The East Lansing City Council voted Dec. 9 to advance a set of measures aimed at reducing noise, disorder and safety concerns in the downtown district, moving some items immediately and scheduling others for further review.

The council approved amending the FY2026 budget to add two East Lansing Police Department officers dedicated to traffic enforcement, a fiscal change staff estimated at $188,860 for the first year. Council members said they intend to have officers focus on persistent problems flagged by residents including loud exhaust, reckless driving and long sidewalk queues during special events.

Chief Jen Brown, who led the downtown solutions committee with Community and Economic Development Director Heather Pope, said the package emerged from a five-week cross-departmental effort. “These recommendations reflect the collective majority of the downtown solutions committee,” Brown told the council, listing proposals that ranged from regular power washing and an added DPW maintenance position to a pilot social district for the jazz festival.

The council directed the city manager to consult the city’s lobbyists about potential statewide legislative options to prohibit aftermarket vehicle modifications and also asked staff to evaluate placement of permanent lighting and additional cameras downtown.

Council also advanced two ordinance changes for first reading: ordinance 15-61 to revise traffic-stop language related to loud exhaust and ordinance 15-60 to add loitering and anti-camping provisions for parking structures and public places. The first readings were approved; the ordinances will return for subsequent consideration and possible amendment.

The measures drew robust public comment before and during the presentation. Speakers representing service providers and advocacy groups urged the council not to criminalize homelessness and to invest in shelters and housing-first supports, while downtown business owners and some residents said stronger enforcement and clearer rules were needed to keep sidewalks safe for families and customers.

Kadesha Erickson, executive director of the Mid Michigan Tenant Resource Center, told the council: “If the city has not provided a legal alternative location where human beings can sleep, then prohibiting camping, prohibiting resting, and prohibiting being present in public spaces is nothing more than punishing poverty.” Harold Pope, president of a local NAACP branch, urged accountability from police leadership and a public apology for what he called misrepresentations of two young Black men who were arrested earlier this fall.

Council members said they adopted a targeted set of actions now while leaving larger or costlier items — including a proposed pilot social district and funding requests for DDA partnership — for additional information and DDA discussion. Council member Singh, who moved the set of items that passed, said the selected steps were ones the council could act on immediately while some other proposals required more detail.

The council voted 4-0 to adopt the selected recommendations and send the two ordinances to first reading. Staff said some items will return with budget details, DDA input and suggested ordinance text revisions before any final adoption.