Detroit city leaders on Monday highlighted what they called a safer summer, citing significant reductions in violent and property crime compared with the same period last year, including a sharp decline in the number of children killed by violence.

During an afternoon press conference, city officials said violent and property crime both decreased compared with this time last year. Among the most notable trends was an 89% drop in juvenile homicides during the summer months.

Watch the latest in the video player below: Detroit Officials Report Sharp Decline in Crime, Juvenile Homicides During Summer

Detroit Police Chief Todd Bettison said the city entered the year after reaching historic homicide lows in 2025, but officials remained focused on addressing violence affecting young people.

"Even though we closed the year out in 2025 with historic homicide lows, we had far too many of our young people who had a violent summer," Bettison said.

The chief reflected on several high-profile cases from last summer, when nine young people were killed in Detroit.

"We saw little Samir at a park, shot at a park. Gang violence, individuals couldn't solve their beefs," Bettison said. "Little Rylee Love was in his home watching television, shot and killed with a stray bullet from a conflict with adults down the street."

According to city officials, juvenile homicides fell from nine victims last summer to one this year between June and August. Nonfatal shooting victims also declined by 22%.

Mayor Mary Sheffield said the improvements represent more than statistics.

"These are more than numbers. These are actual lives of our residents, young people who were able to make it home, neighborhoods that felt a safer summer," Sheffield said.

The mayor credited the city's Occupy the Summer initiative as one factor behind the decline. The program provided 10 weeks of activities for young people during the summer and drew participation from more than 15,000 youth.

"It is our way of saying we cannot police our way out of crime, but we invest in and support and provide opportunity for our young people," Sheffield said.

City leaders also pointed to community violence intervention groups, which they said help reduce conflicts before they escalate into crimes.

Teferi Brent, chief of the mayor's Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement, said those organizations focus on prevention efforts before violence occurs.

"Before a disagreement becomes a shooting, before a young person becomes involved in violence, and before a neighborhood crisis becomes a police call," Brent said.

While officials celebrated the decline in violence, Sheffield emphasized that more work remains.

"We know that one life lost is far too many," she said.

The mayor said she plans to build on the success of Occupy the Summer and continue expanding the initiative in future years.

"We know at bare minimum we will have at least what we had this year and continue to find ways to expand this project year-round as well," Sheffield said.

DETROIT (WXYZ) Leaders of the Detroit Peoples Food Co-op, a Black-led, community-owned grocery store in Detroits North End, are asking the community for support as the store faces financial challenges that have affected sales and inventory.

The cooperative, which opened two years ago, provides fresh groceries to the neighborhood, including many locally produced items. While leaders say the store is not in danger of closing, recent disruptions have strained operations and made it harder to keep shelves stocked.

We're like a toddler; we've been open for 2 years, so any disruption to sales can create a domino effect, said Lenay Gilbert-Williams, president of Detroit Peoples Food Co-op.

Watch Demetrios Sanders' report in the video player below: Detroit Peoples Food Co-op Seeks Community Support Amid Financial Challenges

Gilbert-Williams said a combination of factors has affected business in recent months, including wildfire smoke that kept customers at home, a power outage and changing consumer spending habits.

Then we're constantly in a game of having to pull from reserves or our saving account to fill the gap that sales does not, Gilbert-Williams said.

The financial strain has directly impacted the co-ops ability to purchase inventory.

When sales are lower in any given week, that gives us less money to spend on inventory the following week, Gilbert-Williams said.

She added that fewer products on shelves can create another challenge by giving shoppers fewer options and limiting support for local suppliers.

This gives them less of a selection; this gives less of an opportunity to support the circular economy that we're creating, Gilbert-Williams said.

For many North End residents, the co-op fills a longstanding need for access to fresh food.

I've lived in the neighborhood for years over 50 years and it's always been difficult hard to find fresh fruits and vegetables, organic produce, said co-op member Marcia Pilliciotti.

And I find things here that I can't find in other stores in my neighborhood, she added.

To help stabilize the business, the co-op is hoping to raise at least $80,000 over the next month. Leaders say residents can help by donating online, purchasing a $200 lifetime membership, or shopping at the store.

It's very crucial, Gilbert-Williams said. The best way, when you come into the co-op, spend an extra $10. Tell people about the cooperative.

Shoppers say the stores impact goes beyond groceries.

They're helping us tremendously, and like I said, they're here for us, here for the community. So get here, said shopper Javon Lee.

Detroit is offering financial support to some of its most recognizable longtime businesses through the Detroit Legacy Business Project, a grant program designed to help establishments that have served the community for 30 or more years continue to thrive.

Watch the latest from Demetrios in the video player below: Detroit Legacy Business Project helps longtime businesses, round 4 deadline approaching

The program has delivered nearly $1 million to dozens of businesses since its launch, and a fourth round of funding with more than $300,000 available is open for applications until Monday, October 5.

Sweet Potato Sensations, a bakery in Detroit's Old Redford neighborhood, has been a city staple since 1987. Co-owner Espy Thomas said the business grew out of a family moment.

"My father loved candied yams and my mother doesn't like anything sweet on her dinner plate. So out of the love for my father, my mother created a sweet potato cookie to shut him up, and the rest is history," Thomas said.

Known for its items like sweet potato cheesecake and pies, Thomas said the shop offers customers more than just food.

