Blog: What Happened at Thursday's Council Meeting

Below are my notes from Thursday's council meeting. My apologies for this post being late.

Charter amendment

We finally fixed the charter's unconstitutional language pertaining to the amount of signatures required to put a charter amendment on the ballot in Stow. Our charter required signatures equaling 20 percent of the registered voters in the prior governor election. The Ohio Supreme Court only allows municipalities to require 10 percent of voters in the last city election.

Last night, council passed a resolution formally adopting the Ohio Supreme Court's requirement.

It was a solution that has been a year in the making. Last summer, I proposed that the city should have a mechanism for fixing unconstitutional provisions in our charter, without having to ask permission from voters. If the voters say, "no," then the city would be in a pickle.

I drafted the language, which the voters overwhelmingly adopted last fall. The next step was to receive an opinion from outside counsel affirming the charter's unconstitutionality. The mayor and law director concurred. The final step was last night, where a unanimous council was required to agree, which it did.

Rocco's sign

By a 6-1 vote, we approved a new sign for Rocco's Pizza on Graham Road. Janet D'Antonio voted "no" because she does not like electronic signs. I share her concern, but not enough to vote "no."

After the meeting, I got a chance to speak with Mario Caponi, the owner of Rocco's, who was grateful that we are making it a little easier to cope with the Graham Road project which will likely hurt his business. By the way, if you haven't eaten Rocco's Pizza ... Just go eat some.

New printer system

We approved a contract with ComDoc to provide printer/copier systems at City Hall. Last year, the city spent $27,000 on printing, which includes paper, ink, printers, repairs, and parts.

We learned on Monday that there was great waste of taxpayer dollars with printing, for instance, because far too many employees had his or her own printer, and often, the printers were different models, which exponentially complicates a repair situation. Most surprisingly, employees often used city funds to purchase supplies on their own at OfficeMax. It's certainly not the way a $28MM business runs in the private sector.

Our contract with ComDoc is for three years, with a two-year optional renewal. If we spend more than $27,000 on printing, then the city may void the contract. I am stunned that we went so long at City Hall without a mass printing contract having been implemented. I am looking forward to the savings that will be possible if and when Stow elects a mayor with a business background.

Health screening

The council approved an expenditure of $44 dollars per employee who chooses to participate in a voluntary health screening. I believe it is smart to invest in employee health, not only because we care about the health and well-being of those who serve the city, but also because it will save the city money in the long run, considering that Stow is self-insured.

I voted "no" regarding suspension of the rules, because Finance Director John Baranek was still waiting on answers to some of council's questions about the details of the screenings, compared to what the city's health plan already provides. However, I voted "yes" once the rules were not suspended. This is legislation that just plain makes sense.

Attorney's fees

Council held an executive session before Thursday's meeting to discuss ongoing litigation. Then, at the meeting, we voted on legislation to approve up to $10,000 to defend a disability discrimination claim made by a former city employee against Chief Bill Kalbaugh in his personal capacity.

It's good policy to defend your employees against litigation. We need to do it.

However, I offered an amendment to require Kalbaugh to reimburse the city if he were to succeed on any counterclaims against the former city employee. I don't like the idea of funding a lawsuit against a former employee, where the proceeds would go to another city employee. Because of a state law provision, Law Director Brian Reali suggested that this well-intentioned amendment might be more trouble than it's worth.

I ended up voting "no" on my own amendment. Council unanimously approved the expenditure as originally planned.

Committees

If you remember, the mayor commissioned a committee to study revenue changes (code word for tax increases) and reorganization of the city. This committee has not met for at least two months, despite the fact that the state now has passed its budget.

Starting in August, Stow will begin to see a significant decline in state funding. Now is the time to start taking these cuts seriously. Matt Riehl and I, though our connections to Columbus, have been warning about this serious emergency since February. We were brushed aside because the Good Ole Boy Network has "heard all of this before."

Now the problem is real, tangible, and certain. The state budget will reduce our funding. Matt and I have been talking about this for months. I have proposed millions in spending cuts. We have been ignored. It's time for the administration to stop sitting on its hands and actually do something about it.

I can't tell you how badly Stow needs competent business leadership at City Hall.

The Finance Committee will meet Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. for our monthly budget updates.