Three Cheers for Civic Involvement and Local Elections

The October 25^th Highland Heights Council meeting left me cheering for two things: civic involvement and frequent local elections.

Hurrah for Civic Involvement

Not much business was transacted at the October 25^th Council meeting, which isn’t really surprising. 

Things usually quiet down right before Council elections--after all, if you were running for reelection, the last thing you’d want to do is cast an unpopular vote or make a controversial decision.

The main event was Mayor Scott Coleman’s acceptance of a $5,000 donation from the Highland Heights Lions Club.

The Lions Club is a civic group dedicated to doing good works in and for our community. They announced last spring that they wanted to make the donation as a way to mark and celebrate their 50^th anniversary this year. It was their wish that the money be used to build a gazebo on the new municipal center green space.

Councilwoman Cathy Murphy, herself a Lions Club member, arranged a small post-meeting reception to celebrate the event.

I was a bit surprised when, over cake, a long time Lions Club member commented, somewhat apologetically, about the size of the donation---he pointed out that it was relatively modest compared to the gazebo’s actual cost.

I told him he was wrong to focus just on the dollar figure.

It was the Lions Club’s donation that kept the gazebo project on track and brought it to fruition this year---a rare accomplishment in a world where decisions sometimes seem to be made at a glacial pace.  (Council deliberated more than 2 years before finally deciding to tear down the decrepit, substandard Old Church Building, thereby creating the new city green space.)

The Lions Club donation provided the inspiration and motivation to make the gazebo a reality.

Ground has been broken. The project is already underway. That timetable would not have been accomplished but for the Lions Club and their generosity.

This just goes to show: civic involvement matters.

Civic involvement can make a big difference in getting things done in our city

Civil involvement is a very good thing.  

Former Mayor Fran Hogg demonstrated positive civic involvement at the Council meeting as well.

Although she’s kept a relatively low profile since leaving office, Hogg came to the Council meeting to share some good news.
When the meeting was opened to the public, she stepped forward to laud one of the city’s good corporate citizens: Phillips Electric. Hogg told Council that Newsweek Magazine just ranked Phillips #9 on its list of global companies that engage in green/sustainable practices---a ranking based on both environmental factors and transparency

Hogg commented,

“We are really lucky to have them here. It's not a U.S. company so they could locate anywhere in world. It’s important that we let them know that we appreciate them.”

Hogg suggested that the city send a letter of appreciation or pass a resolution acknowledging Phillips’ national recognition and commending the company for its good business practices.

A very good suggestion---from another involved citizen who, like the Lions Club, cares deeply about the city and its residents.

Let’s Hear It for Frequent Local Elections

Although Council didn’t do much, the Drainage Committee had a pretty busy night.

Drainage is the least visible---and in some ways least exciting---of all the Council committees, but it serves a very important purpose: it’s responsible for developing and overseeing the city’s storm water management system and it’s a resource for residents with flooding problems.

Needless to say, the committee has been very, very busy this year. 
 

Councilwoman Cathy Murphy, the chair, has served on the Drainage Committee since her first term on Council. She’s very dedicated, but the work can be very frustrating. It can be hard to get things done.

Locally, the Drainage Committee looks to the Service Department and the city engineer for help, but the reality is that drainage issues are added to regular workloads, and the amount earmarked in the city budget to address drainage issues is pretty small.

For the last several years Murphy and the Committee have been working on getting the Jefferson Drive/Highland Road sewer backups addressed. They came close last fall---but the County, who is responsible for the work, rejected the bids. A more modest relining project is currently on the table. Here’s hoping the County moves forward with it this time around.

After sitting in on this week’s Drainage Committee meeting and listening to residents’ horror stories (one couple said they are afraid to go to sleep if it’s raining, for fear of what they might face in the morning) -- I left thinking: Thank goodness for election years. 

There’s nothing like an upcoming local election to motivate the powers that be to pay attention to residents and commit the resources needed to solve their problems.

While Murphy couldn’t promise that it would happen overnight, she was finally able to assure the residents in attendance that their problems were on the city’s radar and that they would absolutely be addressed in the coming year. 

There’s nothing like an upcoming local election to encourage responsiveness to residents’ concerns.

 Given that, wouldn’t it be great if local elections were held every year?

Upcoming Events

• Election Day: Tuesday November 8^th.
• Buddhist Tzu Chi Foundation Open House: Sunday, November 6^th, noon to 3 pm., 1076 Ford Road. There will be a vegetarian food sale, games and activities, craft demonstrations and musical performances.