There are seven candidates on the August primary ballot to fill the seat of Council President Mary Sheffield, who currently represents District 5. Sheffield, who has served on council since 2013, is running for mayor. Voters can vote for two of the seven candidates, and the top two vote-getters will advance to the general election in November.
District 5’s border takes the shape of a lightning bolt across the city center, reaching from the Eastside, across downtown, and into the Westside. The district’s jagged edges span the riverfront from Belle Isle to the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel, with a western border that runs along Livernois and Grand River Avenue, and an Eastern border that wraps around Highland Park and Hamtramck.
There are several historic communities among the 52 neighborhoods that make up the district, including Eastern Market, Indian Village, Boston Edison, Virginia Park, among others, and its home to several key locations such as the Renaissance Center, Ford Field, Detroit Institute of Arts, DMC, and Henry Ford Hospital.
According to 2020 US Census Bureau stats, the district has more than 88,000 residents.
One District 5 council member sits on the nine-person legislative arm of city government and represents those within the district. In the running are the following candidates, whom BridgeDetroit interviewed.
NOTE: Every candidate BridgeDetroit interviewed said they would either expand the community violence intervention program or increase funding to support it. Additionally, every candidate told BridgeDetroit that their support for tax incentives depends on the benefits for Detroiters. None of the candidates shared which mayoral candidate they’d be voting for.
George Adams Jr.
Age: 52
Education: n/a
Occupation: Licensed real estate agent and developer, Founder of Detroit 360, Inc.
Neighborhood: Virginia Park
Born and raised in the city of Detroit, Adams is involved in community development and housing rehabilitation in the same neighborhood where he grew up in and lives today. His “grind and grit” and his track record of getting things done in the Virginia Park neighborhood through development, community organizing, and “pushing against things that were happening in our neighborhood that we didn’t want,’ is what Adams said qualifies him for the seat.
Additionally, Adams said he’s created over 100 jobs, introduced several billions of dollars into the local economy, creating a park and programs through 360 Detroit, Inc., a nonprofit he founded in 2014. He also led the rehabilitation of several duplexes and a four-plex in the Virginia Park community, known as the “West Euclid Gateway.”
“I’m an advocate for the community. I’m not a politician. I’m a community servant,” Adams said.
Adams says the top three challenges facing Detroiters today are affordable housing, neighborhood development and public transportation.
There’s not enough housing for people at various levels of income, Adams told BridgeDetroit. He’s working on affordable housing himself, and is completing 28 units of affordable housing currently. In addition to streamlining the process of meeting developing timelines more swiftly, Adams said he’ll work with developers to ensure they’re supported and have access to publicly-owned land.
Adams supports more resources for community land trusts and he would work with the DLBA to allocate city-owned properties for land trusts so they can have access to land to build affordable housing where it’s needed.
Adams wants to see a restructuring of the Detroit Land Bank Authority so council members can appoint board members who live in the city. “I think if Detroiters are on the board, and then if council has appointees on the board, then I think that gives perspective as to how policies and everything at the land bank will change.”
Although some communities have come together to clean up their neighborhoods, others haven’t, Adam said. He wants to ensure there’s enough resources behind those communities to support the work they could do themselves, and he’d encourage neighborhoods to come together to develop smaller community-based projects on their own.
Adams said he thinks property owners have to take the initiative to keep up on their neighborhoods’ appearance to ensure it’s welcoming.
Instead of wondering what will happen with a vacant house on their block, Adams said that, with the proper resources, residents in the neighborhood can acquire the home, rehab it, and improve the value of their home, as well as the neighborhood. “Then they get the most value out of the property if they live in the neighborhood, and the properties in their neighborhood are developed and rehabbed and occupied,” he said.
Public transportation needs to be safe, timely and clean, Adams told Bridge Detroit. Ensuring there’s a cleaning schedule is “low-hanging fruit” and doing so would improve the perception of safety for bus riders.
