Cleveland Heights City Council meeting highlights 7-2-2018

JULY 2, 2018

 

  • Public comments
  • Liquor permit request
  • Meadowbrook and Lee site
  • City branding
  • National Parks and Recreation Month
  • Small cell antennas and wireless support structures
  • Objection to liquor permit
  • Immigration task force term extension
  • 2019 tax budget
  • Community reinvestment area
  • Statement by Council Member Stephens
  • Event announcements
  • Mayor’s report

 

Council members present were Mayor Carol Roe, Mary Dunbar, Kahlil Seren, Jason Stein, Cheryl L. Stephens and Michael N. Ungar. Vice Mayor Melissa Yasinow was absent. The meeting lasted 52 minutes.

Public comments

Spectrum update: A representative of Spectrum (formerly Time-Warner), summarized cable system updates, especially internet service.

Juvenile delinquency: A resident of the Noble area expressed concern about the behavior of juveniles in his neighborhood.

Community development corporation (CDC): Five residents, including several FutureHeights board members, spoke regarding the city’s pending partnership with FutureHeights as a community development corporation (CDC), focusing mainly on housing rehabilitation and infill. Consideration is also being given to creation of a community investment corporation (CIC) to facilitate the transfer of property. Two speakers spoke against a CIC, saying that CDCs can better attract funds, focus on community development, and allow greater citizen involvement. Gus Kious expressed support for FutureHeights becoming the city’s CDC and opposition to a CIC structure, either in lieu of or in tandem with a CDC. Rhonda Lovejoy, vice president of the FutureHeights board, thanked council for moving forward with the CDC. Robert Brown (also a FutureHeights board member) spoke in favor of a CDC over a CIC. Deanna Bremer Fisher, the executive director of FutureHeights thanked council for their work on making the CDC move forward, stressing the importance of partnership. Julia Kious Zabell, the FutureHeights board president, expressed the group’s willingness to answer questions going forward.

Sewage problem: Two residents spoke about flooding problems in the Parkway Road area that causes sewage to back up into basements.

Weed problem: The owner of an apartment building expressed concern about weeds on city-owned property adjacent to her garage.

Liquor permit request

Bookers Enterprise II LLC, doing business as Bookers Lounge, 13179 Cedar Road, has applied for liquor permits.

Meadowbrook and Lee site

Council heard a first reading of a resolution to authorize the city manager to negotiate a non-binding memorandum of understanding with Cedar Lee Connection LLC for development of the site at the intersection of Meadowbrook Boulevard and Lee Road. Information about the proposed development is on the city’s website.

City branding

Council authorized an agreement with Align2Market for defining the city’s brand and establishing tools and resources to promote it. This is one of the actions defined in the city’s master plan. The fee paid for these services will be $85,000. The firm was one of several responding to a request for proposals issued by the city in April 2018.

National Parks and Recreation Month

Council declared July 2018 as National Parks and Recreation Month in the city of Cleveland Heights.

Small cell wireless antennas and support structures

Council heard a first reading of an ordinance enacting Chapter 943, “Use of Public Ways for Small Cell Wireless Facilities and Wireless Support Structures,” of Part Nine, Streets, Utilities and Public Services Codeof the city ordinances. State law now requires municipalities to issue permits to providers of wireless, cable, and video service for attaching “small cell” wireless antennas to municipally-owned support structures, including utility poles, traffic signals, and street lights, and for constructing, maintaining, or operating a wireless support structure in the right-of-way. The antennas provide coverage for localized areas. This measure is intended to give cities regulatory control.

Objection to liquor permit

Council passed a resolution objecting to the renewal of all current state-issued liquor permits for Noble Roman Inc., doing business as Noble Gas, 2610 Noble Road, and requesting that a hearing on the renewal be held in Cuyahoga County.

Immigration task force term extension

Council amended Resolution No. 32-2018, “Immigration Task Force Resolution,” to extend the task force’s term from July 31 to September 30. Because the group began its work later than anticipated, this will allow time for identifying and examining issues and making recommendations to council about possible future city action.

2019 tax budget

Council heard a first reading of a resolution adopting the city’s 2019 tax budget. The second reading, at Council’s next meeting, will include an overview of the budget and financial forecast by City Manager Briley.

Community reinvestment area

Council heard a second reading of an ordinance implementing Sections 3735.65 through 3735.70 of the Ohio Revised Code to establish boundaries of a community reinvestment area in Cleveland Heights. The measure also designates a housing officer to administer the program and creates a community reinvestment housing council and a tax incentive review council. The aim is to “to assist and encourage development throughout the City of Cleveland Heights in specific areas that have not enjoyed reinvestment from remodeling or new construction.” There will be a third reading of this measure at council’s next meeting.

Statement by Council Member Stephens

As Council Member Stephens prepares to run for a seat on the Cuyahoga County Council in November, she expressed concerns about a number of projects in the city that are not progressing as well as she had hoped, citing Top of the Hill, the Taylor-Tudor buildings, and  parking meters. She hopes that the CDC partnership with FutureHeights will help move the city forward.

Event announcements

  • Friday, July 13-Sunday, July 15: Cain Park Arts Festival
  • Saturday, July 14: Doan Brook Watershed Partnership’s Family Fish Day at Rockefeller Lagoon

Mayor’s report

Mayor Roe noted that the Immigration Task Force had its first meeting on June 27; the next is scheduled for July 12, 7 p.m. in council chambers. All of the meetings are being recorded and the video, like those for other city meetings, can be accessed from the city’s website. The audio recording of this evening’s committee of the whole meeting will be on the website as well, as will recordings of all such meetings going forward. The mayor stated that council meets three times each year with the Cleveland Heights-University Heights school board. One of those meetings was last week and included a presentation on the 2017 state report card data.There was also a report on the racial equity and inclusion workshop attended by approximately 100 people from the city, school board, and various nonprofits in Cleveland Heights. Mayor Roe concluded with a mention of her recent participation in a program of Common Ground Solutions—a private entity that has developed ways to facilitate civil discourse.

The next regular meeting will be Monday, July 16, 2018, at 7:30 p.m. The meeting will be preceded at 7 p.m. by the 2019 tax budget hearing.

LWV Observer: Katherine Solender (from video).

To receive regular email postings of full reports, send an email 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 of Greater Cleveland. This disclaimer must accompany any redistribution of these reports.

Read More on Cleveland Heights
Volume 11, Issue 8, Posted 11:42 AM, 07.17.2018