Ypsilanti Police Department Now Has K-9

Man's best friend

Ypsi police get K-9 unit, no longer rely on neighboring departments

By Kathleen Conat, Special Writer

PUBLISHED: November 8, 2007

For the first time in 30 years, the Ypsilanti Police Department has a K-9 unit to assist in a wide range of investigations

"Buky" (pronounced BOO-key), is a 15-month old Belgian Shepherd born in the Czech Republic and brought to the United States by the Vonderhaus K-9 Police Academy of Wapakoneta, Ohio. At the academy, he was partnered with Officer Tony Schembri during an intense six-week training course.

According to Lt. Mark Angott, there had been much support from officers for the department to have the unit over the years. Tracking a suspect in an urban area calls for quick response so the trail is not contaminated by other foot traffic. Waiting for other departments to respond with their dogs was frustrating.

When Matt Harshberger was made chief of the department last year, he made the K-9 unit a priority.

"This is long overdue," Angott said. "It's going to be a huge benefit to the citizens of Ypsilanti and money well spent."

But, in fact, all of Buky's expenses are paid for with drug forfeiture money, including his training, supplies, veterinary bills and special equipment. The team travels in a 2007 Ford Explorer that was retro-fitted for the K-9 unit using drug forfeiture money, too.

Buky is trained in tracking, finding narcotics, searching buildings and articles, and providing protection for his officer. He can sniff out marijuana, crack and powder cocaine, heroin, black-tar heroin, methamphetamines and mushrooms.

The dog lives with Schembri at his home and travels with him at work. The team is on call 24 hours a day, every day of the year. But, Schembri does not see this as a sacrifice.

"I've wanted to do this ever since I became a cop," Schembri said. "This is a dream come true.

Schembri, a 12-year veteran of the Ypsilanti force, has worked in housing and as part of the Living and Washtenaw Narcotics Enforcement Team known as LAWNET. His enthusiasm for this assignment is evident as he explains how the team works.

Buky's commands are in German and he also follows hand commands from Schembri. His rewards are a chew toy or ball, not food. He has different collars for different tasks, a way of letting him known what he is supposed to be doing.

Right now, Buky is getting acclimated to the streets of Ypsilanti after spending much time in the country setting of the academy. At home, he spends time with Schembri's children.

Schembri has given demonstrations with his new partner to Cub Scout troops and will be available to do the same at schools and for community groups.

"I'm the luckiest guy in the department," Schembri said. "I'm really looking forward to doing some good things with Buky."

"Black" Friday

I have always wondered why people would subject themselves to the madness of shopping on the Friday after Thanksgiving. All you ever hear are horror stories about crowds, lines, advertisements that are not accurate, and short stock in the stores. However this year I was interested enough in one of the "deals' at K Mart on something one of my grandsons wanted for a gift. I ventured out at 5: 30 AM on Friday, and got to the store some 15 minutes later. I found the parking lot completely full, and people lined up outside a locked door until the store opened, as promised at 6 AM. I quickly made my way to the toy area, and surprisingly found the 3 items I had come for in ample supply for the first 15 to 20 minutes the store was open, which is all I really cared about anyway. I got my items, and waited about 10 minutes to pay, and was on my way by 6:20 AM, not bad at all. I only saved $10.00, however I gained the experience of shopping on the busiest shopping day of the year.

Water Street Project Looses 2nd Developer

Saturday, December 09, 2006
BY KHALIL E. HACHEM
News Staff Reporter

The Water Street project in Ypsilanti is again without a developer.
The city announced Friday that Joseph Freed and Associates of Illinois is no longer interested in the multi-use development, dimming hopes that the project could boost tax revenues at a time when the city is struggling to balance its budget.
"It's a significant impact on the city,'' Keith Peters, president of the Ypsilanti Area Chamber of Commerce, said after the announcement was made. "It's a great project, but bad timing.''
Peters said the city has invested a lot of money in Water Street and continues to work hard to make it successful at a time when the economy continues to be slow.
Mayor Paul Schreiber said Water Street, while a good project, can't compete with the poor economy. "I'm really disappointed,'' he said, "but we need to continue working on developing the project.''
The city owes about $17 million on Water Street, money used to buy the 38 acres east of downtown and prepare it for development. In April, city leaders selected Freed to build the residential and commercial portions. That was 17 months after parting ways with Biltmore Properties of Troy, the project's first developer. Biltmore and the city parted ways after disagreeing over the commercial aspects of the plan.
Freed was expected to sign a development agreement this month.
Laith Hermiz, managing director with Freed and Associates, did not return telephone calls Friday. Assistant City Manager Bob Bruner said Hermiz told the city his firm halted discussions because of concerns about the local economy and what many are calling a buyers' market for residential homes.
According to the Ann Arbor Area Board of Realtors, the number of homes for sale in Washtenaw County, 7,738 year-to-date through July, was up 11.5 percent this year over 2005. But sales during that time were down nearly 8 percent, to 2,001 homes sold this year.
Ypsilanti officials, business owners and some developers received Friday's news about Freed's decision cautiously. City Council Member Trudy Swanson, D-Ward 1, and downtown loft developer Stewart Beal were among those who declined to comment.
Peter Rinehart, owner of Bombadill's coffee house and president of the Central Business Community, said he would have to discuss the issue with CBC members before commenting. But as an individual business owner, Rinehart said, he did not build his business around the success of Water Street.
"It would be tremendous asset,'' Rinehart said. "We're here and we will continue to be here doing good business in downtown.''
Ypsilanti Downtown Development Authority Director Brian Vosburg said the Water Street project would boost downtown, but the lack of it is not fatal.
"We will continue working to market downtown and make it successful,'' Vosburg said.
Dave Hamilton, chief executive officer of Swisher Commercial in Ann Arbor, said Water Street is prime property because of its location on the Huron River and its proximity to downtown, Eastern Michigan University and I-94. The city should not have any problems attracting developers in a good economy, he said.
"The economy is definitely a problem,'' Hamilton said. "The timing is not good for the city.''
City officials had hoped the project would create a new neighborhood and increase city revenues.
"We're certainly disappointed,'' City Manager Ed Koryzno said. "We knew the economy was bad, but ... we did not anticipate this impact.''
Koryzno said he plans to ask a group of business owners and developers to find alternatives before making a recommendation to the City Council on how to proceed. The city could find another developer, develop only the commercial areas or sell certain parcels, he said.
The city refinanced its debt on the project this year, deferring the first payments until 2009. The plan was to have some construction completed before 2009 to generate enough tax revenue to make the loan payments, Koryzno said.

