My notes from last night's meeting:
The Planning and Zoning Commission, among other duties, addresses the relocation of property lines, proposed subdivisions and major projects, proposed changes in land usage, and zoning matters. The Architectural Board of Review examines and comments on proposed buildings to ensure the community’s standards are maintained. There are seven officers. One seat is vacant. Contact me or the Mayor if you would like to be a member. This group meets on the 1st and 3rd Thursdays of a month if there is business to discuss. The member serves without pay. One Council member (me) and the Mayor are two of the seven voting members. The board met Thursday to review several items. Two new homes were approved to be built; one on Chardon Road and one on Milann. A new steel building was approved to be built and attached behind the old Office Max to allow for a basketball court for the new Aspire Fitness facility. The cell tower plan proposed at West Miller next to the freeway has been granted a 12-month extension of time. The subject of some concern among residents present was an application for a blood plasma donation center. The business is considering the building now shared with LaSalle furniture and Marc's. The public may speak at these and all public meetings to voice opinions and concerns, within a 3 minute limit. I had encouraged people to come speak and I was interested to hear their thoughts, and to hear from the company. One resident spoke in favor of the business and six spoke against it. We then listened to a presentation from the applicant. There were numerous questions and concerns raised from the public and from the board, in addition to my own. Finally, I asked that we refer this for further study and when asked, suggested the planning committee of council. The type of business does not seem to fit the current definitions in our zoning. It is more like an employer than retail. More discussion is needed. Council calls for a Special meeting whenever an urgent matter comes to its attention, with a minimum of 24 hours notice. Council moved to an executive session to address the legal position of the City on pending litigation matters. There have been writings and a threat by the Mayor that a lawsuit by a city union is imminent. A recent court decision of Weger vs. the City of Willoughby Hills that the temporary appointment of a law director cannot be made by the Mayor nor Council alone, and the ruling that the City won over the former law director and current prosecutor. The courts held that Council and the Mayor are separate, distinct and of equal importance. Information from an executive session behind closed doors to discuss pending or imminent litigation are issues that should not be discussed in public. If this discussion were to be held in public, it could compromise the position of the City and of the Taxpayer's best interest. It would be irresponsible to share confidential discussions, documents or letters meant for these types of legal matters. This puts at risk the position a City may or may not take in dealing with Attorneys or Unions and could compromise Taxpayer's best interest. There is also an Attorney/Client privilege issue. There were three items of legislation. First was a motion to address the Mayor's veto of certain items in our 2018 budget. The Council needed to vote to have a compete budget to submit by law. The motion to set aside the veto was passed 6-1. This budget primarily allows for more funds allocated to firefighters and paramedics and more road projects while reducing the administrative support staffing. There were other items that have been cut, mostly administrative, memberships, travel, and discretionary. The city has funded police, fire, and road work as well as the customary requirements of our community. We still have work to do but participating and voting on the city budget is the most important decisions that a city council makes. I have been clear about those priorities from my experience and from listening to my constituents; roads, police, fire and rescue come first. Another item was for a road salt purchase, that has an impending deadline. I'd like to buy more salt next year to make our roads safer for travel. That passed unanimously. Next was to appoint a specific other employee for Council to defend the City against a labor or employment lawsuit or controversy related to the implementation of the 2018 budget. That motion passed 6-1. I believe the court ruling on how neither the Council nor the Mayor having the ability to appoint a department head or a law director allowed for the council to employ a clerk or other employee it deems necessary for a specific reason. To protect the city from a lawsuit is s crucial reason. Council acted to protect the City. The legislation to employ an attorney to represent the Taxpayer's interests in the appeal of the Weger vs the City of Willoughby Hills was left on first reading. When a taxpayer has sued the city, the right and obligation to protect the City becomes difficult when the person who sued is also the Mayor of the city. The award to the taxpayer – the Mayor – for attorney fees and costs will come from the Willoughby Hills general fund, from taxpayer's dollars. The defense of the case of Weger vs the City of Willoughby Hills was paid for by the City's insurance provider. Council meets again on Thursday, April 12th in a Regular meeting. Here is a link to the audio: http://www.willoughbyhills-oh.gov/mtg.0405.18-Pt-1.MP3 Part two is about 47 minutes: http://www.willoughbyhills-oh.gov/mtg.0405.18-Pt-2.MP3 Comments are closed.
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Dave's Notes from the MeetingsThis is an effort to keep my constituents informed, check this page for updates. Archives
January 2020
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