How many I got?

How many?

I can start with nine, can I?

Madam Clerk, please call the road.

Here Gray.

Hairston, Harsh, House Jones, Jones, Casey, Kelly, Moore, Polancick, Santana, Slife, Spencer, Star, Welch.

You can start, Mr.

Mr.

President.

Will everyone rise for a moment of silence, followed by a presentation by the City of Cleveland Color Guard?

Sharon Cozo, Dave Saunders, Megan Frederick, Anisia Chapman, Ashley Clark, Ray Beth Hughes leading the Pledge of Allegiance.

Oh, say can you see by the light?

What's so proudly we held at the twilight's last gleaming?

Whose broad stripes and bright stars through the pert or the parts we watched were so gallantly streaming.

And the rock catch my gal, the bombs bursting, gave proof through the night that our flag was still there.

Oh say does that spangle that way or the land of the free and the home of the breath.

I make the following statement.

This meeting of Cleveland City Council is a lawful meeting under section 605.04 of the codified ordinances.

No person with purpose to prevent or disrupt the lawful meeting shall do any act which obstructs or interferes with the due conduct of such meeting.

Members of the public are invited to speak only under the rules set by this council.

Disruptions, including but not limited to speaking out of turn and making loud noises and loud utterances are in violation of the rules and interfere with the due conduct of this lawful meeting.

Such disruptions may constitute a misdemeanor and a violation of Section 605.04.

Anyone who disrupts this lawful meeting in violation of the codified ordinances, commits misdemeanors and is subject to prosecution.

The following is the first and only warning.

If this meeting is disrupted, I will gather a halt to the proceedings and direct the assembled officers to escort any person participating in the disruption out of the chamber.

Once persons participating in the disruption are outside of the chambers, the officers will close the doors and the disruptors will be handled as directed by the director of public safety.

The council proceedings will not begin again until those that participated in the disruption have left the chamber and the chamber doors are closed.

Disruptors will not be allowed back in the chamber after the meeting resumes.

Again, this is the first and only warning.

Madam Clerk, please dispense with the journal.

Thank you.

We'll now move to public comment.

And you need to uh stop.

First is Stephanie K.

Thomas from Ward 11 to talk about the CVS gas station on West Boulevard.

And uh she's representing shelter to people Cleveland and not being paid by anyone.

Is Stephanie K.

Thomas here?

Stephanie K.

Thomas.

Stephanie K.

Thomas here.

I do not see Stephanie K.

Thomas.

I will move to the next person.

The next person is Austria Everson.

Uh she's in the Buckeye Woodhill neighborhood.

The topic that she would like to discuss is love.

She represents the Love Project movement and not being paid by anyone.

Uh Miss Everson, you had the floor.

Thank you.

So hey y'all, how y'all doing today?

So last week I was really bothered.

Like I like bothered because there was a family that was sitting right here, and they were a part of the Garden Valley explosion.

And I know that y'all were y'all were told that they were here because I heard Miss Bridget say that they were here.

And I was devastated the fact that this family left this place in tears because they felt unheard and unseen.

Which is how majority of our residents feel in Garden Valley, Central, Buckeye, Kinsman, St.

Clair, Huff.

They all feel this sense of hopelessness.

And then we wonder why our kids are behaving in the way that they are.

Why Garden Valley now just lost two teenagers over the weekend?

Right?

These are real lives.

And at the minimum y'all could have did was got up and clap for the baby.

Y'all could have at least acknowledged the fact that he over half of his body was burnt up and that the mother lost her husband and her daughter is still in the hospital fighting for her life.

Y'all could have gave her a little bit of something.

But instead, they left out of here in tears.

Because they were unheard and unseen.

I'm gonna tell y'all now.

People are tired.

They tired.

Why do we continue to operate from 1775?

Why are we continuing to operate when things are not working?

They are not benefiting the people that are supposed to be benefiting from this.

And you know, I'm used to me coming up here and talking and y'all never reaching out or never following up with anything.

I'm absolutely used to that at this point.

But a baby, a baby that sacrificed their entire life for the negligence of HUD of every low-income housing facility that is in Cleveland.

Because they're all the same.

It doesn't matter where I go.

The conditions are the same.

They don't have tenant rights.

They can't put their money in escrow.

They can't hold these property management companies, CMHA, accountable.

So they come to y'all in desperation in hope that you would see them.

And instead, you said, nope, business is usual.

We just gonna keep it going as usual because here's just another number.

This is just what happens to y'all in Cleveland.

That's what y'all told everybody in the community that day.

And so I want y'all to look at y'all sales, because how do y'all sleep at night?

How do you sleep knowing what y'all are doing?

It's choosing job security over people.

Time, thank you.

Next, we have D'Artanian Ward from Shaker Heights.

He's here to talk about the Harvard refuse.

He's uh with Slavic Village CDC, and he's not being paid by anyone.

Is Dartanian War here?

Dartanian Warrior.

Thank you, Mr.

President.