"They can buy sweet potato pie from anywhere, right? But I think we give people family, we give people memories," Thomas said.

Last year, Sweet Potato Sensations received a $50,000 grant through the Detroit Legacy Business Project. The funding helped pay for new flooring, kitchen equipment, and other upgrades Thomas said would not have been possible otherwise.

"People want their food hot when they're picking it up and it can all hold in here at the appropriate temperature, so that was a big one," Thomas said.

Thomas said the outside investment has made a lasting difference for the business.

"When you have the funding and have the buy-in from somebody to take what you want to do to the next level, that helps you sustain longer," Thomas said.

Sean Gray, vice president of small business services for the Detroit Economic Growth Corporation, said businesses like Sweet Potato Sensations represent something larger for the city.

"These places really become a part of the fabric of how we exist in this city and our memories, so it's important to honor them," Gray said.

Gray said past grant recipients have used the money in a variety of ways.

"A lot of people are looking at roofing, security systems, we've had folks who invested in training," Gray said.

With the application deadline approaching, Gray encouraged residents to spread the word to business owners who may not know the opportunity exists.

"So many times those business owners are really locked in on revenue and the customer experience and they forget about something like this that maybe feels a little too good to be true," Gray said.

This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.

DETROIT, Mich. (WXYZ) The Blue Bird Inn, a historic jazz club on Detroit's west side, is being restored and is expected to reopen as a live music venue, community space, and archive.

The nonprofit Detroit Sound Conservancy purchased the Tireman Avenue venue in 2018 after it closed in the early 2000s and faced the threat of demolition. The organization is now in the midst of a full restoration of the building.

By 1948, the Blue Bird Inn had grown from two storefronts into a popular destination for bebop jazz, drawing performers including Miles Davis and a number of local musicians.

7 News Detroit reporter Demetrios Sanders has more on the restoration in the video below:

Historic Blue Bird Inn on Detroit's west side getting second life thanks to restoration work

Michelle McKinney, director of the Detroit Sound Conservancy, said the club quickly built a reputation.

"Before you know it, in one year, it had gained so much popularity that people from New York were coming in," McKinney said.

McKinney said the audiences at the Blue Bird Inn were part of what made it special.

"And the people here in Detroit were knowledgeable about the music. So when you played at the Blue Bird Inn, you were playing to a Detroit crowd that knew what up doe," McKinney said.

The club also held deep significance for Black Detroiters.

"Tireman was the red line. Back this way, all Black people could live. North was all white. This became a haven," McKinney said.

When the Blue Bird Inn reopens, it will offer live music and serve as a gathering place for the broader community. Graig Donnelly, president of Proxy, is involved in the restoration project.

"Where Detroit Sound Conservancy will welcome in their neighbors and the larger community that they serve, who want to celebrate music in Detroit. As a place to make, share, celebrate that amazing culture," Donnelly said.

A two-story addition has been built onto the building to house an archive of Detroit music.

"It's actual recordings and you can sit down with some headphones and listen to those. It's paraphernalia, it's posters, it's the physical records," Donnelly said.

McKinney said the goal is for the restored Blue Bird Inn to serve future generations.

"As a haven, and as a place you can pass on the legacy, and the knowledge, and the heritage," McKinney said.

The Detroit Sound Conservancy hopes to receive a certificate of occupancy by the end of the year.

Sept. 26, from 2 to 5 p.m., the Detroit Sound Conservancy will host its annual Blue Bird BBQ. The free event will feature music, food, and tours of the Blue Bird Inn at the new park being built around the corner from the venue on the city's west side.

This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.

DETROIT, Mich. (WXYZ) A new athletics complex opened Thursday at Communication and Media Arts High School, giving students their first home field after years of competing at other schools.

Students and district leaders gathered Thursday to celebrate the opening of a brand new athletics complex at Communication and Media Arts High School in Detroit.

The complex includes a turf field, lighting, bleachers for more than 1,000 fans, a scoreboard, and a competition-sized track currently under construction. The school's football program launched in 2015 and has hosted games at other schools and sites ever since.

Get a Look at the New Complex Below

For senior Jahari Andrews, the moment carried deep personal meaning.

"It means the world to me. Especially coming from a freshman, never seeing a field, to being a senior and walking on it for the first time, it's amazing," Andrews said.

Principal Tiffany Cox said the complex opens the door for multiple sports programs to grow.

"There's an opportunity to grow our programming for soccer, for lacrosse, for shot put, we have a wonderful track team already. So this field is all-encompassing. And we can't wait to be on it and win on it," Cox said.

The new complex is part of a $70 million investment by the Detroit Public Schools Community District in athletic facilities at schools across the city. Superintendent Dr. Nikolai Vitti said the investment is about closing a long-standing gap for Detroit students.

"I know how talented our kids are, but how undervalued and under-invested their potential and talent is invested in. And being part of filling that gap, it defines why I became a superintendent," Vitti said.

Vitti also emphasized the role athletics plays in keeping students engaged and enrolled.

"Athletics is often the motivator to get kids in school and stay in school. So investments like this matter for retention and recruitment of students, but development of talent," Vitti said.

For student Rayna-Simone Walker, seeing the new facilities sparked a renewed interest in competing.

"It really gave me encouragement that I should really run track this year and get it back into my head. And just having the encouragement to finish," Walker said.

CMA is also working on a new gymnasium, which is expected to open next year.

This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.