Board of Water Commissioners
Detroit Water and Sewerage DepartmentCheck the source website for additional information
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Reporting
Edited and summarized by the Detroit - MI Documenters Team
The board authorized DWSD to acquire 164 properties as part of the Brightmoor Stormwater Improvement Project. DWSD Director Gary Brown confirmed DWSD will adhere to a policy that prevents shutoffs for residential account holders in Detroit who have a medical emergency.
What up, Detroit? 🏙️Good Afternoon. Today at 2 p.m. EST I will provide LIVE coverage of today’s public Board of Water Commissioners meeting on behalf of the @detdocumenters.bsky.social. Follow me at @detroitjcs.bsky.social for more public meetings coverage.
12:09 PM Jul 17, 2025 CDT
This public meeting was originally to be held Wed. July 16 but was rescheduled
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In this thread I will refer to the commissioners’ board as the BOWC.
This is typically a 🏎️💨fast-paced omnibus meeting.
For today’s meeting you may dial in by Zoom, telephone or view the YouTube channel.
Starting on time: call to order and roll call shows there is a quorum despite some absences. It’s 2 p.m.
Item E on pg5 be removed is requested by a commissioner.
Agenda approved/adopted. June 18, 2025 minutes approved. Unanimously approved.
2 people have signed up for public comment in person.
Reading instructions for public comment now.
Learn about this public meeting and find the agenda/schedule here: https://dwsd.legistar.com/.
Meeting will be at 735 Randolph, Detroit, MI 48226. They share the building with the Great Lakes Water Authority (Suite 1900).
Public commenters are limited to 3 minutes.
Public commenter has a translator as he doesn’t speak English. Bill dispute at a commercial building. Commissioners advise customer service will assist today.
Next up: Liz Collin POA Donald Williams. My apologies: power of attorney (POA).
Taking some time. Liz Cohen acting on behalf of her brother who is living outside the state, while the property is here.
Water bill dispute. Resident has dementia. She is emotional and frankly, it is an emotional issue to hear that the bill is over $16K. The property has been vacant.
The water was shut off May 2023 and it has been vacant since 2021. The family is (obviously) concerned about a $16K debt due to DWSD. They are requesting assistance.
Dir. Brown says he will have someone from staff help, and whether or not bill moved to the Treasury office. He references “Kim”…
Dir. Brown says they will help today.
Online, there are public commenters.
Cicely McClellan is 1st up wiith issues of concern, rep’ing We Detroit.
Discussing medical waiver and necessity of water during medical/health issues.
People w/medical emergencies are facing shut-offs despite this option available to them to prevent (28-day notice) shut-off.
Also, discussed EASY PAY program w/arrearages.
Says payment plans are unreasonable, and debt forgiveness is necessary for those w/medical emergencies.
Wants to know how many terminated from the payment program are unable to return to the program and wants to know about plumbing assistance and water affordability in the state of Michigan.
Buelah Walker is speaking now, with Hydrate Detroit. Wants to know if the leaders at DWSD will remain with new mayor in Detroit.
Discussing extreme cases that have come before her and wonders if it will continue.
Dir. Brown says the medical emergencies are being adhered to in the city of Detroit.
Clarification: Any resident in the City w/a water bill experiencing a medical emergency, the DWSD will adhere to the policy to assist them and there will be no shut off.
Now discussing the customer service centers being sold. Asks to suspend and provide community outreach.
She discussed options to pay bills to be paid in person, as well as throughout communities as some customers can not easily navigate online or come downtown where the bill can be paid.
Public participation closed. It is 2:18 pm.
Item 7. No items.
Item 8. No unfinished business.
Now, discussing that customer service told a resident that they cannot come before the board with concerns and only through the phone.
As a matter of public record, the public may come before the board with their concerns. Dir. Brown concurred.
Items 9A-J (Consent Agenda):
No discussion. These are items that are in the “tens of millions of dollars”.
Unanimously adopted.
Reminded the public the work took place in committee, so these items have been discussed and bundled under 1 report.
2025-162 (page 4):
contract adopted after move and support to approve DWSD Contract 6007295 to provide grounds maintenance services for a term of 5 years with Premier Group Associates LC not-to-exceed $259,186.24.
2025-167 (also page 4): contract adopted inanimously after move and support to approve DWSD Contract 6007309 (WS-742) with LGC Global, Inc. for Water System Improvements, for a total contract amount not-to-exceed $19,477,752.00 and a term of two (2) years.
This is a walk-on today. Approved.