City Council, Mayor.

Right now I'm the president of Slavin's Development Corporation, Slav Village, Broadway, same area this young lady just been speaking about.

There's opportunity to help the neighborhood.

We have a place called the Harvard Landfill.

There's nothing we can do with that land.

No one has the money to remediate the land.

We get it, we understand.

But finally, the team came together and provided a grant that might allow us to turn something that's a negative into a positive.

The fact of the matter is is that right now the people live in the neighborhood, the people that use that land, they create more of an environmental problem every day by the businesses that they run.

People get up, there's dirt all their cars.

Where's it come from?

Harvard Landfill.

Yeah, here's the situation.

We have EPA.

We have the county, we have the city, and we have a contractor.

And we have some money.

But once there's money to do a little bit of remediation, to provide a solar farm.

Not the best thing ever.

But if we did that, we could reduce the environmental impact on the people that live there right now.

If we do that, we could provide some solar energy back to the city of Cleveland.

If we do that, suddenly people can walk around that particular neighborhood and not have to wash the car every other day because of this nefarious stuff happening there.

The people that own it right now are taking care of it.

We're going through the process with the courts, but there is something on the table.

And I've heard reports that the city says, you know, we might have to spend a little money.

It might, the grant might not cover enough.

I'm thinking the people of Slugger Village deserve a little bit of the money the city has.

I'm thinking these people that don't have much deserve an opportunity to walk around their neighborhood.

I'm thinking that we as a collective can help one of the least serve neighborhoods in Cleveland.

We're not asking for a lot.

The money exists.

I'm asking that if you can't do this, then you need to provide a solution for those that I have to serve.

I understand there's always money issues.

But how about a little money going to the least of us for once?

I drive about Cleveland.

Things are looking pretty spy in other parts, but not in my side of town.

Thank you.

Next, we have John Francis from Ward 11.

He's here to talk about the former CVS parcel at 101022, Madison Avenue and West Boulevard, not representing anyone, not being paid by anyone.

Props to the previous speakers.

Warm greetings, everyone.

Hello, Miss Lauren, Councilmember Welch, Ward 11 here.

Congratulations.

I may not know you, but I am super excited for you.

Many of my remarks regarding the current condition of the former CVS parcel at West Boulevard and Madison and a new much-needed fire station for the Kudell and Beyond neighborhood were included in my email to Mayor Bibb, uh, as well as all of you earlier today, so I will keep things brief.

Councilmember Kelly.

Many of us were prepared to meet with you before tonight's meeting.

Everyone uh who is prepared to meet with Danny with me, could you please stand up behind me?

Thank you.

I stand before you as a longtime resident of West Boulevard.

Legislation 791-2024, which you and Councilmember Hairston proposed last year, needs to be finally and officially tabled.

As I shared with you, many Ward 11 voters and residents throughout neighboring as well as neighboring Ward 15 are concerned that the peace could be reintroduced at any time.

Any reintroduction would be against the very witches of much of the community.

Please make things right for the good people of Ward 11 and 15 and make a motion to officially have counsel table the legislation so it's no longer a sore issue.

Mayor Bibb.

Yes.

Thank you.

Making the smallest to the greatest differences in everyday life.

Thank you to these people.

Peace and blessings to everyone in these chambers and to all watching at home.

Thank you.

Next, we have Bridget Smith Jackson from East Cleveland here to talk about housing disparities, not representing anyone, not being paid by anyone.

Miss Jackson, Miss Smith Jackson, yep.

Good evening, everyone.

First, I want to sincerely acknowledge the mayor and his team for following up and taking action after our two attempts and coming down to City Hall.

Additionally, I must acknowledge each and every council person who took the time to respond to my email.

I thank you tremendously for doing so much.

I'm sorry, for doing so because it afforded me the opportunity to at least give the families words.

However, I must be honest, some of those responses were insulting.

Especially those that attempted to deflect responsibility or distance this body from the crisis at hand.

After last week's meeting, I went home feeling heavy.

All the raw emotion that left this room stayed on my spirit.

It's now been nearly four months since the explosion and still no real answers.

I found myself unable to face the families.

Last Monday when I returned home, I watched the rest of the meeting on YouTube.

I heard discussions about the radio station over at Cleveland State, and even a drive to collect socks.

Both are very good things, but I couldn't help but to notice the irony.

After I spoke about a community that lost everything in an explosion, the body that has the option to speak on anything they choose, pivoted to radio and socks, but failed to vow support to the families and deflect when asked to do so.

Additionally, this very body recognized the efforts of the staff accused of neglecting an entire community and misappropriating donation efforts in this chambers a little over two weeks after the explosion.

The above mentioned further affirms my stance and is yet another example of how you can use your position and your voice to bring attention to what's going on in our city, which is exactly what I'm asking you to do for these displaced families.

Again, it's been nearly four months since the explosion.

There displaced more than 150 residents and 44 families, many of whom were temporarily housed, but then left to fan for themselves.

