Welcome back. I’m still Malachi Barrett.

Mayor Mike Duggan said President Donald Trump is not focusing on Detroit for federal immigration enforcement in part because the city is not interfering.

Duggan said Monday on CNN that Detroit isn’t “drawing the kind of controversy other cities are” because it “is not a sanctuary city.”

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security announced the launch of “Operation Midway Blitz” on Monday, targeting undocumented immigrants in Chicago and other parts of Illinois. A press release says the raid is necessary because Chicago’s status as a sanctuary city prevented Chicago from honoring detainer requests to deport convicted criminals.

Trump has not publicly discussed bringing federal force into Detroit, but politicians are weighing in on the possibility as residents seek sanctuary city protections. A group of residents with the Detroit Community Action Committee asked the City Council on Tuesday to create an ordinance that protects residents.

Duggan joined CNN on Monday to speak on the issue and his 2026 gubernatorial campaign as an independent candidate. He said Detroit is already “working together with the Trump administration to bring the violence down” but reiterated that Detroit is “not a sanctuary city.”

“The Detroit Police Department doesn’t enforce federal law,” Duggan said. “That’s not our job. But if we arrest somebody for breaking and entering, put their fingerprint in the system and ICE calls and says ‘that’s an undocumented immigrant we’ve been looking for,’ we honor that detainer agreement.

“We did that under Obama. We did that under the (first) Trump administration. We did it under Biden. We’re doing it today.”

Council Member Mary Waters denounced federal intervention in Chicago during a Monday interview with Fox 2. Waters said “there’s something very fundamentally wrong” with Trump’s approach to target cities with Black leadership.

“There are issues with all of our cities, in Detroit, Los Angeles and Chicago, but there’s also federal law called posse comitatus — he is not supposed to use the military to go after civilians, and that is what he’s doing,” Waters said. “It’s going against civilians, that’s what this president is doing. Why doesn’t he work with the various cities … so they can govern their own cities.”

She was joined on Fox 2 by former Detroit police chief James Craig, who finished fifth out of nine in the 2025 mayoral primary. Craig said Detroiters in dangerous parts of the city want federal help.

“What’s appalling to me is when folks who sit in their little offices, who have never been out in front of the community to listen to what they want,” Craig said in a heated exchange with Waters. “Black Chicagoans want the help.”

Trump deployed the National Guard to Washington, D.C. after declaring a “crime emergency” but is using immigration enforcement as justification for mobilizing in Chicago. Advocates with the Detroit Community Action Committee said there’s an urgent need to sever ties with immigration agents after the latest U.S. Supreme Court ruling.

On Monday, the high court allowed agents to stop people for any of four factors: “apparent race or ethnicity,” speaking in Spanish or accented English, being at a location where undocumented immigrants “are known to gather” — including bus stops, farms and car washes — and working at specific jobs.

Dissenting Judge Sonia Sotomayor argued this ruling allows the government to “seize anyone who looks Latino, speaks Spanish, and appears to work a low wage job.” The dissenting opinion included several accounts of U.S. citizens being wrongly arrested by ICE.

Last week, Republican U.S. Senate hopeful Mike Rogers called on Duggan to seek Trump’s help to fight violent crime. Duggan’s spokesperson John Roach called Rogers an “uninformed, grandstanding politician.”

Several Democrats running against Rogers had harsher responses.

Abdul El-Sayed said Rogers is “being a Karen,” while state Sen. Mallory McMorrow reshared a post from 2024 when Trump disparaged Detroit, saying “f**k this guy. Don’t come back.”

U.S. Rep. Haley Stevens said bringing the National Guard to Detroit was “wrong in ‘67 and wrong now,” though Republicans noted that Stevens called for deploying the National Guard to Chicago in 2016.

---

What page are we on?

Today’s notebook covers the Sept. 9 formal session. 

Dig into the agenda, read Detroit Documenter notes or watch the recording for more details.

Did a friend forward you this? Sign up to catch the next one for free.

