State Sen. Coleman A. Young II (Facebook photo)
Fighting an uphill battle to unseat Mayor Mike Duggan this year, state Sen. Coleman A. Young II issues a nine-page blueprint to "revitalize" Detroit.
He calls for bolstering economic development in neighborhoods, creating high-tech public transportation, reclaiming some city assets like Belle Isle, improving education and transportation, requiring residency for police, fire and EMT workers, fighting blight and lowering the city's skyrocketing car insurance rates, reports Katrease Stafford of the Detroit Free Press.
The plan, released Monday, focuses on 11 areas.
"One of responsibilities of government is to assure the citizenry the right to the enjoyment of the long term held assets which have been acquired and maintained under the municipal corporation," Young says. "Assets which have been taken unlawfully by unconstitutional acts must be returned to the citizens via action of the courts in the balance of a triumvirate government."
Young says he wants to "undo the constitutional breaches triggered by the unconstitutional emergency manager law and the bankruptcy which defrauded retiree pensions and city coffers."
Action by legislators and the governor is needed to change some state regulations.
As the son of former Mayor Coleman A. Young, he's got the greatest name recognition of any of the seven candidates running against Duggan in the Aug. 8 primary.
For auto insurance rates, Young proposes:
- Suing insurance companies "over the racist red-lining policies that they have used to keep Detroit’s rate excessively high."
- Requiring the state insurance commissioner’s prior approval, before they can file the new rates.
- Give the commissioner power to order rollbacks of "excessive" rates or issue refunds if an investigation shows consumers are overcharged or price-gouged.
- Change the definition of "excessive rates." Rates are only deemed excessive in the State of Michigan if competition doesn’t exist, which is a near impossible standard to reach.
His plans also calls for a two-person pod skyTran system, an elevated transit that uses electromagnetic power for personal rapid transit. According to the plan, the system would use Maglev, magnetic levitational energy, the Freep reports.
Young says:
Sustainable Systems of Colorado has developed a transit system using skytran is a transportation system developed through the U. S. Department of Transportation that is an overhead guideway system with 2 person pods. skytran handles 10,000 passengers per hour and it is run by sustainable solar and hydrogen energy so that the environment is not impacted.
As for crime, he proposes to treat "violence like a virus" by working with the Centers for Disease Control to get data on its causes.
Additionally, he wants to expand use of mini-police stations in high crime areas to increase police effectiveness and decrease response times.
Young's plan also calls for improvements in the bus system run by the Detroit Department of Transportation, including improving reliability so "that customers can rely on DDOT to get to and from work and other scheduled appointments.
He also wants to resume complimentary bus tickets for Detroit seniors.
