Cleveland Heights City Council meeting highlights-June 21

JUNE 21, 2010

• “Independents Week”
• Hydrant bids; new truck
• Focus summer 2010
• Bonds to fund projects
• Block grant funds to non-profits
• Soccer field project
• Energy efficiency project
• Additional bond-funded projects
• Coventry fair incident

All council members were present.

“Independents Week”

Alex Quintana of Quintana’s Barber Shop and Dream Spa, Trevor Gile of Motorcars Honda, Steve Presser of Big Fun, Tom Fello of Tommy’s Restaurant, and Deanna Bremer Fisher of Future Heights presented all council members with T-shirts to wear in support of local businesses during “Independents Week” (July 1-7).

Hydrant bids; new truck

Council granted City Manager Robert Downey authority to advertise for bids for the purchase of fire hydrants. Downey reported the purchase of a new hybrid aerial truck with a $56,000 grant from the Ohio Department of Transportation.

Focus summer 2010

The summer 2010 issue of Focus magazine contains information about Cain Park events, the nominating process for the annual Community Improvement Awards, and summer block parties.

Bonds to fund projects

Council passed three ordinances providing for the issuance of notes in anticipation of the issuance of bonds to fund important capital projects and purchases. They included $215,000 for the purchase of vehicles for the police department; $380,000 for reconstructing, resurfacing and otherwise improving city streets; and $590,000 for rebuilding Monticello Boulevard and Taylor Road. The latter project, already underway, is largely funded by Cuyahoga County, but the approved measure enables the city to pay its share, which includes the engineering costs.

Block grant funds to nonprofits

Council agreed to the dispersal of federal Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds, for the time period July 1, 2010 to June 30, 2011, to six nonprofit organizations:

• Center for Families and Children - $27,000 for its Pinpoint program at the RapArt Center;
• Heights Community Congress - $18,000 to assist with programs to promote integration and fair housing;
• Heights Parent Center - $37,500 for its Family School Connection program;
• Heights Youth Club, Inc. - $35,000 for its Project Learn program;
• Jewish Community Center of Cleveland - $20,000 for its Nutrition and Afternoon Out program;
• Noble-Nela Merchants Association - $6,000 to assist with the administrative costs of the association and its activities.

Soccer field project

Council approved an agreement with Behnke Associates, Inc. for services related to the Denison Park Soccer Field Improvement project at a cost of $27,500. These funds derive from the passage in 2004 of Issue 27, which provides capital funding for recreational facilities each year.

Energy efficiency project

Council amended the agreement with Karpinski Engineering for electrical engineering services for the Community Center/Ice Rinks Energy Efficiency Improvement Project to cover $5,000 of additional improvements to lighting and lighting controls because the bids for the project came in lower than expected. The project, which is funded by a grant from the U.S. Department of Energy, relates to the city’s overall green efforts.

Additional bond-funded projects

Three more capital expenditures made possible by the issuance of bonds were approved. The first two were the acquisition of a 2010 truck cab and chassis for the streets division of the Public Works Department for $67,948, and engineering services from Wade Trim Ohio Inc. for Phase II of the Taylor Road Rehabilitation Project for $220,000. The third authorized an agreement with the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency to accept grant funding of $232,074 for surface water discharge restoration of the Cumberland park parking lot. Council Member Dennis Wilcox noted that, thanks to the efforts of city staff members, none of the expenditures for these measures, and others passed this evening, came from the city’s general fund.

Coventry fair incident

At the end of the successful June 17 Coventry Street Arts Fair, there was an unfortunate disturbance resulting in the arrest of nine people. Mayor Edward Kelley stated that Coventry is a safe area and praised the police, who have the full support of council.

LWV observers: Katherine Solender, Kirsten Karakul

These meeting summaries are abstracted from LWV observers’ written reports. The summaries have been edited and prepared by Anne McFarland, Charlene Morse, Marilyn McLaughlin and Maryann Barnes. To receive e-mail postings of full reports, send an e-mail to mbarnes9515@gmail.com or join through Google groups using “lwv-chuh observer reports” as a search phrase.

These reports contain member observation and selected highlights of public meetings and are not official statements of the Heights Chapter of the League of Women Voters Cuyahoga Area. This disclaimer must accompany any redistribution of these reports.