Our election tracker provides regular updates on campaign happenings. Keep checking this page for news.

Stay on top of upcoming election events with this Google calendar. Don’t see an event listed? Email me to get it added.

---

New source of east side odors found 

Council Member Latisha Johnson believes she’s found the likely source of noxious odors east side residents may have mistakenly attributed to Stellantis in recent years.

Canada-based Aevitas Specialty Services Corporation has operated a waste treatment and oil recycling facility in District 4 since 2012. It’s been the subject of 59 state investigations and eight air quality violations. The latest violation notice was issued May 20 for “unreasonable interference with the comfortable enjoyment of life and property.”

Johnson said the Aevitas facility is having a chronic negative impact on the wellbeing of east side residents. She’s looking into legal pathways to revoke state permits and other permissions needed to operate in Detroit, at least until the air pollution is addressed.

“Much of the east side is often blanketed by this odor that residents often associate with the Stellantis plants or possible gas leaks,” Johnson’s wrote in a memo to the city council’s Legislative Policy Division. “However, the EGLE pollution emergency alerting system has investigated many of these complaints and found that the source of the gas smell is the Aevitas facility.”

Aevitas is located on Lycaste Street near several industrial facilities and the Stellantis River Yard, which are directly adjacent to residential neighborhoods.

The facility caught fire in June, causing a massive blaze and several small explosions. A Detroit firefighter was injured while putting out the flames.

Johnson said a nearby air monitor recorded a spike in air pollution after the fire, and burning oil can release dangerous particles. Since the fire, Johnson said residents near the facility have noticed the absence of noxious fumes.

Aevitas CEO Rob Slater said Tuesday the facility has not been in operation since the fire, but it would reopen after the installation of better control systems that would reduce odor emissions. Slater said he hopes the process of demolition, clean up, reconstruction and the acquisition of proper permits is done within a year.

“What we do is an important cog in the machine of Detroit industry,” Slater said. “We keep a lot of oil out of landfills because everything we bring is going out as a recycled product. We’re a small business. We employ a number of Detroit residents and we try to be good neighbors.”

The cause of the fire has not been identified, Slater said, but it appears to be a combination of electrical and mechanical issues.

The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy (EGLE) “observed persistent and objectionable odors” in May. Slater said Aevitas has worked to resolve violations with the state in the past, and has a “good longstanding relationship” with state regulators.

“We’re taking waste oil that, even from the same place, can vary in its characteristics and producing an odor, and variations in material mean it’s as much of an art as it is a science,” Slater said. “We take it very seriously. We shut processes down, we conduct an internal investigation.”

Slater said he’s met with residents who have complaints about odors, but the area is zoned for heavy industrial uses and surrounded by other similar facilities that are likely contributing to the problem. Johnson said Aevitas is “pretty obscure” and she wasn’t aware of the facility until the recent fire.

---

Durhal won’t name successor in District 7 race 

Council Member Fred Durhal III has no plans to endorse a successor for his seat as he prepares to leave office at the end of the year.

Durhal turned down a chance to run for re-election so he could run for mayor instead, and finished sixth out of nine candidates with 3.4% of the vote. Denzel McCampbell and state Rep. Karen Whitsett are competing in the November general election to replace Durhal in District 7.

McCampbell narrowly won in the District 7 primary, edging out Whitsett by just 56 votes and beating 2021 runner-up Regina Ross and community organizer Bobbi Johnson. Durhal said the close margin is part of why he’s staying out of the general election.

“I’ve got a lot of respect for each based on things they have done within the district, but I’m not touching that one,” Durhal said. “I want voters to decide who their next council member is. I truly believe we set a standard in my district and I’m hoping they take that to heart when (voters) choose who their next leader is going to be.”

Durhal said his endorsement might tip the scale for either candidate, but trusts his neighbors to make the right choice. Durhal himself was narrowly elected in 2021, winning the general election by just 59 votes.

