DETROIT – Mayor Mike Duggan spent the first half of his annual State of the City address laying out the steps that have been taken to make sure Detroiters share in economic advancement.
Whether it was negotiating with companies locating in the city to give residents first dibs on good paying jobs or removing obstacles to success, Duggan laid out the comprehensive ways Detroit city government has helped its small business get millions in loans and grants to survive COVID-19 to money that has been secured to help people living in generational poverty get their GED or learn a trade.
He promised more work on lowering auto insurance rates after being a driving force in getting the Legislature to overhaul no-fault insurance.
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“This isn’t over. We need to eliminate the geographic differences. If you really want equity, there should be no redlining in this state,”Duggan said.
The other half of the address was about COVID-19 vaccine expansion. A new vaccination clinic will be opening this month at the Northwest Activities Center, which will have the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. Duggan was in hot water last week after he turned down 6,200 doses of the vaccine, suggesting it was not the best.
In Tuesday night’s address, he admitted that his words were not well informed. Detroit rallied when the mayor and his team, early in the pandemic, called on the city to take all precautions to flatten the curve. His call to action now is to get vaccinated.
“We are not leading this country in getting vaccinated and if we are going to drive the comeback of this city it’s gonna be important so take your friend, take your neighbor and let’s get vaccinated,” he said.