Cleveland Heights City Council meeting highlights 12-19-11

DECEMBER 19, 2011

• Youth of Coventry representative speaks
• Other citizen comments
• City employee benefits
• 2012 recreation programs and rates
• Budget legislation
• 3395 DeSota Avenue
• Kenneth Montlack’s last meeting

All council members were present.

Youth of Coventry representative speaks

John Robert Nelson III, representing Youth of Coventry, thanked both council, for swift action at the Severance Business District, and the police department, for quickly solving the Thanksgiving weekend murder. Youth of Coventry appreciates the groundbreaking curfew legislation, but is against it being set at 6 p.m., which hurts the youth and will end up hurting the merchants. Addressing citizens, Nelson asked for help with teen-on-teen attacks at Coventry, fights, and drug dealers, stating not everyone is welcome in Cleveland Heights if they act this way.

Other citizen comments

Rabbi Sruly Wolf praised retiring Council Member Ken Montlack for his compassion and his sensitivity to the Orthodox community.

Resident Fran Mentch urged the reopening of Dennison Pool.

Resident Nick Biggins expressed his appreciation of the city’s decision to buy only American made cars.

City employee benefits

Council passed two resolutions regarding employee benefits for the period of Jan. 1–Dec. 31, 2012. The first authorizes an agreement with Employee Benefits Consultants as a third-party administrator for the city’s self-funded dental program. The second authorizes an agreement with Medical Mutual of Ohio for the provision of administrative services and excessive-loss coverage for the city’s self-funded medical, hospital, and prescription plan.

2012 recreation programs and rates

New use regulations and rates for 2012 recreational programs, including entertainment and recreation programs at Cain Park, and Cumberland swimming pool and the Cleveland Heights High School pool were presented on first reading. All aspects are the same as the comparable legislation for 2011, which would be repealed.

Budget legislation

Council amended the appropriations and expenditures for the fiscal year ending Dec. 31, 2011 and approved appropriations for the period of Jan. 1–Dec. 31, 2012. The total budget for 2011 was $82,831,245. The total budget for 2012 is $79,465,139. Council also approved the tax budget, which revises amounts and rates authorized by council and certifies them to the County Budget Commission.

3395 DeSota Avenue

Council declared the property at 3395 DeSota Avenue a nuisance. The city will require the owner to raze the house and garage, and perform an asbestos survey, but will perform these tasks if the owner does not, at a cost of $10,450.

Kenneth Montlack’s last meeting

Throughout the meeting, council members praised Council Member Kenneth Montlack, who is retiring from council. Council Member Bonnie Caplan pointed out an article in the Focus magazine about Montlack, and read a proclamation from the Cuyahoga County Council recognizing his service. She worked with him on council for 18 years, and praised his commitment to diversity and integration. Council Member Dennis Wilcox noted that Montack had attended more than a thousand meetings, and was instrumental in founding the First Suburbs Consortium. Mayor Edward Kelley said that Montlack had chaired each one of the council committees, and called him intelligent and compassionate with a great sense of humor. The mayor noted that Montlack’s fight for inner-ring suburbs through the First Suburbs Consortium was a step toward regionalism.

Thanking his family and friends, Montlack said he was deeply touched by all the comments. He joked that city staff does all the work and council members make speeches, and that this works very well. He praised this council for “walking the walk” with regard to regionalism. He maintained that council, staff, and residents are a family, and that residents are ultimately responsible for the government. He concluded that Cleveland Heights is committed to respectful, progressive values and represents the closest fulfillment of the promise of America.

LWV observer: Blanche Valancy.

These meeting summaries are abstracted from LWV observers’ written reports. The summaries have been edited and prepared by Anne McFarland, Charlene Morse 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.