“I haven’t decided who I’m voting for yet,” Durhal said. “Karen has served in the Michigan Legislature and been able to do some things for our district. McCampbell has been a fighter and an advocate. He has some really great ideas. But you saw those close margins and D7 is a fickle district. They hold folks’ feet to the fire.”

However, Durhal said he does plan to endorse a candidate for mayor. During the primary, Durhal criticized Rev. Solomon Kinloch’s lack of experience and expressed points of agreement with Council President Mary Sheffield. Durhal declined to say who he would endorse on Tuesday.

“We are proud of the race that we ran,” Durhal said of his mayoral campaign. “We stuck to the issues. We didn’t play dirty, we weren’t throwing jabs. We really challenged folks to really look at policy. I think those discussions, particularly throughout forums and debates, became a bit stronger.”

---

Speed humps linked to higher vehicle emissions  

A report from the council’s Legislative Policy Division suggests speed humps may have “unintended impacts” by increasing air pollution in the areas where they’re installed.

Council Member Scott Benson requested a report that analyzes any correlation between speed humps and increased particulate emissions. The report backed up Benson’s hunch that while speed humps improve safety, frequent braking and re-acceleration causes higher concentrations of particulate matter.

Emissions are two-to-five times higher near roads with traffic calming measures, according to scientific studies cited by the report. However, vegetative buffers can help limit the volume and spread.

Detroit experienced a 36% reduction in crashes on residential streets where speed humps were installed in 2021, and speed humps physically force drivers to reduce speeds by 20% to 30% on average.

The city announced the installation of 65 new speed humps this year, bringing the total to nearly 11,000 since the city started in 2016. The Department of Public Works received more than 23,000 speed hump requests from residents.

---

Overheard in CAYMC 

Here’s a recap of intrigue raised by residents during the public comment portion of Tuesday’s meeting and other notable items discussed by the council.

Council Member Gabriela Santiago-Romero recognized the 50th anniversary of Prince Valley Market, founded by Iraqi immigrant Hani Gappy in 1972. Gappy and his son Joe accepted a Spirit of Detroit award at Tuesday’s meeting.

Through the store, Santiago-Romero said, the family realized the American dream. Gappy arrived in Detroit from Baghdad in 1967 and opened his first market on Cass Avenue. The store burned in 1999 but Gappy purchased a neighboring business and expanded.

Santiago-Romero said the Gappy family sprung to action during the COVID-19 pandemic, performing wellness checks on neighbors and giving out gift cards.

“Here in Detroit we celebrate and uplift our immigrants because we know that we are stronger when we are united,” she said.

Detroit teens are the undisputed champions of the 2025 Nike RBI Softball World Series after finishing an undefeated run in Florida last month. Benson honored the Detroit Tigers 18U team with a Spirit of Detroit Award.

Catcher Sheyla Urena-Jordan said she’s been playing softball with the Police Athletic League team since she was in eighth  grade. She had two hits in the championship game and batted in a run, helping the team win 3-1 over a New Jersey squad.

“A lot of people thought we weren’t going to make it far but we proved them wrong,” she said.

Several detention officers said they are being underpaid, causing staffing issues after the state handed the city control of the Detroit Detention Center. Richard Bass said they “are in serious need of help” as 11 detention officers left since August. He said civilian workers earn half of what badge-carrying officers earn.

Council Member Angela Whitfield-Calloway wants more coverage from city photographers who document events. During a council committee hearing last week, Whitfield-Calloway said she is often omitted from the city’s website while other public officials have their photographs posted.

The complaint arose during a discussion on four contracts for audio/video production services at city events. Detroit Communications Director Vickie Thomas said she’ll remind photographers to capture council members and use those photos in public posts.

“We had the bandshell reveal in my district,” Whitfield-Calloway said. “My residents fought for it to be relocated and saved. I’m on the podium. You think you see a picture of me? No. You might see a group shot when we took a ribbon cutting, but I did a whole presentation. I’m nowhere to be found.”