Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan Talks Jobs, Equity, Vaccination Strategy and More in State of the City

In a long, wide-ranging State of the City Address — that at times sounded like a campaign rally — Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan painted a rosy picture, touting city initiatives that aim to ensure Black-owned businesses have opportunities in the city and that Detroiters are first up for jobs. 

In the address that ran over an hour, Duggan — who is up for re-election this year — talked about the barriers Detroiters face and that bringing back jobs is only the start. 

“Now the question is who’s going to get the jobs? And what equity means is eliminating the barriers,” he said. 

City of Detroit

Speaking at the new Stellantis auto plant on Detroit’s east side, where over 4,000 city residents have been hired, Duggan credited the area’s automakers for job creation.  

“The Michigan Central Train Station being rebuilt by Ford Motor Company, 5,000 new employees going into that campus. GM reversed their decision and are now building the most advanced plant in the world in what longtime Detroiters called the Poletown Plant, which is now known as Factory Zero.” 

Citing new Census numbers, Duggan says the city’s poverty rate has dropped from 40% to 30% — which means Detroit no longer has the highest poverty rate in the country. 

“We can do this and we can do with people from this city, serving their own neighborhood.” — Mayor Mike Duggan

In crediting the Motor City Match program, Duggan says Black-owned businesses are helping the city weather the pandemic. 

“More than a dozen Black-owned businesses started just on Livernois. And every one of these is still open today. One stretch of this program is happening now on McNichols. It’s happening now on Kercheval … we can do this and we can do with people from this city, serving their own neighborhood.” 

City of Detroit

While Duggan mentions the program’s successes, the Detroit Office of Inspector General found that the Motor City Match initiative was plagued by high spending on consultants and has resulted in few successful businesses. 

Another area where the city is trying to ensure equity is the city’s growing marijuana industry. Duggan promised to keep shop licenses to Detroiters and nonresidents to a 50-50 split to ensure half of the new businesses are run by a Detroiter.

He also outlined his “People Plan,” which focuses on community health, high school completion and anti-gang initiatives. The plan also includes money for skilled trades training. 

“We will pay you while you get the training program. So you’re making 12 bucks an hour cutting grass. Come to our training program, we’ll teach you … you’ll make $19 an hour.” 

Following changes to the state’s auto insurance laws rates went down. But when it comes to redlining, the discriminatory practice of denying things like loans and mortgages to minorities based on location, Duggan said there is still work to be done. 

“We need to eliminate the geographic differences. You really want equity, there should be no redlining … there should be a single rate for the state. And I’m going to make it my business the next five years to keep going back to Lansing until we get rid of redlining altogether.” 

City To Open Second Major Vaccination Site

But the city’s economic and public health recovery depends on one thing: vaccines, Duggan said. The city’s health department has administered 120,000 doses so far, he said, but “it’s not enough.” 

“If we want people back to work, we want people not to be afraid of being evicted, we want to get the criminal justice system going, we want to get the restaurants open, we have to get vaccinated faster,” he said. 

He outlined the next steps in the city’s vaccination strategy. On March 22, every Detroiter over the age of 50 will be eligible for vaccination, he said. By April, he expects eligibility will open up to every Detroiter with a chronic medical condition.

City of Detroit

“By May, I really do think we’re going to be opening up eligibility to everybody,” he said. To do so entails opening a second major vaccine site at the Northwest Activities Center on Meyers later this month where the Johnson & Johnson vaccine will be administered. He acknowledged his initial decision to reject the 6,200 vaccine doses, but after having done his research, he said the Johnson & Johnson vaccine is “a highly effective shot.” 

Detroiters will have two choices: They can go to TCF Center for the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines, which require two doses, or go to the Northwest Activities Center for the one-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine.  

“If we are going to drive the comeback of the city, [vaccination] is going to be important. Take your friend, take your neighbor, and let’s get vaccinated. And let’s get the city going again.”