State of the City address highlights Eastpointe, schools and court

EASTPOINTE — The Eastpointe High School swimming pool is scheduled to open sometime this year, the city is getting a treatment court and other projects are planned in the upcoming months.

On March 5, Eastpointe held its annual State of the City address at the Lutheran Fraternities of America Hall Post No. 57.

The luncheon gave Mayor Michael Klinefelt, Eastpointe Community Schools Superintendent Christina Gibson and 38th District Court Judge Kathleen Galen the opportunity to provide highlights of the city’s work over the past year and to share future plans.

The event — open to local dignitaries, city employees and residents — was organized by the Eastpointe-Roseville Chamber of Commerce. There was a fee to attend.

 

City of Eastpointe
Klinefelt started his presentation sharing details on the city’s infrastructure projects, including its lead water line replacement, Nine Mile Road reconstruction and water main replacement. The city received $10 million in funding from the state for the lead line replacement program.   

“In 2023, we replaced 536 lines. In 2024, we replaced 1,084,” the mayor said. “By the end of 2025, we will have completed replacing all our lead lines in the city of Eastpointe, which is just a remarkable feat. I don’t think any one of us thought we’d be able to get it done that quickly.”

Klinefelt also touched on the Nine Mile reconstruction program.

“When I was here last year, we had just finished our first phase, which is the west side of Gratiot (Avenue),” Klinefelt said. “This year, that construction will be starting from Gratiot to Tuscany (Avenue). As many of you have seen, Nine Mile has been under construction for a while with utility work going (on). Now we’re going to start repaving the road. Next year we will go into phase three. Phase three is still in the planning process. Once that is planned, we will finish from Tuscany all the way to I-94.”

The Kennedy Park splash pad is ready to go for bids soon.

“The goal is that this will be built by the end of this summer. That’s been progressing, and I’m very excited to see that happen,” Klinefelt said. “It’s going to be open for everybody.”

He also said about $705,000 will be put into improvements at Spindler Park, and half of the cost will be covered by a grant. Changes will include updates that conform to the Americans with Disabilities Act and improved lighting. Funding also will be used to add “green water” infrastructure changes to prevent flooding and “the replacement of our pavilion, which is in need,” Klinefelt said.

Klinefelt also said the Eastpointe Memorial Library staff has been working to bring in more patrons.

“Moving on to police and fire. We have now gotten our K-9 unit. We received the training and the equipment related to it,” Klinefelt said.

He added that the city received a Department of Justice grant for the K-9 unit and another DOJ grant for Flock cameras, which read license plates and help identify vehicles suspected to have been involved in crimes.

 

Eastpointe Community Schools
Gibson provided a PowerPoint presentation, stating more than 2,100 students in grades K-12 attend the district. In addition, more than 240 preschool students are enrolled in Eastpointe’s Early Learning Center. The district employs more than 300 full-time staff members, which Gibson said makes the district the city’s largest employer.

According to Gibson’s presentation, over the course of the last two years, Eastpointe Community Schools has invested in a new math and English language arts curriculum for all K-12 students.

“In addition to the new curriculum, we are continuing to provide high-dosage tutoring in math and reading for targeted students and other interventions leading to significant improvements in academic achievement,” Gibson’s presentation stated.

Gibson also said that people would like to see more career and technical education classes. So, educators are looking at neighboring districts for a possible CTE consortium.

The district is in the process of reconfiguring the four elementary schools. Currently, Bellview and Pleasantview house grades 3-5 while Crescentwood and Forest Park house grades K-2. Next year, all four elementary schools will be K-5, and educators have started the transition for the 2025-2026 school year.

Facility updates for the 2024-2025 school year included new heating, ventilation and air conditioning units and new casework in classrooms at Crescentwood, Forest Park and Bellview, and a parking lot replacement and drainage work at Forest Park.

Facility updates scheduled for the 2025-2026 school year include new HVAC units and cabinetry this summer and prep work for air conditioning units at Pleasantview. Also planned is a new rooftop air conditioning unit for the Eastpointe High School auditorium, refinishing the gym floors at Crescentwood, Forest Park and Bellview, drainage improvements at all four elementary schools, and district technology improvements.

According to Gibson, repair work on the high school pool is nearing completion. The pool’s pump and filtration system was replaced, and the pool, deck area and locker rooms were deep cleaned and underwent repairs.

 

38th District Court
“There are a few things I want to highlight. The first thing that most of you already know about is the new police courthouse,” Galen said. “The building that was next to us was an auto parts store. That has been demolished. The ground has been fully prepped for the next phase, which is the design and building phase. Part of the design is to have two courtrooms. The goal is hopefully for us to get a second judge.”

Galen also told the attendees about the launch of a treatment court in the city.

“I’m starting a drug and alcohol court. It’s for people with drug and alcohol addiction. This initiative is the cornerstone to our efforts to address the root causes of a lot of the cases that come before me,” Galen said.

Paperwork for the treatment is in order, the judge said. Officials are just waiting for conditional approval from the state.

“Treatment courts are transformative. They address underlying issues contributing to criminal behavior,” Galen said. “They are based on understanding that the individuals who are struggling with substance abuse and related challenges need more than just punitive measures. They need support, treatment and opportunities for rehabilitation.”

Call Staff Writer Maria Allard at (586) 498-1045.