By Mary Waters
Detroit City Council Member At-Large
Poverty has been the shameful societal weapon that has turned Detroit into an eviction factory. The weaponization of Detroit’s eviction process has been well documented.
Between 2014 and 2018, Detroit averaged 29,330 eviction filings per year, according to a report published by University of Michigan Poverty Solutions in May of 2020.
The one sided nature of the eviction process has necessitated an intervention by those of us positioned to inject fairness into an eviction process that had run amuck literally tossing human beings into the streets of Detroit with nowhere to go while Detroit looked the other way. Families were subjected to living in rental properties that were inhabitable even causing the death of babies (Ca”Mya Davis) that drowned in feces laden water after stepping into holes in the floor.
With the support of Detroit City Council, I sponsored a Detroit Tenant’s Rights Commission that works with renters, giving tenants a voice in housing policy to help counteract the speculators and wealthy developers.
The Tenant Rights Commission builds on successful commissions in other cities such as Los Angeles, Seattle and Ann Arbor.
The commission will: advise the Council and Administration on areas of rental housing policy and offer tenants and landlords a venue to resolve disputes outside of the eviction process.
The Commission will incentivize new investment in affordable housing that meets the demands of renters. Additional support in areas of rent escrows and other areas as needed to ensure compliance will be available.
This is the first Commission ever set up in Detroit to advocate for renters.
The Commission has nine members, with representation from renters, senior citizens, disability community, and those Detroiters who have been able to invest in their neighborhoods by purchasing and/ or inheriting properties that they rent out.
Four members are appointed by Council (two must be current renters).
Four members are appointed by the Mayor (two must be current renters). One member is jointly appointed by the Council and Mayor. All members must be Detroit residents
The Tenant’s Rights Commission operates with its own staff and budget, empowered to help renters and work directly with other city, county, state, and federal resources
Commissioners will also be reimbursed for their service, eliminating barriers that have held back many lower-income residents from serving in city government bodies and enabling the commission to have members from a range of socio-economic backgrounds.
The Tenant’s Rights Commission also works with the city on rental compliance, and will help tenants who are in disputes with their landlords to set up free escrow accounts, preventing unscrupulous landlords from extorting renters for rent even when their properties aren’t up to code.
Currently, 90% of rental properties in Detroit lack a Certificate of Compliance, which is the document all rentals need to prove they passed the city’s inspections
The Tenant Rights Commission held its first meeting in April and will at last be a voice for those subjected to marginal representation in Landlord Tenant relations.
