by Susan Efroymson
This Thursday evening, April 19th, from 7-9:30pm the Charter Review Commission of Cleveland Heights will be holding an open community meeting at the Community Center, 1 Monticello Blvd.
Civic-minded residents should attend!
Background: Cleveland Heights currently uses a City Manager to perform the executive functions of the city (actually running the city). The City Manager is not directly elected by the residents; rather, the city council hires this person. All 7 city council members are “at-large” – each is elected by all residents in the city. The mayor and vice mayor are selected by the other council members for two-year terms that are largely symbolic. The current City Manager is Tanisha Briley. In business, the equivalent would be that the shareholders (residents) vote to elect a board (council) who select and hire a CEO (City Manager) to run the company.
The advantage of using a city manager is that they have professional experience at running a city, and are dedicated to that job (city council members are part time).
At this time, the Charter Review Commission is evaluating whether this structure is still the best method for Cleveland Hts, and is considering alternatives.
Some items being considered:
- Instead of all residents selecting all council members, the city will be divided into “wards”, and each ward will elect its own member. There would be 4 wards, and there would still be 3 at-large (city-wide) members. The motivation for this is to ensure that various neighborhoods have a council member who represents their interests, which may not be the same as the rest of the city.
- A directly elected mayor with more influence (“Strong Mayor”). A strong mayor would run on a platform which gives them a mandate when elected. This helps them set the priorities and agenda for the city, representing the will of the residents. This option does not replace the City Manager; the CM still actually runs the city. Since the Mayor is not a council member, if and when they can vote on council matters is a variable. Shaker Heights is a model of Strong Mayor and City Manager (the “Hybrid Model”).
The Motivation: Progress in addressing problems and issues in the city, including economic development, has been progressing very slowly for quite some time, and does not have a clear direction.
The Process: The rules are set by the City Charter, which has been in place for dozens of years. To make changes, a proposed amended City Charter would be approved by City Council and voted on by the residents in an election. The Commission was established last year to evaluate options, after it become clear that there was significant support for considering change, to make recommendations to Council. Alternately, voters themselves can propose an amended charter and have it placed on the ballot via petition.
The Politics: In actuality, this type of review is supposed to be performed every 10 years, but has not been done for much longer. Mayor Stephens requested the council to form a commission, but a majority of council disagreed. Mayor Stephens therefore formed an independent group of active residents to do research, of which I was a participant. When the council saw that this effort was making progress, they reversed course and appointed a council-sanctioned 15-member Commission. Not surprisingly, this Commission has indicated that they are inclined to leave things the way they are. It should be noted that there are a variety of views on this commission, and one of the Independent members was included. At this time, it is too late for a proposal to be included this election.
This debate should not be about the parties currently holding positions. Changes should be made for the long term, allowing for the likelihood that there can be a variety of personalities and strengths/weaknesses over time.
Other issues: You can find the City Charter on the city’s website. The Commission, unlike the small group focused on change in governance solely, is charged with all aspects of the Charter, so any point on the charter is up for discussion. So, if you believe Sunshine laws should be enshrined as city policy at the highest level, now is the time to mention it or whatever is on your mind that you’d like to see accomplished.
Bottom line, if you have issues with how the city is run, say you want a change in how garbage is put out, or own a business on Taylor Road and want a better street scape, or simply want to see more businesses in vacant store fronts in your neighborhood, but feel your issue is too low on their priority list, come listen and discuss how change might make our city serve your needs more efficiently. Even if you just want to avoid another event like your water bill going up and up and up, this is your city, come be a part of the process.
The Charter is the city’s Constitution. It lays out how governance works. It is important that we the people are part of this process. Please come this Thursday.
Susan Efroymson
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