shkira said. “It takes them more time to get out of their vehicle and then run their plate, and if we just make it where they can’t back in, just for public businesses – not residential – to help out the police officers, so their resources are not drained as much as they are right now.”
Councilmember Joe Jackson said there are some things that can be put in place to alleviate the problem with the motel crime spots.
He said a moratorium on additional motels could be established, and an ordinance to prohibit hourly rental rates could be instituted.
“That brings in a certain set of people,” Jackson said. “You can also have an ordinance saying ‘no parking your car backwards’ so that the police can see to run the plates.”
He said city officials have also been made aware of the high volume of calls the budget motels generate for a police response, which strains police resources.
“I don’t want to jump on a bandwagon attacking the motels,” Jackson said. “If it is a legitimate business, we shouldn’t attack them.
“However, if they’ve been told over and over again to clean up certain things and they’re just ignoring it, it does have to be addressed.”
He said if crime remains high at a given motel, if convictions are resulting from policing there, and if weapons are being confiscated there, perhaps shutting them down for a period of time should be considered.