“Safety is sometimes a perception, so when things are clean and kept and maintained, people treat them differently,” said Adams who explained that is a first step to changing the culture of bus riding in the city. Funding community violence intervention is key to addressing public safety concerns, Adams said, and he plans to work with community groups to come up with a prevention strategy centered around workforce development or recreation that would give youth something they can do. “Because if there’s nothing available, then they’re going to do whatever is available,” he said.
In District 5 specifically, Adams said he’ll sit down with all of the neighborhoods to find out what their needs are, and from there, he’ll come up with a game plan on how to move forward. “Just having some plan for every neighborhood, it’s not realistic and offensive in some cases, because you don’t know the needs of every neighborhood.”
Every tax incentive should be looked at individually, Adams said, and he’ll weigh the community’s needs and interest with the developers to ensure it’s conducive, and benefits the community and what they want or need, whether it’s mixed-income housing or retail.
Adams said he’s been committed to community engagement for the last seven years as his organization, 360 Detroit, Inc., hosts monthly community meetings.
Adams was hesitant to call the Renaissance Center project Dan Gilbert’s due to the fact that General Motors Co. owns the building, and said he’d like to understand the intricacies of the deal and what benefits the city will receive.
Willie Burton
Age: 46
Education: n/a
Occupation: Board of Police Commissioners (District 5) member since 2014
Neighborhood: Rivertown
Burton’s campaign did not respond to BridgeDetroit’s requests for an interview.
When Burton was elected to the Board of Police Commissioners, he was the youngest person to serve on a police oversight board in the United States.
According to his campaign website, if elected, Burton plans to push for more affordable housing, lowering property taxes and water and sewage rates and improving public transit. Additionally, he wants to fight back against “immoral tax giveaways” and ensure that public tax dollars are serving the public, rather than developers.
In a Facebook post on July 10, Burton said he believes District 5 is in need of stronger protections against displacement, fair development practices and transparency in city government. Additionally, Burton said District 5 would benefit from investments in affordable housing, public safety “rooted in community trust” and small, Black-owned businesses.
He said he would support diversifying the city’s revenue sources by way of partnerships with foundations, leveraging state programs and advocating for investments in infrastructure, housing and clean energy.
Burton said he’s not satisfied with public safety and as a current police commissioner, he’s witnessed firsthand how civilian oversight is undermined. He would support strengthening civilian oversight, faster investigations into police misconduct, and faster investigations for police misconduct complaints, and “non-police crisis response alternatives.”
During his tenure on the BOPC, Burton strongly opposed the city’s use of facial recognition technology.
When it comes to tax incentives for large development projects, Burton said he believes “public money should prioritize public needs,” and any investment should come with a benefit for Detroiters such as housing, jobs, and community reinvestment.
Burton said in his post that the land bank has “potential,” but he would amend the city’s agreement to improve oversight and residents’ access to city-owned land, and support community land trusts and nonprofit development projects.
Additionally, Burton says he would support an expansion of the low interest home repair program and grants for seniors and low-income residents, and advocate for an “emergency repair fund” using public tax dollars and partner with the skilled trades to offer free or low-cost home repairs through a workforce development pipeline.
Michael Hartt
Age: 68
Education: Bachelor’s and Master’s in criminal justice, sociology, and business administration, from the University of Detroit
Occupation: Former Human Resources Director, Satkhi Automotive
Neighborhood: Indian Village for 41 years
Hartt’s background in human resources in the automotive industry provided him a first-hand view of the challenges related to employment opportunities in Detroit, including returning citizens. He led Sakthi Automotive to “ban the box,” which meant it no longer required job applicants to disclose whether they have a felony conviction on job applications. The effort led to the automotive supplier hiring 275 Detroiters who were returning citizens and brought significant praise as Sakthi was one of the first major corporations to do so. The company has since closed its Detroit operations.
Additionally, Hartt said he was involved in the development of numerous manufacturing facilities across the world, including 20 plants in the U.S., five of which were in Southwest Detroit, all of which contributed to his experience with human capital, employee satisfaction, balancing budgets, education and training, and operating large jobs.
The top three challenges Detroiters face, according to Hartt, are water affordability, property assessments and tax foreclosures.
