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I thought it might be interesting to compare the crime statistics between Hamtramck and Highland Park, but it is apparently not that simple. Hamtramck did not report crime statistics to the FBI in 2000, 2001, or 2004, and Highland Park hasn’t reported since 2000. The following comparison uses statistics for the last year both cities reported, 1999.
Hamtramck (1999)
Population 22,976
0 murders (0 per 100,000)
8 rapes (44.1 per 100,000)
87 robberies (479.9 per 100,000)
164 assaults (904.7 per 100,000)
346 burglaries (1908.8 per 100,000)
579 thefts (3194.1 per 100,000)
742 auto thefts (4002.7 per 100,000)
5 arson (27.5 per 100,000)
City-data.com crime index = 960.9 (higher means more crime, US average = 339.3)
Crime in Highland Park (1999)
Population 16,749
15 murders (77.4 per 100,000)
18 rapes (92.9 per 100,000)
185 robberies (954.4 per 100,000)
279 assaults (1439.3 per 100,000)
367 burglaries (1893.3 per 100,000)
816 thefts (4209.7 per 100,000)
827 auto thefts (4266.4 per 100,000)
City-data.com crime index = 1435.1 (higher means more crime, US average = 339.3)
Since 2000, Highland Park has lost 33% in population, while Hamtramck has been relatively stable, losing only 2.4%. The Highland Park Police Department was reformed in 2007, having been disbanded in December of 2000.
Between 1999 and 2010 in Hamtramck, the rates of murder, rape, robbery, assault, burglary, and arson increased, while only theft and car theft have decreased.

According to a union official who is downtown fighting the city’s unilateral decision to charge police officers excessive amounts for health insurance,
“City of Hamtramck told the judge they will cancel health care cost if we agree to take over policing in Highland Park.”
Remember, there is a budget meeting tonight in the third floor conference room at City Hall, 6:30 p.m..

***Notice***
The Hamtramck City Council will hold a Work Session on Tuesday, January 17, 2012 at 6:30 PM. The meeting will be held in the 3rd Floor Conference Room of City Hall, 3401 Evaline, Hamtramck, Michigan.
WORK SESSION DISCUSSION TOPICS:
1. Discussion on the City’s financial condition.
2. Other Discussion Topics.
CLOSED SESSION:
The purpose of this closed session is to discuss pending litigation and contract negotiations.
Please Note: No votes may be taken at a City Council Work Session. These sessions are strictly to present and discuss information.
NOTE: Anyone planning to attend the meeting who has need of special assistance under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is asked to contact the city clerk’s office at (313) 876-7700.

In addition to the annual Concerned Women of Hamtramck Martin Luther King Jr Day breakfast from 9 a.m. until 11:30 a.m. on January 16 at the High School Community Center, 11350 Charest,
Friendship house seeks volunteers to assemble healthy snack kits for Hamtramck students:

2012 MLK Day of Service for Healthy Snacks volunteer project put together by Friendship House with the assistance of the Hamtramck Drug Free Community Coalition will address health and nutrition in Hamtramck. Friendship House hopes to utilize 25+ volunteers to create 500 snack kits for Hamtramck students; the kits will provide healthy snacks as well as a youth-friendly nutritional guide.
Friendship House and the Hamtramck Drug Free Community Coalition believe that health is the starting place to leading the full and productive life Dr. King imagined; strong minds and bodies help create pathways to economic opportunity.
The Corporation for National and Community Service leads the national and annual MLK Day of Service, working with the King Center in Atlanta and thousands of nonprofit groups, faith-based organizations, and schools and businesses nationwide.
The MLK Day of Service shines a spotlight on service as a powerful force to bridge economic and social divides – today and throughout the year. National Days of Service provide each of us with an opportunity to join neighbors and local leaders to tackle community challenges and strengthen the nation.
The event will take place at Friendship House, 9540 Conant Street, Hamtramck, MI 48212 on Monday, January 16, 2012 starting at noon.

Public Pool Art Space presents:
Second Nature by artist Carrie Dickason
Saturday, January 14, 2012 at 7:00pm until Saturday, February 25, 2012 at 10:00pm
Following what for many is an onslaught of holiday consumption, we thought the time was perfect to break it down a bit –– our consumer culture that is.
So, we bring you Second Nature, an unpacking of sorts. An unpacking of ideas around consumption and disposal, nature and culture, our world of today and what that world might look like in years to come.
Artist Carrie Dickason, a graduate of Cranbrook Academy of Art, fills our little 900-sqaure-foot-store-front-turned-art-space with sculptures and drawings using many of the materials from our consumer society –– paper, plastic, carpet, wire, bags, tape and more.
We’d like to add you. Dickason’s work explores the relationships between landscape, manufacturing, consumerism and waste. It’s inspired by a fascination with materials and a deep love of nature and systems. All that, and it’s beautiful too.
Second Nature opens with a party Saturday, January 14, 7-10 p.m. Refreshments provided courtesy of Traffic Jam & Snug Restaurant. The exhibition runs through February 25. Public Pool is open Saturdays from 1 to 6 p.m.