Detroit Phone Directory Search

Detroit keeps public records across a range of city offices, courts, and online search tools. The Detroit phone directory connects you to the City Clerk, 36th District Court, Third Judicial Circuit Court, police records, property data, and FOIA contacts all in one place. You can look up court cases, find property details, pull blight violation records, and check parking tickets through city-run databases. Most of these searches are free. Some need a written request or an in-person visit. This guide covers each Detroit office, what records they hold, and how to reach the right person fast.

Detroit City Clerk Phone Directory

Janice M. Winfrey serves as the Detroit City Clerk. Her office is at the Coleman A. Young Municipal Center, 2 Woodward Ave, Suite 200, Detroit, MI 48226. The main phone line is (313) 224-3260. Fax goes to (313) 224-1466. You can email cityclerk@detroitmi.gov with questions. Hours are Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM. The clerk's office handles city council proceedings, charter documents, the Detroit City Code, subdivision plats, oaths of office, and petitions. These records go back to 1824 in some cases.

There is no online searchable database for the Detroit archives. Records are available by appointment only. You can view the Detroit City Clerk archives page for details on what they hold. To set up a visit, send an email to the clerk's office or call. Staff will respond within 48 hours and schedule a time for you to come in. Standard copying fees apply when you need paper copies of any record.

The screenshot above shows the Detroit City Clerk's archives page. It lists what records the office keeps and how to request access. Keep in mind that birth certificates, death certificates, marriage records, and divorce records are not held by the city clerk. Those go through Wayne County instead.

Detroit Court Records Search

Detroit has two main courts that keep public records. The 36th District Court handles smaller cases. The Third Judicial Circuit Court covers bigger matters. Both courts are part of the Detroit phone directory for case lookups.

The 36th District Court sits at 421 Madison Street, Detroit, MI 48226. Call (313) 965-2200 for general questions. Fax is (313) 965-3951. Hours run 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM on weekdays. This is the busiest district court in all of Michigan. The 36th District Court case inquiry system lets you search by party name, case number, or date range. It covers traffic violations, criminal misdemeanors, preliminary exams, small claims, and civil cases under $25,000. Records go back to 1990. The search is free. You can see case numbers, party names, attorneys, case status, hearing dates, and payment info in the results. Document images are not available online, so you need to visit the court for copies.

Some records will not show up in the search. Cases under MCL 333.7411 for first-time drug offenses stay hidden. The same goes for HYTA cases under the Holmes Youthful Trainee Act. Sealed records, expunged records, and juvenile cases are also left out. The court search is not for background checks or bulk data downloads. It is meant for individual case lookups only.

The Third Judicial Circuit Court is at 2 Woodward Ave, Detroit, MI 48226. The main number is (313) 224-5261. This court handles felony criminal cases, civil cases over $25,000, divorce and custody matters, and probate proceedings. You can search Third Circuit cases through the MiCOURT statewide case search or the Odyssey Public Access system at the courthouse.

Detroit Property Records Directory

Detroit property data is searchable online through the BS&A system. The Detroit property search at bsaonline.com is free and runs 24 hours a day. You can look up any parcel in the city by owner name, street address, or parcel number. Results show the property owner, mailing address, assessed values for land and building, taxable value, principal residence exemption status, and property classification. Building details like square footage, year built, number of stories, bedrooms, and bathrooms are included too. You also get sales history and zoning info.

The Detroit phone directory for property questions connects to the Office of the Assessor. That office is part of the Chief Financial Officer division at 2 Woodward Ave, Suite 130, Detroit, MI 48226. Call (313) 224-3035 or email assessing@detroitmi.gov. Hours are Monday through Thursday 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM, and Friday 8:00 AM to 12:00 PM. The assessor keeps records on assessed values, taxable values, economic condition factors, and property classifications for all residential, commercial, industrial, and personal property in the city.

That screenshot shows the BS&A Online search tool for Detroit. You can start a search right from the main page with a street name or owner last name. Four search types are available: public records search, assessing search, current tax search, and delinquent personal property search.