Hartt said recent increases to DWSD’s water rates were significant and little, if any, public input was involved. Now, he says Detroiters are paying $300 a month for water and sewer, while suburban communities pay a fraction of the cost. And when people can’t pay their water bill, they don’t and their water is shut off.
Hartt said the city needs a policy related to property assessments and said they should be done regularly, “and not just sporadically or based on outdated data.”
He’s heard concerns from residents in District 5 about their property assessments being higher than their home’s value, sometimes by 200-300%. . “The Village is out of control right now,” Hart said, “It’s 72 mills per thousand and it’s just too high for people. It’s gonna be the third wave of foreclosures.”
Hartt said his own home was assessed for well over it’s actual value and although his property taxes have been “locked in” since 1984 when he purchased his home, he said whoever buys it next is going to pay $85,000 in property taxes because of the way it’s assessed now, which makes it harder to sell.
Hartt’s position on tax foreclosures is largely based on the work his son has done for an organization that advocates for compensation for Detroiters who were overtaxed and illegally foreclosed on. Despite council’s unanimous approval of a resolution that called for halting tax foreclosures, Hartt said Wayne County Treasurer Eric Sabree hasn’t done anything.
Hartt sees tremendous value in the vacant land in District 5 and wants to see it put to productive use, especially in the neighborhoods.
“I think that all the vacant land is so valuable. It’s like gold but no one really has an action plan to build towns within cities. And that’s something that could easily be done,” Hartt said, adding that the focus has been on incentivizing development downtown. “Let’s not do that any longer unless the neighborhoods are next. It’s the neighborhoods’ turn for development.”
Renaissance Zones could help spur housing development in the neighborhoods, Hartt told Bridge Detroit, and he believes the city needs to build more subdivisions, not high-rise apartments, and grocery and hardware stores would naturally follow. “There’s a lot of investment companies that would be happy to invest in Detroit, especially with Renaissance Zone tax incentives,” he said.
Asked if he supports Dan Gilbert’s vision for the Renaissance Center, Hartt told BridgeDetroit “absolutely not, I am livid with that,” and he said it was “the worst thing I’ve ever heard.”
Hartt believes public participation is critical to any project’s success, including the Renaissance Center, which he pointed out has had no public input about demolishing and redeveloping the iconic site. “Everyone should be able to participate in the decision-making and development in Detroit.”
He’s certain the Detroit Land Bank Authority will be wiped out in the near future, but Hartt said the city has to create something new. “It’s kind of a mysterious dark cloud, and people just don’t understand it, and they’re not transparent at all.”
Rather than solar fields, Hartt said large swaths of land could be used for farming, which could then families in nearby neighborhoods.
Hartt cited legal settlements the city has paid out for police misconduct and the public’s mistrust of facial recognition and surveillance technology as reasons he wouldn’t support investing more money into the police department. However, Hartt said he would support investing more money into the Board of Police Commissioners to strengthen civilian oversight and the board’s independence.
Amid state and federal budget cuts, Hartt said leveraging funding from philanthropy and foundations, as well as bonding for infrastructure projects, could help the city manage a tighter budget.
He believes Duggan has done well in working with the city council and empowered them to take on initiatives and programs in the city, and his relationship with Detroit’s next mayor would likely be related to economic development and planning how the city will use all of its vacant land, especially as it relates to building manufacturing plants and housing.
Esther Haugabook
Age: 61
Education: attended Wayne State University and graduated from William Tyndale College with a Bachelor’s in Business Administration
Occupation: Community Development & Planning, U.S. Housing & Urban Development Department (HUD)
Neighborhood: LaSalle Gardens
Haugabook is a lifelong Detroiter with 30 years of experience working in housing and community development and planning. She grew up in the Virginia Park neighborhood and now resides in LaSalle Gardens.
After spending the last 30 years working in housing and community development for state and federal agencies and serving on numerous community organizations; Haugabook said she understands the challenges communities face when it comes to improving neighborhoods and access to funding.
She said the top three challenges Detroiters face are affordable housing, economic development and safety and security.
