University Heights City Council - Meeting Highlights by the League of Women Voters

Monday,OCTOBER 20, 2008

Council members Peter R. Bernardo, Frankie Goldberg, and Kevin Patrick Murphy excused.

Quorum

Law Director Ken Fisher noted that four members of council were sufficient to do business and could vote on items that required a simple majority.

Appeal to deny fence permit

The bulk of the meeting involved an appeal of a fence permit, granted by the Board of Zoning Appeals on Oct. 8 for a John Carroll University (JCU)-owned property at 2580 South Belvoir Boulevard.

Mike Kirincic, of Carroll Blvd., filed the appeal claiming that erection of a fence by JCU across the backs of properties would have an adverse effect on his property. He asked that council take action for the good of the neighborhood. He complained that the university was land-banking, neighborhood property values had fallen and JCU renters were not neighborly.
Councilman Steven Bullock noted that he expected university representatives to “sit down with us,” but in the meantime, "we have to live by our own rules.”

Patrick O’Shaughnessy, a Kerwick Road resident, applauded City Council for forming a committee to talk with JCU but implored council not to “forget the residents.” O’Shaughnessy said that putting a moratorium on fence building would send a message to the university. Bullock appealed for patience to allow council to address this with the process that had already begun.

Several other residents extolled the neighborhood openness. Behind the homes, property lines were not closed in creating an open space where children played and moved freely from yard to yard.

Both Mayor Beryl Rothschild and Councilman Steven Sims expressed sympathy for the residents who were appealing the fence with the mayor suggesting that a moratorium on fences may be a good idea.

Sheila Hubman of Ashurst Road felt that the denial of a backyard fence elsewhere in University Heights could interfere with her right to erect a fence.

Lisa Barrett, representing JCU, said that the university was looking forward to working with council on the task force. However, she noted that the fence in question was code compliant and consistent with other fences. Denial of the fence solely because it was JCU that asked for it would constitute an “arbitrary and capricious” ruling.

Maria Alfaro-Lopez, JCU employee and renter at a property named in another fence dispute, claimed adverse effects from the absence of a fence when children at play invaded her privacy. She further emphasized that the area to be fenced in was not a common area; it was private property.

Councilman Sims made a motion to postpone the decision in order to study further the situation and JCU’s actions. The motion failed with both Councilman Bullock and Councilman Frank Consolo voting no. They felt that postponement would only prolong the dispute without learning much more.

On the first vote Vice Mayor Adele Zucker voted for the appeal and Sims passed. Since three votes were needed for a majority vote and resolution of the issue, Sims relented and voted to deny the appeal. Thus, the appeal was denied with a 1-3 vote.

Ordinance to repeal moral claims

Without discussion, council voted unanimously to repeal the section of the city code granting moral claims.

LWV observer: Maryann Barnes.

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 2008

All council members present.

Road salt

A resolution authorizing the city to participate in the NEO/SO’s 2008-2009 salt program passed at an earlier meeting. NEO/SO, the Northeast Ohio Sourcing Office, pools the orders of municipalities, county government, schools and universities to obtain favorable contracts. Due to road salt scarcity, NEO/SO was unable to secure a contract this year. University Heights is attempting to negotiate its own contract, a challenging task because of the relatively small amount of salt University Heights needs. To further reduce salt usage, Service Superintendent Christopher Vild reported that the Service and Utilities Committee was discussing the use of a “sensible salting” policy.

Waterline replacements

City Engineer Joseph Ciuni reported that waterline replacements on University Parkway, Silsby and Groveland were to have been completed by October 14 and contractor Noce Enterprises was incurring daily late charges. The Cleveland Water Department will test water on Silsby Road before hooking up residents.

University Square garage

Ciuni said that critical supports for University Square garage have been repaired and less critical supports were now in the process of being fixed.

City Watch

Fire Chief John Pitchler described City Watch as a reverse 911 service. City Watch will inform residents of emergencies, evacuations, and non-emergency information by telephone (both land line and cell), fax or email. Residents can sign up on the University Heights website.

LWV Observer: Sue Pardee.

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

Meeting summaries have been edited and prepared by Charlene Morse, Marilyn McLaughlin and Maryann Barnes.