Khalil E. Hachem can be reached at khachem@annarbornews.com or 734-482-3225.

©2006 Ann Arbor News
© 2006 Michigan Live. All Rights Reserved.

Note from YPD Police Chief :Matt Harshberger

I recently gave information to CoPAC, the Rotary Club and many others about the cost breakdown of the bond proposal for the 96-bed jail expansion. At the time that I gave out the information, I believed it was accurate. However, upon having a meeting yesterday afternoon with the County Administrator , Bob Guenzel, I learned the information that I was spreading ($9 million for jail expansion & $11 million for court facilities improvements) was patently false/wrong/inaccurate/erroneous. I, along with all the other Chiefs and Directors in Washtenaw County , received this false information directly from the Sheriff and his jail administrator. Obviously, I will not allow this error of trust to occur again. The citizens of Washtenaw County should not be misinformed about any public issue and I will not allow it to happen again. Please accept my apology.
The truth, according to the County Administration , is that the entire $21 million bond proposal is going toward jail and correctional improvements, which includes the 96-bed jail expansion and jail infrastructure improvements, including support systems due to increased capacity. The county provided a written breakdown of the costs that shows specifically the recommended improvements and the cost of each, which totals $21,177,210. Bob Guenzel will be presenting this information at the City of Ypsilanti Council meeting on Tuesday, December 5th.
I have a copy of the cost breakdown for the bond proposal and I am happy to provide copies of it to anyone that may want it.
I am very sorry for the misinformation that I gave out with regard to the bond proposal costs. It is sad that I will not be able to trust information coming from the sheriffs department until it can be confirmed, or, as in this case, denied.
Take care and I hope you have a good weekend.

Matt Harshberger, Chief of Police
Ypsilanti Police Department
505 W. Michigan Ave. Ypsilanti, MI. 48197
Telephone: (734) 483-8590
Fax: (734) 483-7396
Email: mharshberger@cityofypsilanti.com

County Jail Issue

The Ypsilanti Police Department is being forced to return non-violent offenders back to the street,where most of them commit additional crimes, due to the lack of room in the Washtenaw County Jail. The County Jail is full, and will not accept these offenders and repeat offenders for housing. In addition, Washtenaw County has stopped allowing offenders arrested in Washtenaw County to be housed in jails in other locations in Michigan, due to the expense of doing so. I urge you to use the links to the right to learn more about this issue, and the unnecessary politics behind it. Then, please use the link provided to the Washtenaw County Commissioners, and demand a resolution to this problem. Most of you will need to contact Commissioner Ronnie Peterson. Clicking on the name below the group picture will take you to Commissioner Peterson's page where you will be able to email or phone him. I also suggest that you watch the Ann Arbor News, and Ypsilanti Courier for more information on this extremely urgent problem. Make your voice heard,any one of us could be the next victim of a repeat offender, released back to the street due to jail overcrowding.

ypsidog

Home Tour to Benefit Meals on Wheels is December 3rd

Please see the link to the right to find out more about how you can see some of Ypsilanti's most beautiful homes decorated for the holiday season, and help out Ypsilanti citizen's who benefit from the Meals on Wheels program.

ypsidog

OH, I ate way too much again!!

We had a great thanksgiving. Tonya and Jimmy, with Blake and Evan, our grandchildren, were here, along with our good friend Larry. Turkey, dressing, potatoes, green bean casserole, cranberry, etc, all accompanied by Michigan wine, thanks to Larry, the # 1 wine guy I know. You all know that menu. Then after everyone left for home, and work in Larry's case, we began the "clean up". We decided to wash the dishes again this year, as we often contemplate just throwing EVERYTHING away! Put the good china away for another couple of weeks, when it gets it's 2nd debut of the year, Christmas Dinner. Hey, being the good china is a pretty easy job, you only have to work a couple times a year! I may consider that for a vocation someday. Well, back to the grind again tomorrow.

ypsidog