Haugabook has a robust vision for expanding mixed-income and deeply affordable housing throughout the city, and said she plans to achieve this by leveraging federal, state and philanthropic funding. She also wants to create a city-funded senior and legacy home repair program to help long-term residents age in place, strengthen code enforcement and retool the Detroit Land Bank Authority to ensure properties are available for community-driven projects.
Reducing property taxes is another way the city can make homeownership more affordable for Detroiters, Haugabook said, and she supports an entertainment tax to increase revenue.
Haugabook described her approach to economic development as “holistic” and said she’ll focus on redeveloping commercial districts in the neighborhoods, with investments in small businesses and activating storefronts. “The housing and the business districts work hand in hand,” Haugabook told BridgeDetroit, “because the housing draws the business, but the businesses also draw residents.”
Expanding the Detroit Police Department’s community violence intervention program and mental health co-response unit are two proactive steps to addressing safety and security, according to Haugabook.
As the threat of state and federal budget cuts continues to hang in limbo, however, red, yellow and green light indicators could illuminate the city’s financial path forward under Haugabook’s plan.
Haugabook’s “traffic light approach” would assist officials in scaling back services as the city’s financial position changes throughout the budget year. A yellow light would indicate a concern or prompt less-significant action, and a red light would indicate the need to take tougher action, such as a hiring freeze. Additionally, Haugabook stressed the importance of looking to philanthropic organizations, foundations, universities and other partners to assist in carrying out some of the work the city is doing.
In District 5 specifically, Haugabook said she wants to address residents’ access to land bank-owned property and transparency around the disposition of properties. She also wants to see better use of the Improve Detroit app to address resident concerns regularly.
“I plan to take the community with me to that seat. I’m not sitting there alone.” Haugabook said about her commitment to seeking public participation in the decision-making process.
Her commitment involves strengthening the Community Advisory Council, creating public dashboards to provide a comprehensive overview of the way funds are utilized and the benefits therein, and creating a partnership that allows residents to come to her with issues, and that she can seek input from.
Return on investment and legally-binding community benefits agreements are factors Haugabook will consider when making decisions to approve or deny tax breaks for new development, including the Renaissance Center project.
“I’m looking at what our return on investment is, not just short term, but long term for the residents of the city of Detroit,” Haugbook said, “If it does not benefit the residents of the city of Detroit, then, then it should not, then we should not give that incentive.”
Tatjana Jackson
Age: 32
Education: Attended Central Michigan University and Henry Ford Community College
Occupation: Educator, Charles H. Wright Museum
Neighborhood: Arden Park
Jackson said she’s witnessed the changes throughout the city over the years as a lifelong Detroiter. With the exception of the brief period of time when she was at college, Jackson said she’s been involved in the community throughout every change.
Her top three issues are federal budget cuts, economic development and the inclusion of Detroiters in key decisions
Jackson told BridgeDetroit there are a lot of ways the city can overcome the challenges associated with state and federal budget cuts, including the creation of new revenue sources, such as a regional general fund mileage that supports communities in the Metro Detroit area and she wouldn’t be opposed to a small sales tax, especially if it’s related to the tourist industry.
Empowering and sustaining small businesses, including tax cuts, Jackson said, would afford Detroiters an opportunity to “create their own money,” and she wants to partner with venture capitalists and private equity firms to support them.
On housing, Jackson said she supports holding landlords accountable and working with developers to create co-operative housing to reduce the cost for both the developer and residents.
One of the main issues in District 5, Jackson told BridgeDetroit, is that money flows into downtown instead of neighborhoods, and she wants to work with the Downtown Development Authority to spread investments out.
As the president of her neighborhood association, Jackson said she’s been involved in discussions about community benefits when developers moved into the neighborhood and if elected, she won’t feel comfortable making decisions without hearing from residents.
Community involvement and benefits are essential to approving tax breaks, Jackson told BridgeDetroit, whether that’s hiring Detroiters, empowering small businesses or connecting Detroit-based contractors to provide services in the area. She’ll also consider accessibility for residents with a disability to ensure new housing is built with their safety in mind.
When she first heard about the plans to tear down the RenCen, Jackson said it was a straightforward “no.”
“That was heartbreaking when I found that out. I was like, what? That’s our thing,” she said.