Detroit Open Data Phone Directory

The Detroit Open Data Portal holds over 100 datasets that anyone can access for free. This is one of the largest city-level data sources in Michigan. You can download data in CSV, Excel, Shapefile, GeoJSON, KML, and other formats. An API is also available for developers.

The datasets cover a wide range of Detroit records. Parcel data includes over 389,000 records with ownership and tax info. Property sales data tracks transactions across the city. Blight violations and blight tickets show code enforcement actions. Crime incident data comes from police reports. The portal also has 911 call records, fire incident data, building permits, demolition records, rental registrations, streetlight data, election results, traffic crash reports, and liquor license info. Tools on the portal include the Parcel Viewer with interactive maps, a Land Value Tax Estimator, and a Business Data Explorer. All of it is free and open to the public.

The Detroit phone directory for blight violations has its own search tool. The blight violation case history search lets you look up tickets by number, violator name, or violation address. Results show the ticket number, violator name and address, violation address, department that issued it, inspector name, ticket date, hearing date, fine amount, violation code, and payment history. This covers all blight violations from BSEED, police, and other city departments.

Detroit Parking and Business Records

Detroit parking tickets can be looked up and paid through the online payment portal. Search by ticket number, license plate and state, or payment plan. The system shows ticket details, fine amount, payment status, and vehicle info. Parking meter and no-parking-zone fines start at $45. You can pay online with a credit card, by mail, or in person at 1001 10th Street. Disputes can be filed online or in person with supporting documents and photos.

Business licensing in Detroit goes through BSEED, the Buildings, Safety Engineering, and Environmental Department. The office is at 2 Woodward Ave, Suite 402, Detroit, MI 48226. Call (313) 224-3179 or email blcstaff@detroitmi.gov. There is no public searchable database of business licenses. You can check the BSEED business licensing page for info on the 69 or more license types the city offers.

Note: Voter registration status for Detroit residents can be checked at the Michigan Voter Information Center using a name, birth month, birth year, and ZIP code.

Detroit FOIA Phone Directory

Detroit handles FOIA requests through two separate channels. Police records go to one office. All other city records go to another. The city processes over 9,500 FOIA requests each year under the Michigan Freedom of Information Act, MCL 15.231-15.246. Anyone can file a request. You do not need to live in Detroit or in Michigan.

For non-police records, send your request to the FOIA Coordinator in the Law Department at the Coleman A. Young Municipal Center, 2 Woodward Avenue, Suite 500, Detroit, MI 48226. The phone number is (313) 224-5505. Email goes to FOIA@detroitmi.gov. You can also fax to 313-224-5505 or hand-deliver your request. The Detroit FOIA page has the form and guidelines. The form asks for your name, address, phone number, a description of the record, date or time period, and which city department holds it. A signature is required. The city must respond within 5 business days. They can grant the request, deny it with a reason, or ask for up to 10 more days.

The image above shows the Detroit FOIA request page. It walks you through the steps to submit a request and lists what info you need to include.

For police records, email DPDFOIA@detroitmi.gov. The police FOIA form has extra fields. You must include the date, time, and address of the incident along with names of people involved. A signature is required on the form. Routine police records like 911 audio, dash-cam video, arrest reports, accident reports, and theft reports go through standard processing. Non-routine records for fatal accidents, homicides, or narcotics cases get special handling through the FOIA Coordinator at the Law Department.

Fees are the same for both channels. Copies cost $0.10 per page. Electronic media costs what the media itself costs. Labor charges apply for large or complex requests. A deposit is required for requests that will run over $50. Fee waivers are available for low-income people or when the records serve the public interest. If your request is denied, you can appeal within 180 days to the Office of the Ombudsman or to Circuit Court.

Wayne County Records for Detroit

Detroit sits in Wayne County. Many records that people look for are held at the county level, not by the city. Vital records like birth, death, and marriage certificates go through the Wayne County Clerk. Property deeds and liens are at the Wayne County Register of Deeds. The Wayne County property tax search shows tax bills and payment status for Detroit parcels. If you cannot find what you need through Detroit's city offices, check the Wayne County phone directory page for more options.

Nearby Cities in the Phone Directory

Several other cities in the Wayne County area have their own phone directory pages with local contacts and search tools. If you need records from a neighboring city, pick one below.