Hundreds of fiery residents and business owners raised concerns about a new Detroit city council member's requests for information on whether bars and restaurants along Kercheval comply with city regulations.
The requests can be received only as an opening salvo in blocking new bars or threating those that are open, some business leaders and residents say.
District 5 City Council member Renata Miller, who joined the council in January, said she is simply asking for information to answer resident questions and that “these are planning questions that deserve a fair, fact-based review."
The meeting, hosted by the Islandview and Charlevoix Village Associations at Butzel Family Center on Monday Oct. 19 started without an agenda and a raucous crowd.
It was scheduled to run from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m., but Islandview Association founder Teresa Davis-Jones adjourned it about 30 minutes early amid heated exchanges from residents frustrated with Miller, who left the meeting early to boos from several attendees.
Miller requested several city departments — Buildings, Safety Engineering and Environmental Department, the law department and the legislative policy division — to look into whether Two Birds, Barkside and three soon-to-open alcohol-serving businesses in the Kercheval Avenue area have the proper permits, certificates of compliance and other required approvals.
During Monday night's meeting Miller read aloud a statement she released earlier that day in which she said, "requesting information does not presume that the Kercheval business corridor has done anything wrong," Miller said. “The investments already made along Kercheval deserve recognition. We ask questions to understand whether our current approach supports the long-term success envisioned for this corridor. Before we continue investing millions of dollars, we have a responsibility to assess what is working, where challenges remain, and whether adjustments are needed."
The request for compliance information was a surprise to some business owners and residents, who said they did not receive prior communication from the city until Miller issued the two memorandums last week.
The memos name the anticipated Bar IX, Grandma Bob's and Our House. One memoseeks a list of alcohol-serving establishments along Kercheval, the legal land use versus its current operation, certificate of compliance, outdoor cafe approvals, consideration of the surrounding neighborhood uses around Marcus Garvey Academy, Butzel Family Recreation Center, nearby residential properties, childcare and medical uses, parking and neighborhood impacts.
Another memo is specific to Two Birds, seeking a review of its approval as a restaurant that is operating as a bar with food trucks, and its proximity to homes, schools, recreation centers and historic districts, and complaints or enforcement actions. The memo also asks the city to address "approved outdoor seating, entertainment, and events, their impact on neighboring residents, and the City’s oversight practices to ensure full transparency for District 5 residents."
Permission to exist
Mac Farr, executive director of The Villages of Detroit CDC, a neighborhood business group, said he has been working with several small business owners and his board members on a unified response, and is seeking to understand how these memos emerged.
"When you're looking at all of the regulatory approvals, you know, the licensing, the permitting, the zoning, those are, in essence, the permission of the city of Detroit for these businesses to exist. That is at the heart of this, whether or not she wants these businesses to exist," Farr said, referring to Miller.
The ownership and management team at Two Birds, in a statement to the Free Press, said in the six years they have been operating in the city, they have never experienced an issue with city hall and receive annual inspections by each department. Obtaining a business license involves compliance with multiple departments and they have the paper trail to prove it, they said.
"Two Birds is the same establishment today as it was six years ago. Nothing has changed except for the single fact that Council Member Miller − who lives blocks away from Two Birds and many other neighborhood businesses and is a vocal critic of parking and development in the neighborhood − now holds a position of power. Our neighborhood and many businesses in it now face the threat of city departments being weaponized against people, establishments and projects disliked by one individual (and a handful of folks connected to that individual)," according to a statement from Two Birds.
Bar IX founder Alissa Graff, who is opening a women's sports bar, got the keys to her building at 7728 Kercheval Avenue five weeks ago and learned of Miller's requests for information when the memos emerged, she said. Graff added that despite "bar" being in the name, the establishment will have affordable food, drinks, including a significant portion of the menu dedicated to non-alcoholic beverages, and several TVs with women's sports matches.