She doesn’t know whether she’ll support a tax break for the Ren Cen project, and she said she wants to ensure the city is receiving adequate benefits from the deal.
Jackson said putting money into community violence intervention groups is a priority of hers, which she believes is proactive and saves resources that would otherwise be used to hire and pay police officers. She also wants to ensure the Board of Police Commissioners is well-supported to carry out its charter-mandated duties.
Regardless of who is elected mayor, Jackson told BridgeDetroit she’ll carefully review each decision she’ll be asked to make at the council table and work with the mayor no matter what. “That doesn’t mean being a ‘yes person,’ that means creating solutions and whatever they wanna bring to the table, really having dialogue with them,” she said.
Jackson doesn’t support solar fields in neighborhoods and questions the use of open land instead of rooftops, especially when residents are looking to acquire city-owned parcels. “If we’re gonna take up a lot of land for solar panels, why can’t any of the residents buy the land?”
Jackson said the city and DLBA have withheld properties from residents who wanted to acquire them. “You’re actually preventing the neighborhood from creating wealth, and then you’re gonna hold it for developers that we continue to spend our money on it.“
However, Jackson emphasized the importance of not making any sudden decisions to get rid of the land bank and reviewing all the options.
Jackson told BridgeDetroit she can “definitely” see herself being council president. Her experience serving as president of her neighborhood experience came natural to her, she said, which is why believes she has the experience and talent to do the job.
As for if she decided who she’ll vote for in the mayoral race, Jackson said “I’m focused on my race.”
Renata Miller
Age: 56
Education: n/a
Occupation: UAW Retiree
Neighborhood: Indian Village
Miller was born and raised in Detroit and currently lives in the Indian Village neighborhood where she has been an advocate for historic preservation, single-family residential zoning, and small businesses. She’s a UAW retiree, founder of the Historic Districts Alliance and a program director for The Lawn Academy which teaches environmental stewardship and provides job training to Detroit youth.
Miller said residents aren’t happy with current elected officials who she says have stuck to the status quo. “I believe I am a bold change for Detroiters. I believe I am the person to bridge, as they say, the two Detroits.”
The top three challenges facing Detroiters, according to Miller, are affordable housing, jobs and development and safety.
Miller said she believes the city needs to find a way to recalibrate the formula for calculating Area Median Income so it better represents Detroiters and their income, whereas now AMI encompasses surrounding cities and sits at approximately $77,397, despite Detroit having a median income of $39,575, according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey data from 2024.
Having been a small business owner herself, Miller said she understands the unique challenges entrepreneurs face when developing and growing their business. On the other hand, her experience in grassroots organizing taught her the importance of communication and education. She hopes to leverage both experiences to bridge the divide between residents and city government, especially when it involves development.
Miller said she understands the importance of tax incentives but wants to see stronger community benefits agreements and better communication and education in the negotiation process.
“You’ve got to give people education and hope, because people are just surviving, we want them to thrive in the city.”
Additionally, Miller said she wants to see more “homegrown” business development.
On safety, Miller said she’ll push for expanding the neighborhood police officer program, investments in alley lights, gun safety programs, bringing mini police stations back, mental health awareness initiatives, among others.
In District 5 specifically, Miller said she wants to see an “adopt-a-block” initiative so nonprofits and foundations can “adopt” certain areas by investing in improvements that residents have long-complained about, such as sidewalks and alley lights.
Miller also said she’d like to see more investments in neighborhood amenities such as grocery stores, community pools, outdoor athletic facilities and recreational spaces.
She’s excited to work with the next mayoral administration and to serve as both the check and balance. “If you say you’re committed to the people, let’s prove it. If you say you’re committed to development, how can I help you? If you say you’re going to bring jobs, what can I do to be of service? I’m here to be that person that bridges residents with the vision.”
Amid federal and state budget cuts, Miller said city officials have to ensure someone is at the table advocating on behalf of the city.
Miller said she’d like to revamp the DLBA and she believes Detroiters should have a seat on its Board of Directors and first priority when it comes to buying properties. “For people who are turned away from buying lots next to their houses, or a portion of vacant land, and to call and find out that it’s on reserve,” Miller told BridgeDetroit, “this is disheartening for our residents.”
