Five months in, Cleveland Heights City Council still hasn’t filled vacancy - cleveland.com

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CLEVELAND HEIGHTS, Ohio -- City Council will reconvene during its August recess to continue discussions on filling the seat that by then will have been vacant for five months.

Councilwoman Melissa Yasinow announced her resignation, effective immediately, back on March 2, a little past the midway point of her second four-year term.

And while the seven-member, at-large legislative body has drawn criticism in the past over its appointment process for council vacancies, the lack of any successor this time around has provided further cause for concern.

“We will hold a committee-of-the-whole meeting in August to continue to discuss the vacant council seat,” Mayor Jason Stein said on July 20.

After extending the council application process until April 6 due to the ongoing coronavirus public health emergency that shut down City Hall, and receiving 22 responses, online interviews were conducted by the city and the local chapter of the League of Women Voters.

On May 21, the four finalists were announced:

-- Craig Cobb, Berkshire Road, a 28-year Coventry Village resident, attorney and branch manager for the Farmers Insurance Exchange, as well as a former Cleveland municipal judge. Appointed last year to the Cheryl Stephens' vacancy when she won the District 10 seat on Cuyahoga County Council, Cobb then lost to Davida Russell in the November election. He has also served on the city's Charter Review and Planning commissions.

-- Tony Cuda, Fenley Road, a 35-year resident, government teacher, musician and organizer of Citizens for an Elected Mayor, which ran last year’s successful campaign to switch from the “city manager-council” structure in place for nearly a century to a popularly elected mayor, with the first election to be held in November 2021.

-- Robert Koonce, Edgehill Road, a 30-year resident and newly appointed chief development officer with the Boys and Girls Clubs of Northeast Ohio. Koonce, who had considered a separate council run in recent years, also serves as the board chairman for the Home Repair Resource Center and as the immediate past chair on the Lake Erie Ink Board of Directors.

-- Anthony Mattox Jr., Scarborough Road, a 38-year resident and founder, senior pastor and CEO of The Empowerment Church in East Cleveland. A five-year member of the Cleveland Heights Planning Commission, he grew up in the Noble neighborhood and pulled in more than 4,200 votes in the November general election for City Council.

Further interviews were conducted, and the remaining six council members continued to meet in executive session to discuss “the appointment of a public official.”

But Stein also said on May 18 that “there’s nothing in the City Charter that says a choice has to be made” by the remaining council members in filling a vacancy.

The lack of any time limit on filling council vacancies was an issue the city-appointed Charter Review Commission attempted to address in the long list of proposed amendments that were turned over to council last year.

The Charter Review panel recommended a 90-day time limit to make an appointment, although council pushed that proposal back to 150 days before tabling the proposed charter amendments indefinitely.

Amid rumors that council might not make any appointment and will wait to let the public decide on Yasinow’s successor in the next election, Councilwoman Melody Joy Hart has offered a possible solution.

In an article posted last week on the Heights Observer website, Hart said she only voted for the August recess upon agreement that council would meet during that time to further discuss the vacancy.

"I believe it is our job to overcome an impasse," Hart stated. "We need to come to a resolution and should not end the meeting until we have fulfilled our duty."

To accomplish that, Hart has also suggested narrowing the field of four finalists down to two candidates, then coming out of executive session for a public vote. With only six members, it would take four votes to make the new council member official.

“If any one of us doesn’t get our preferred candidate, the outcome would still be good, given the excellent applicants,” Hart said, noting that she had “received a letter from 14 respected citizens regarding council having a duty to appoint a seventh council member. I agree with them.”

Since 2011, there have been five council members appointed through the application process:

-- Stein replaced Mark Tumeo, who moved away in 2011

-- Janine Boyd replaced Phyllis Evans, who became ill in 2012

-- Current Vice Mayor Kahlil Seren replaced Boyd when she was elected to the state legislature in 2015

-- Councilman Mike Ungar replaced Jeff Coryell, who moved away in 2016

-- Cobb replaced Stephens last year up until the November general election

Stein also noted July 20 that the regular council meetings would be suspended in August to free up time for outgoing City Manager Tanisha Briley and her staff to work on the transition with Susanna Niermann O'Neil.

The longtime vice city manager will serve in an interim capacity after Briley leaves for her new job as the city manager of Gaithersburg, Md. O’Neil will continue to oversee the 16-month transition period before the city switches over in 2022 to a “strong mayor” form of government.

Bulk trash pickup resumes

One municipal service missing in action during the pandemic has been the city’s bulk trash pickup program, which will resume in limited form on Aug. 1.

“Bulk items will be picked up once per month during the first full week of each month on your regular trash day,” city officials announced. “Bulk will be limited to four items per pickup.”

Acceptable items for curbside pickup include appliances, furniture, household items and toilets, to name a few.

Some unacceptable items include construction and demolition materials, household hazardous waste (including oil-based paints), bricks, rocks, computers and electronics.

“If you have more than four items or you need bulk pickup on a day that is not your regularly scheduled day, you can call to schedule a special pickup for a fee,” the city’s July 24 update stated. “Call 216-691-7300 to arrange your special pickup.”

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Five months in, Cleveland Heights City Council still hasn’t filled vacancy - cleveland.com
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