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Two years later, Project Green Light
a beacon of hope in Detroit and beyond

By Hassan Khalifeh, The Arab-American News

DETROIT — It was an obvious choice for Rafed
White, owner of Dollar Center at Warren Avenue
and Greenfield Road.

In fact, he said it was "100 percent the best
investment" he's made in his store.

Two years after Mayor Mike Duggan and Police
Chief James Craig announced Project Green Light,
White and about 230 others, including owners of
gas stations, party stores, car washes, restaurants
and residential buildings, have joined a network
of businesses that have a unique partnership with
the Detroit Police Department.

It's part of an initiative that began with eight busi-
nesses wanting to make it safer for their shoppers
and customers at the pumps, while contributing to
Detroit's resurgence.

White, an Iraqi American who lives about a
40-minute drive from his shop, said he couldn't
imagine going back to the nerve-wrecking days of
getting up in the middle of the night to check the
cameras in his store on his phone — a routine he
started after losing thousands in stolen inventory.
"We stopped calling the police because it would
take so long for them to come," he said.

But starting a year ago, obvious signs— a flash-
ing green light that can be seen from a mile away
and high-definition feeds watched live at the
Police Department's Real Time Crime Center— are
enough to bring in a growing stream of shoppers
into his store and to neighboring businesses.

As the number of partners spreads throughout the
city, it's not just the small businesses that benefit
from the fruits of Project Green Light.

Duggan and Craig announced on January 4 that
violent crimes in 2017 were down 12 percent from
the year before. There were 267 homicides last
year, down from 302 in 2016 – the lowest since
1966. The report shows that carjackings are down
41 percent and other non-violent theft-related
crimes are down 13 percent.

The officials credited the crime reduction to the
hiring of more than 500 officers and more than
100 who were moved from desk jobs to the street,
the crime center and Ceasefire Detroit, a multi-
agency effort designed to address gang-related
gun crimes and Project Green Light.

White said he used to fear for himself and for his
employees' safety, calling police "very often"
before partnering with Project Green Light, adding
that the blaring signs have been a major deterrent.
A visible patrol presence has also been increased
around his shop and officers are on average a five
minute call away, giving priority response to Green
Light partners, he said.

"They know right away that somebody is watch-
ing them, so they're less likely to put something

in their pockets," White said of unwelcomed cus-
tomers. "And if they do, they're less likely to get
away with it because their pictures is captured on
camera and available to the police."

Costs and incentives

But the Green Light security system isn't free to
install, with costs running up to $6,000, which
could dissuade modest-sized businesses from
benefiting.

The program requires installation of a minimum
of four cameras, signage, adequate lighting and
high-speed Internet. Lighting alone costs $450.
Moussa Bazzi, co-owner of three gas stations on
Detroit's eastside said becoming a Project Green
Light partner is a "wise" long-term investment
and protecting employees should be "part of
every business plan."

Bazzi said he sees such great value in Project
Green Light that about 30 cameras have watched
every corner of his three stations since its incep-
tion, making him one of its original partners, and
pointed to the thousands it costs just to build a
bathroom at a store.

"We want the city to work with us, for police to
respond and for them to take us seriously," he
said. "[In return], we want to invest our hard-
earned money to help the city protect people who
work, visit and do business here."

Bazzi said he's seen about a 10-15 percent
increase in business at his gas stations, as crimi-
nals leave the area and more customers pour in.

A safer Detroit

A report by the police department shows that
incidents of violent crime within 500 feet of the
original eight Project Green Light partners were
reduced by 50 percent, comparing January to July
2017 data to 2015.

Bazzi and White said the cameras at their busi-
nesses have stopped crimes in their neighborhoods
or helped solve them. Bazzi said that within the
first week of installing them, police were able to
identify and arrest a taxi driver who hit a boy on his
way to school in front of one of his gas stations.

Rafed White, owner of Dollar Center, inside his store on Warren Ave. and Greenfi eld Rd.

mile away from her home and was arrested.
"It speeds up the criminal justice system,"
Bettison said.

Bettison said police officials were originally cau-
tious about who could join the program, focus-
ing on businesses in areas with high crime and
customer traffic that open early or stay open late.
However, the demand for Project Green Light is so
great that other properties like grocery stores, mov-
ies theaters, apartments and retirement complexes
want to reap its benefits. The number of partners
have doubled in one year.

He also said some development authorities are
in talks about installing a few Project Green Light
systems that would monitor several stores along
various business district corridors.

In response to the growing interest, Bettison said
the city has invested "millions of dollars" to turn
on more than 200 live high definition camera
feeds, hire more crime analysts and expand the
Real Time Crime Center's footprint.

From frustrations to success

Detroit Police Department Commander Todd
Bettison oversees the Project Green Light program
and said its deterrent effect has saved one busi-
ness about $2,000 a month it was losing in stolen
goods. For those who commit crimes, especially
in multiple locations, their prosecution is now sub-
stantially more likely.

As much as Project Green Light contributes to
Detroit's comeback, its seeds were planted amid a
rocky relationship with City Hall in 2014.
Small business owners, mostly Arab Americans,
complained of unjustified ticketing and hefty fees.
Arab American gas station and liquor store owners
even accused the city of discrimination and threat-
ened to sue the mayor's office.

In November, 20 individuals were convicted in
court after being caught through the live feed,
including a woman who fired multiple shots at a
Mobil gas station in March 2016. Two hours later,
she was recognized at a traffic stop while driving a

Soon after, some of the owners, including Bazzi
and local entrepreneurs, business and community
leaders, began meeting with the mayor and police
chief to mend fences and implement a plan that
would benefit every stakeholder in the city.

Businessman Nasser Baydoun, an advocate of the
project since its inception, said the concept was
based on the "blue light" program founded by Dan
Gilbert's Rock Ventures in Downtown Detroit and
that it was the mayor who proposed adding the
cameras.

At the press conference announcing the project in
January 2016, Duggan and Beydoun said the city
and businesses have put their differences aside
and share the same vision of "One Detroit."

About this series

New Michigan Media (NMM) is the collaboration of
the five leading minority media outlets in the region.
The New Michigan Media Newspapers have a com-
bined estimated reach of over 140,000 weekly, and
include The Latino Press, The Michigan Chronicle,
The Jewish News, The Michigan Korean Weekly,
and The Arab American News. For the past 3
years, NMM has also been a member of the Detroit
Journalism Cooperative (DJC), the unique collabora-
tion between some of the leading media outlets of
the region, which includes The Center for Michigan’s
Bridge Magazine, Detroit Public Television, Michigan
Public Radio, and WDET. Funded by the John S. and
James L. Knight Foundation, the DJC aims to report
about and create community engagement opportu-
nities in Detroit and the region. The article you are
reading is part of the DJC project of this year, and
will appear in all the NMM member newspapers, as
well as with the DJC partners.

jn

February 22 • 2018

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