Miller has a domestic violence conviction from 2003, which she confirmed to BridgeDetroit and explained it was a situation that occurred between her and her spouse when she was in her 30s. Miller said she went through anger management as part of her probation and was discharged in 2005, less than a year after she was sentenced, Oakland County court records show.
“I learned that nothing is more important than me, my children and the reputation of my family, and that self control was essential,” Miller told BridgeDetroit, “It was a costly experience to learn from and I wish I had just walked away.”
Michael Ri’chard
Age: 70
Education: BA in Political Science from Central State University, and a master’s in Public Administration from the University of Detroit
Occupation: Retired
Neighborhood: Elmwood Park
Ri’chard was born, raised and educated in District 5 and now lives 10 blocks away from where he grew up. He’s retired from the Wayne County Veteran Services Department and previously worked for the city and county, as well as in various political campaigns, and served as the Deputy Director of Operations for Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign in Michigan in 2016.
Ri’chard told BridgeDetroit he has the education, experience, and community connections to represent District 5 residents.
For Ri’chard, the top three issues in Detroit are seniors, affordable housing and job opportunities.
“No one should spend their entire salary, or even 50% of their salary, on rent or on their mortgage. We need affordable, safe, clean housing, whether it’s rental housing or ownership,” Ri’chard told BridgeDetroit.
Ri’chard said he supports giving seniors a tax break and funding home repair programs. “When everybody else left Detroit during the bankruptcy, seniors stayed there. This is their golden years. We need to make their life more comfortable by lowering their taxes, helping them fix their homes and making their neighborhoods safe.”
On affordable housing, he wants to get developers and contractors in the same room and come up with a comprehensive plan. He also has a vision for building affordable housing and naming it after former Senator John Conyers.
Ri’chard said good-paying jobs in Detroit are necessary if the city is going to retain residents who would otherwise leave for college, and it would also help attract new businesses.
Ri’chard told BridgeDetroit that decisions he’ll make at the council table will be based on the community’s input, data, and his research, and he plans to keep an open door policy with residents and the city’s next mayor.
In District 5, Ri’chard said he wants to strengthen Community Advisory Councils and meet with community organizations regularly to ensure he’s informed about issues that arise and to seek input on decisions he’ll make at the council table.
Ri’chard’s stance on the land bank: Revamp it, don’t close it.
Unlike his competition, Ri’chard wants to keep the DLBA intact. Instead, he wants to cut the red tape and add more homes to its inventory to increase Detroiters’ access to fix-uppers and improve homeownership. “I just think the council needs to not let it run amok, but put some more thought into what’s going on there,” he said.
Ri’chard’s said he wants to create a program that allows Detroiters to buy a house from the land bank with a three-year grace period to make necessary improvements, and abating property taxes for five years.
When it comes to tax breaks for developers, Ri’chard said he’ll look at how the developer plans to support the community and who they’re hiring to perform the work to ensure tax breaks are benefiting the overall neighborhood, and not just the development itself. The same is true for the Renaissance Center project which, as of right now, Ri’chard said he won’t support because he doesn’t see what the benefit is to the city.
He doesn’t support tax increases for residents; however, Ri’chard said he would support an entertainment tax as an additional revenue stream.
Amid federal and state budget cuts, Ri’chard said he would get rid of the “fluff” in the city’s budget, keeping the “need to have” and leaving the “nice to have” behind. He also wants to explore whether nonprofits, Wayne County and other organizations can assist in the continuation of essential city services if the city’s finances require it. “They may not get a raise, but they will continue, probably as is.”
“I am satisfied and happy with the police situation that we have right now,” Ri’chard told BridgeDetroit. His agenda for the department is simple: he’d like to sit down with DPD’s police chief and the Wayne County Sheriff’s Office to hear about their respective agencies’ goals. He said he supports the current police chief and whatever they need, but he won’t be writing them a blank check.
There are three candidates running write-in campaigns in District 5: Whitney Clarke, DeQuincy Hyatt and Kevin Jones.