"My intent to bring Bar IX to this neighborhood has always been about community," Graff said. "It saddens me deeply to hear that assumptions have been made without an attempt to contact us directly and ask what our goals are."
Graff said she plans to engage with residents in the next several weeks as she works on opening up her business by next summer.
"We are a business that is highlighting and celebrating athletes. We have many athletes who are supportive of us. Many athletes do not drink. Many of us, today, do not drink. Alcohol will not be necessarily the primary element that everyone is coming into Bar IX for. We're going to have enough space where community members can gather and talk about their week, while women's sports fans are also gathering to support their favorite team."
'Not an attack'
Miller on Monday said said her request was "not an attack on small businesses" and that as commercial corridors continue to develop, she will consider how business activity interacts with the surrounding neighborhoods, schools and public spaces, including alcohol establishments in proximity to children.
Miller said city officials should consider updates or improvements to zoning and planning, if a review identifies those opportunities "with residents and business owners at the table. Businesses need appropriate locations, reliable foot traffic, and a surrounding community that can sustain their growth. Residents need development that respects the character, stability, and daily life of their neighborhoods."
Miller added that concerned residents asked her how many liquor-serving establishments can exist so closely to a school, and whether they can operate late after midnight. She was met with the crowd's uproar, with some residents later saying they do not come across late-night issues around these establishments.
"I have a responsibility to provide the information for all parties involved," Miller said, adding that she raised questions to BSEED and multiple other departments and did not get a response, and eventually, put it in writing to put it on the record.
City spokesman John Roach said officials are looking into the matter and determining whether BSEED is the right department to handle it.
Several attendees further raised their comments to the rest of City Council on Tuesday, Oct. 20. Miller reiterated her sentiments
“I attempted to explain why I put the memos out. Lo and behold, no one wanted to hear it," Miller said, accusing some attendees of being rude. "I watched residents in the room signal that they would not be speaking because of fear, because of retaliation, and because of being mocked by the crowd that was there."
'We live in the neighborhood'
Islandview resident Amy Hemmeter has lived in the area for at least five years, and said walkability is important for the neighborhood's quality of life, especially since she previously did not have a car to get around for several years. Hemmeter emphasized the importance of having gathering spaces in the neighborhood, and said she knew of no prior communication from city officials regarding questions about the corridor.
"Most people I talk to, I'm the first person they heard it from. And these are people who are often tapped in, who are on Renata's email list. It's radio silence," Hemmeter said.
Strong Towns Detroit, a nonprofit dedicated to boosting neighborhoods in Detroit, is urging advocates to attend the Planning and Economic Development meeting on Oct. 22 to support the businesses. The memos were referred to the committee.
"Detroit should be supporting neighborhood businesses, not putting them under suspicion for operating in our community," according to a statement from the group.
Farr said concerns about illegal parking, speeding and traffic density in the area need to be managed and he aims to work with the neighborhoods on ways to address them.
Two Birds' statement echoed Farr's sentiments. "The city spent millions of our own tax dollars to assist the build out [of] the commercial corridor on Kercheval where we now reside. If community meetings are needed to address bigger concerns about the impact of development in the neighborhood, we are happy to be a part of that. And we are happy to host those meetings at Two Birds. We look forward to being a part of the fabric of the neighborhood now and for many years to come," according Two Birds' statement.
Detroit Body Garage owner Terra Castro has been operating her gym on Kercheval since 2016 and emphasized the importance of businesses being in the community.
"I think this just needs to be a conversation of like, how do we deal with the growing pains of parking and the traffic? That's the city's job," Castro said. "We are for the neighborhoods, that's why we want to be here. We don't want to be downtown. We want to be where our families are. We live in the neighborhood...it's a very unique Detroit story, and we really care a whole lot."
Dana Afana is the Detroit city hall reporter for the Free Press. Contact: dafana@freepress.com. Follow her: @DanaAfana.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit City Council member's probe of east side bars sparks uproar
