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.

Gone Fishing

Regular readers may wonder why I haven't blogged recently. I was out of town for several weeks and am just now catching up with everything I missed.
While the mayoral race apparently heated up in my absence, things on the Council side have been pretty quiet.
The Oct. 18 Committee of the Whole meeting was cancelled, so I have nothing to report from last night.
Council will hold its next regular meeting on Oct. 25th. I'll have more on that next week.

Avoiding Hard Decisions And Taking the Easy Way Out

I left the Sept. 13^th Council meeting disappointed and disgusted.
City leaders decided to play Santa Claus, instead of prioritizing needs and making hard decisions about spending public money.

Council’s Cop-Out

As regular readers of this blog know, while Mayor Scott Coleman’s 2011 budget gave short-shrift to road repairs and ignored other significant city infastructure issues---like flooding problems and the failing Highland Road water main---he made sure to include a $175,000 appropriation to build a new Party Barn Pavilion (PBP) in the park.

By all appearances that appropriation fulfills a campaign pledge that Coleman made when first ran for mayor in 2003---a fact seemingly confirmed by City Recreation Director David Ianiro, who told Council at a Sept. 6^th Committee of the Whole meeting, “We’ve been trying to get the building for 8 years”.  

Significantly, the $ 175,000 appropriation was in addition to $629,850 in regular revenue designated for park and recreation use this year. 

Dave Ianiro, who woefully underestimated the cost of an earlier version of the PBP, confidently told Council that the latest PBP building would cost just $45,000 to erect---a real bargain.

Meanwhile, Council questioned whether the PBP was really a top priority park need. It focused its attention on something studiously ignored by Mayor Coleman, Recreation Director Dave Ianiro and the city’s Park & Recreation Commission (P&R)--- something that directly impacts almost every park visitor---the rutted and badly deteriorated park roads.

Council decided to solicit bids for both the PBP and for repaving a portion of the park roads, to get an idea of how much each project would cost.  In a prior meeting, residents were lead to believe that after looking at the bids, Council would decide which project or projects to pursue---while keeping within the mayor’s $175,000 appropriation.

The bids were opened at the end of August.

The repaving bid came in at $261,225. That cost includes (as recommended by the city engineer) repaving the heavily used park entrance road with full depth asphalt and using a cheaper, less durable “chip seal” process on the Woodside access road.

There was only one bid submitted for the PBP. That bid was 128.50%  more than the city engineer’s cost estimate.  The cost for the PBP building alone was $ 68,700 ---152.67% more than the $45,000 figure that Rec Director Dave Ianiro so confidently quoted to Council. With required “observation” fees factored in, the PBP project’s total cost ended up at $117,405.20—a figure that doesn’t include architect’s fees or renovating the Old Pool House bathrooms---work that Ianiro claims must also be done. 

Council acted on the bids at its Sept. 13^th meeting.

That’s where my disgust and disappointment come in.

Councilman Bob Mastrangelo was the only council member to balk at the PBP bid. He pointed out that Council,

“rejected the first greenspace gazebo bid for less of an overage. No one’s discussed that”. 

Mastrangelo was referring to the fact that Council decided to re-advertise the greenspace gazebo project after the only bid submitted exceeded the city engineer’s cost estimate---by a much lower amount than the PBP bid. That decision resulted in a significantly lower gazebo bid the second time around, one within the cost estimates.

Did Mastrangelo’s comments spur Council to re-advertise the PBP project due to the one, wildly overinflated bid it received? No, they did not.

Even worse, instead of considering and prioritizing all of the city’s infastracture needs before making a decision, Council simply took the easy way out----it approved both park projects, at a total cost of $384,000+---more than twice the mayor’s $175,000 appropriation.

Legislative & Finance Committee Chairman, Councilman Leo Lombardo, justified the decision by pointing out that the PBP bid came in under $175,000. He argued that the city could afford to pony up the additional cost to do both projects ($209,000) because the city was raking in income taxes at levels above projected amounts.

Basically the messages sent by Mayor Coleman and Council were these:

1. The city’s got plenty of money, so it’s okay to spend it.
2. It’s okay to spend capital improvement money without considering, discussing or deciding which of the city’s infrastructure needs are most important. 
3. It’s okay to let someone else (down the line) worry about more problematic things, like the city’s crumbling city streets, flooded basements, and the failing Highland Road water main.  
4. It’s definitely okay to be Santa Claus in an election year.

Merry Christmas, Dave Ianiro!

Not surprisingly, Councilman Bob Mastrangelo voted against accepting the bid for the PBP project. He said that he could,

 “not support (the PBP) because there are other capital projects in the city that need more attention.

For example, the new ambulance.  We talked of leasing it (using a five year, lease-to-own arrangement) because we didn’t have the finances to pay for it. We should just pay for it.

We’ve been talking about the park entrance.

We shouldn’t approve any money until P&R gives us a 5 year plan and not just a wish list. I’ve been asking for that for three years.”

Councilman Bob Mastrangelo was willing to prioritize and make hard choices.

 

It’s very disappointing that Mayor Coleman and the rest of Council weren’t willing to do that too.