2025-168 (page 5): approve DWSD Contract 6007201 with DLZ
Michigan, Inc.; for Sewer Condition Assessment, Sewer Flow Monitoring, Hydraulic Modeling, CIP Development, and Design Services in the neighborhoods of Cultural Center, Medbury Park, Eastern Market, Greektown, Milwaukee Junction…
… New Center, and Tech Town. This is a $15M dollar contract.
Approved and adopted.
Actually, that contract is closer to $16M dollars.
Wow. Read documentation on https://detroit.documenters.org where we will place attachments.
Currently discussing the acquisition of properties listed
in the attached Exhibit A as a part of the Brightmoor Stormwater
Improvement Project - Acquisition plan included in the Capital Budget.
Presentation of the Brightmoor Stormwater Improvement Project that will collect stormwater for exit…
…into the Rouge River.
Again: we will upload the documentation on this project with urban farms, land bank, city council and clean-up of parcels throughout the land/parcels.
After reviewing it, I saw lots of images, maps, and statistics.
Very interesting for flood risk mitigation in the city.
Speaker/presenter says this project will make the Brightmoor area ready for development.
Other areas throughout the country are being referenced, such as this storm area in North Carolina.
More from the presentation. Currently in environmental review.
Project schedule through 2030 for the Brightmoor Stormwater Improvement Plan:
Presenter says this plan will not only help Brightmoor but other surrounding communities.
Q: How will it support development, and fit w/in the community?
A: We will engage with the community and seeking grant money.
Dir. Brown says the community will design this (project), and DWSD will work w/the community.
The pond (8 acres) will appear as a lake and developers will get a mitigated drainage charge is the type of thing that can happen, according to Dir. Brown.
They are discussing the makeup of the community, some of which have one home per block, urban farms, and other challenges/opportunities for Brightmoor.
Dir. Brown says we have a unique opportunity to manage these type of shovel-ready projects because we own the land & have the engineering team too.
Speaker says they are seeking other opportunities throughout the City of Detroit, not just on the west side.
Q: How is this information getting out to the community?
A: Mayor charter-mandated meetings, touchpoints with the city neighborhood meetings.
Another Commissioner says not enough…
…residents attend the neighborhood meetings so she is concerned the community may be unaware of these actions.
Response is that they are “following the rules” (paraphrase) and community residents are “very eager” for this project to begin. They are doing direct outreach and door-knocking.
Community meetings take place every quarter and through construction.
Going to City Council for a resolution of necessity and seeking eminent domain for leverage for certain negotiations. There are property owners who do not agree, are not local, and this can be challenging.
This motion is adopted.
Now on to the Director’s report, agenda item 11A.
Before this report, discussing the painting of fire hydrants and getting into the neighborhoods throughout the city.
Commissioners acknowledgement of the passing of a judge and 2 public servants in the last month.
Speaking of Virgil and close relationship to him, and an extension of condolences to the families and the community.
Introduction to Senior General Counsel Elizabeth. I missed her last name.
Adjournment called at 2:55 pm.
CEO report not discussed but it is PACKED w/metrics on each DWSD division.
The Detroit Board of Water Commissioners (BOWC) meets monthly as the governing body of the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department (DWSD). All seven members are mayoral appointees. They also meet annually in a public hearing to set water and sewerage rates for the following fiscal year.
The 7 commissioners are Michael Einheuser, Chair; Mary E. Blackmon, Vice Chair; and commissioners Lane
Coleman, John Henry Davis, Jonathan C. Kinloch, Jane C. Garcia, and Linda D. Forte.
The public may attend this meeting in person, by phone, Zoom, and view the meeting on the BOWC YouTube channel
⛔IMPORTANT⛔ If you believe anything in this coverage is inaccurate, please email 📩 documenters@outliermedia.org with “Correction Request” in the subject line.
đź“°This concludes my live reporting for the public meeting of the Board of Water Commissioners on 7/17/2025, starting at 2p EST. For more public meetings coverage, check out wwwhttps://www.documenters.org
Have a lovely day, Detroit!🏙️🌆
ℹ️FYI: If you’re interested, the YouTube channel for DWSD (where they place water program information and public meetings of the BOWC) can be found here - www.https://www.youtube.com/@DWSD
Attachments
12 attachments
Agency Information
Detroit Water and Sewerage Department
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Detroit Water and Sewerage Department (DWSD) is one of the largest water and sewer utilities in the United States, serving more than 200,000 Detroit residential and commercial accounts that includes a city population of nearly 680,000. DWSD’s water network consists of more than 2,700 miles of transmission and distribution mains and nearly 3,000 miles of sewer collection piping.
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