Looking out for Pookie

News Hits has witnessed some odd meetings over the years, but not many have pushed the weird-meter into the red zone the way last Saturday's gathering of the Detroit Charter Review Commission did.

It started with Commissioner Rose Mary C. Robinson refusing to declare herself present when the roll was called, saying that she had concerns that the meeting might be in violation of the open meetings act.

Was this a continuation of the previous week's public hearing, or a new one, and had it been properly announced beforehand were questions Robinson raised. Commission Chair Jenice Mitchell Ford's declaration that all was proper didn't suffice. Eventually, after saying that she'd been assured by the commission counsel that all was on the up and up, Robinson consented to have her presence at the meeting officially recognized.

Things kicked off with a public hearing, with several residents voicing concerns that the proposed new charter — with some number of City Council members being elected from districts (instead of at large, as they all are now) — was opening the door to what they feared would become a widening chasm between two Detroits.

The downtown, midtown and Wayne State areas — well represented with lots of financial clout — would be allowed to prosper and benefit from adequate services while other neighborhoods across the city would continue to deteriorate.

The plan, said resident Tyrone Travis, is to "create a white downtown."

Those concerns found a sympathetic ear with Commissioner Reggie Reg Davis, a former radio personality who gave up his seat behind the mic to take the nonpaying Charter Commission job (and make an unsuccessful run for the state House).

Sounding much like someone contemplating another stab at public office, Davis talked about being the commission member representing the city's downtrodden: "the working poor forced to ride buses, the young men returning home from prison, the have-nots."

In short, the people not living, as he said, in downtown or midtown or Corktown.

Saying he was there to look out for the interests of "Pookie and Ray-Ray," Davis attempted to have the commission consider changing the proposed number of City Council members from seven (with five representing districts and two elected at large) to 11, with nine representing districts.

Only a week before, Davis had joined a 4-3 majority in voting to reduce the number of council members from nine to seven. Now he was trying to get 11, saying that the larger number — with candidates representing smaller districts — would open the door wider for more grassroots activists without big financial backers to find their way onto council.

With Davis unable to find support for that position, much parliamentary maneuvering ensued — with Davis playing a decisive role — to clear the way for another vote on the nine-member council.

> Email Curt Guyette