Get-Go Update

Developer Lance Osborne appeared at the September 13^th Council meeting and asked Council to file his initiative petition with the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections.…Well sort of. 

What Osborne actually did was draft an Ordinance for Council to pass. The Ordinance text was a boiled down version of his proposed zoning law changes---once again packaged together and presented as an all or nothing issue.

Osborne also asked Council to put his proposed zoning laws on the May 201 primary ballot---even though the Highland Heights Charter requires initiative issues to be voted on during general or regular municipal elections, elections that are likely to attract the maximum number of voters from all political parties.

Law Director Tim Paluf told Council that Osborne’s request complied with Charter requirements, but he has remained mum about what happens next.
Although the Charter seems to indicate that Council must file Osborne’s petition with the Board of Elections, Paluf could possibly rule the petition legally insufficient, thereby rendering it ineligible for filing downtown. At a minimum, the city can file a protest, challenging the petition due to its obvious substantive and procedural deficiencies.

Meanwhile, Osborne was the sole presenter at the September 15^th Highland Heights Economic Development Committee (EDC) meeting, armed with drawings and a site plan for the Catalano’s lot.

Osborne told the EDC that his deal to buy the Catalano’s property is contingent on his getting the necessary zoning law changes and permits to operate the proposed mega “Get-Go” at the site.
He stands to make a ton of money from the deal, as it involves a lease-back arrangement with Giant Eagle for the “Get-Go” portion of the property.

Although Council has taken a “hands off” approach to Osborne’s project, Finance Director Anthony Ianiro---who heads the EDC---clearly wasn’t following their lead. He seems to be setting the stage to pit the EDC against Council---something which Osborne’s supporters would undoubtedly relish. Since the finance director is one of Mayor Scott Coleman’s right hand men, Tony Ianiro's actions may very well signal where Coleman stands on the proposed mega “Get-Go”.

The finance director told the EDC members (who normally meet just 4 times a year) that they could expect a follow-up meeting  “in a couple of weeks” to decide “what we want to do” and to “make a recommendation (to support the project) or not.”

Since the EDC is focused solely on development---and not on other things, such as supporting the city’s zoning laws or protecting residential neighborhoods---there is little doubt what will happen when the EDC votes on the Osborne/Giant Eagle mega “Get-Go” plan. 

Osborne told the EDC that he thought the project would generate about 100 jobs---part-time and some fulltime jobs. While at first blush that might seem to be a big deal, in reality it probably won’t mean a whole lot of new income for the city.  A bunch of minimum wage, part-time jobs simply don’t translate into a significant amount of new tax money for the city.

To put it in perspective, consider this.

Tony Ianiro told the EDC that Catalano’s--- which employed more than 100 people,

“wasn’t a huge picture (tax wise). They paid maybe $25,000 to $35,000 in payroll tax”.”

That’s $25,000 to $35,000 out of a $16 million budget.

Based on the city’s experience with Catalano’s, it’s more than likely that the 100 jobs touted by Osborne would similarly be “(not) huge picture” as far as additional payroll tax collections are concerned.

Meanwhile the Catalano’s property continues to generate revenue for the city---in the form of property taxes that Giant Eagle pays each year, based on the property’s $1.3 million appraised value.

As the finance director remarked,

“Property taxes are property taxes. The city always gets property tax whether there’s a business there or not.”

Quick Hits

Candidate No-shows

The Sun Messenger is holding interview sessions with Highland Heights candidates this week. Attending the sessions is important for any candidate who hopes to win a Sun Messenger endorsement.

Ted Anderson--who vehemently pledged to run again after he was soundly defeated by Councilwoman Lisa Stickan for the Ward One council seat two years ago---was a no-show.

It’s unclear whether Anderson lacked interest or was simply too busy to attend the endorsement interview.

Shred That Paper!

The next city paper shredding day is coming up soon.

 The service is free, and there will be helpers on hand to assist in unloading whatever you bring.

Bring your old files and other paper to the Service Center Garage (behind the police station/fire house) on Saturday October 1, from 9 am to 1 pm.

Absentee/Vote-by-Mail Ballots

The Ohio Secretary of State, Jon Husted, has barred the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections (BOE) from sending out postcards inviting voters to vote by mail---something the BOE has done for the past several years.

That means if you want an absentee/vote-by-mail ballot for the November 2011 election, you have to spend your own time and money to get one.

You can call the Board of Elections (216 443-3298) and ask them to send you an absentee/vote-by-mail application or you can go online and download a customized application (http://www.boe.cuyahogacounty.us/en-US/votebymailapplication.aspx).

Or you can ask Council President Scott Mills to deliver an application to you.  

Apparently Mills picked up a bunch of absentee/vote-by-mail applications the last time he was downtown.

He tells me he’s willing to share.

All you have to do is call him (440 477-5883) or e-mail him (smills@highlandhts.com) and he’ll bring one right to your door.

Whatever method you choose, you’ll have to fill out the application and either mail it back or drop it by the BOE office downtown for processing.  Only then will the BOE be allowed to send you an absentee/vote-by-mail ballot.

Any more hoops you want to make us jump through, Mr. Husted?