As “teen takeovers” that begin with social media posts appear in major cities, Detroit Mayor Mary Sheffield’s administration is responding by leaning on a larger out-of-school time strategy rather than curbing gatherings alone. City officials said the downtown activity this spring showed young people were looking for safe, engaging places where they can spend time and, for those who are old enough, find work.
Hampton, Detroit’s first senior director of youth and education, said the mayor’s team is focused on year-round opportunities and is developing what she described as a building-block approach that starts with the summer program and carries into a fall plan. “All we’re hearing from young people is, ‘We want to have fun, safe, engaging spaces,’ and if they’re of age, ‘we want to make money,’” Hampton said. She added, “There’s an entire office that I’m building out around out-of-school time and workforce.”
Sheffield created an Office of Youth Affairs soon after taking office in January, with Umoja Debate League founder Jerjuan Howard leading the effort and with Chanel Hampton overseeing the city’s youth and education work. Hampton described her role as a liaison between the mayor’s office and the Detroit Public Schools Community District, charter schools, out-of-school-time partners and community groups, saying she is working to understand needs of young people and their families. Howard’s office, she said, is focused on ensuring youth have a voice in city government.
Starting June 12, Detroit will roll out Occupy the Summer, an expansion of the Occupy the Corner youth events created by Sheffield more than a decade ago. The series runs through Aug. 14 and will include six-day-a-week programming, city officials said. Among the offerings are carnival rides, backpack drives, and performances by Detroit musical artists such as Skilla Baby, along with expanded recreation center hours until 11 p.m.
Officials said Midnight Basketball leagues will return for ages 18 and older. Hampton said the city is planning men’s and women’s leagues on Thursdays and Saturdays, and that there will be activities for young people every Friday. She also said the city is working to create a portal for Detroit’s website where visitors can enter their age, ZIP code or City Council district to find free programming available through the city and partner organizations.
The administration said many concepts for the summer push emerged through discussions with Detroit teens, including a group that participated in an Opening Day takeover downtown. Hampton said that teen group helped plan a city-supported “teen kickback” in late April with the mayor at Hart Plaza. She said two teens from that group, Danasha’ Tidwell and Daveion Page, meet with her weekly as part of the city’s newly launched mayoral Youth Advisory Committee, and they will serve as interns in her office and department.
Detroit’s approach also includes outreach aimed at downtown businesses and residents, with officials saying the city wants to manage informal gatherings while offering more structured options. Eric Larson, CEO of the Downtown Detroit Partnership, said the partnership has and will continue to work with the city to welcome people of all ages to downtown parks. Larson said DDP team members attended a recent meeting that included Sheffield, Detroit Police Chief Todd Bettison and downtown businesses. He said the meeting was a listening session focused on intent and objectives, and on how to manage activities while residents and businesses try to share the same space. “It was more of a listening session on both sides to better understand what the intent and objectives are and then how that could be managed relative to the downtown business and resident community trying to reside in the same space,” Larson said.
Larson also said DDP will provide family-friendly activities during the summer, including Movie Nights in the D at Campus Martius and pickleball at Beacon Park. In comments about the downtown takeover dynamic, Teen Hype CEO Ambra Redrick, who said she remembers being a teen downtown in the 1990s, contrasted older experiences with what she said teens experience today. Redrick said she can’t recall a time when doors told her “you don’t belong,” and she argued that teens now are perceived as dangerous rather than viewed as part of the downtown.
Some teen participants described the takeovers as a desire to connect with friends and have a good time, even as they acknowledged disruptions. Janiya Chavers, a sophomore at Renaissance High School, said she and friends stayed near the riverfront during the recent Opening Day takeover after seeing an Instagram story about the gathering. Chavers said some young people downtown were disruptive but she believed most had good intentions, and she described the outing as an attempt to connect and enjoy the day.
While the takeover stayed mostly peaceful, some social media videos depict teens running in the streets and others being detained and placed on buses, the AP reported. According to Detroit Police Department data cited in the article, 40 curfew violations and 24 parental responsibility tickets were issued on that day. The department also said it issued 309 curfew violations and 184 parental responsibility tickets between July 29, 2025, and April 12, 2026, after amending its curfew ordinance last summer.
Detroit City Council member Gabriela Santiago-Romero, who represents District 6, said she has been pushing what she called “teen care” since the takeovers and the launch of a new free bus service for Detroit students. In the article, she pointed to ideas including more “third spaces,” late-evening lighting, and a skate park around the Detroit River or Hart Plaza. Santiago-Romero said meeting young people and investing in additional spaces is central to her approach. “For me, it means a lot,” she said, adding that she began working at age 15 and plans to keep meeting residents to identify ways to help.
Beyond Occupy the Summer planning, the city said Howard has been developing a mayoral youth cabinet to increase access to opportunities for young people. Howard described the idea as having about 50 students represent youth interests and ideas across the city. Program coordinator Angelica Williams said about 30 young people are currently involved, with a goal to bring the number to 40 or 50 by the kickoff meeting. She said youth councils around the city, including groups representing the Detroit NAACP, the Cody Rouge Community Action Alliance and the Skillman Foundation, are among those being contacted as part of the effort.
The city said cabinet positions are volunteer roles held for one year for people ages 14 to 26 who are nominated by someone familiar with their leadership and who have lived experience in Detroit. Williams said the nominee does not necessarily have to live within the city boundaries as long as they have gone to Detroit schools, and she said common themes from young people include not feeling like the city offers positive futures.
Young participants said they want dedicated teen-oriented spaces and events that help them connect without conflict. De’Ziaha McIntosh, a sophomore at Cass Technical High School, said she hopes for a teen entertainment space downtown with options such as a movie theater, arcade, rage room and go-karts. Ryan Townsend, 16, of Mosaic Youth Theatre, said he wants more youth events such as a teen music festival and said he hopes businesses offer teen nights so young people are welcomed rather than treated as a disturbance. Townsend said caring for youth is important because, as she put it, without that investment the city won’t have anything to build on.