For those that do not know, these families weren't just traumatized and displaced.

They were abandoned in process.

Cleveland has several resourceful departments.

Yet the ball was dropped with the coordinator response.

These families should have been connected immediately to wrap around supports, not left to piece together their lives alone.

And this lack of coordination is connected to everything we see daily.

Homelessness, crime, poverty, how we show up for our neighbors in crisis reflects the strength and safety of our city as a whole.

And here's the truth.

Yet in the midst of this tragedy, when those very statistics turned into real people suffering in real time, everyone turned a blind eye.

Thank you.

Next we have Terry Wang.

Terry Wang is from Tremont.

Terry is here to talk about the police state in Cleveland.

Terry is not representing anyone and not being uh paid by anyone.

Hi, I'm actually going to talk about property taxes.

Langston Hughes once wrote a story called Thank You Ma'am.

A young boy tries to steal a woman's purse, but instead of turning him in, Miss Luella Bates Washington Jones takes him home, feeds him, and gives him $10 for the shoes he wanted.

That story was more than fiction.

It was truth drawn from experience.

Hughes lived right here in Cleveland on East 86th Street.

He saw how poverty and inequality shape the city and how dignity, not punishment, could restore it.

Mrs.

Jones represents what every strong Cleveland neighborhood once had.

Elders who held the block together when the system let people down.

They are the steady hands and watchful eyes that keep the young from falling through the cracks.

When rising property taxes force them out, we lose more than homeowners.

We lose the culture of care and connection that makes a city human and viable.

Too many Cleveland seniors now face an avoidable form of economic violence.

Tax bills that rise faster than fixed incomes.

Across Ohio, qualifying seniors can exempt 28,000 of their home's market value from taxation through the state's homestead exemption program.

But nearby Lorraine County is expanding its relief, exploring new tools to help low-income seniors and long-term residents stay in their homes.

That proves the state gives counties the power to and cities the power to design programs that match local needs.

So the question isn't whether it's possible.

Langston Hughes taught us that neighborhoods rooted in care serve as the moral logic of cities.

Mrs.

Jones didn't call the police.

She practiced solidarity.

When we fight for property tax reform, public investment and housing stability, we're doing what she did, feeding the future, not punishing the past.

A group of residents and I are gathering the data to do a thorough and accurate analysis of the economic strain of property taxes in Cuyahoga County.

Any resident who would like to share their story with me about the property taxes, please feel free to contact me.

216 586 4117.

That's 216 586 4117.

Thank you.

Next we have Chairman Fahim from Buckeye Woodhill.

The topic is euphoria.

He's representing New Era Cleveland and not being paid by anyone.

Please, please, how y'all doing tonight, City Council?

Justin, Mark.

Um, I titled this euphoria because it is the only word that I can use to explain this feeling.

And so I want to say thank you to my brother Peter Patakis in the Patakas Law Firm.

I want to say thank you to our attorney, Maryam Asar, and I want to say thank you to members of community that supported us throughout this entire criminal trial.

October 24th at 6 p.m., City Council, uh City Hall Room 515.

We're having a hearing, an evidentiary hearing in regards to Sergeant Lance Henderson and Fifth District for criminal acts that he committed against me back in 2022.

And I am pushing for this officer to be terminated.

And if I'm not mistaken, this would be the first time possibly that a law enforcement officer is terminated by an independent body.

It is necessary, especially being that we had a mayor whose entire campaign was focused on police reform and police accountability.

And to that I would say you have been fraudulent to this very day.

But we got it.

We'll take care of it.

Right.

A week after my arraignment, these same gas station owners who we've heard about over the last year, they're involved with the Cadell Park situation and all of that good stuff.

These same owners were paraded in front of this body, were given a stand innovation, almost as if they were being congratulated or acknowledged for securing an indictment on Chairman Fahim.

This is just how I'm perceiving this.

Now, either this man has the worst possible luck, or he is being utilized to carry out a very specific task.

And I'll end with that.

See y'all next week.

Next we have Kareem Hinton.

Kareem Hinton is from Ward 14.

He wants to talk about the recent incident of a young autistic girl being sexually assaulted by other children.

And uh he's not representing anyone and not being paid by anyone is Kareem Hinton here.

Mr.

Hinton, I do not see Mr.

Hinton.

I move to the next person.

Uh Brandon Kristowski is representing Ward 4.

Uh, he wants to talk about the recent murders, crimes against children, what the administration is doing.

He represents Edwin's leadership restaurant institute and not being paid by anyone is Mr.

Kristowski here.

Mr.

Kristowski?

I did not see Mr.

Krzystowski.

Uh the next person that I will bring up is Lou.

Uh Lou is representing Ward 8, and Lou would like to talk about the lack of transparency of Cleveland Public Services.

She's not representing Lou is not representing anyone, and Lou is not being paid by anyone.

Lou, you have the floor.

Thank you.

Good evening.

This is Lou.

Oh, sorry.

Right now, we know federal funding in question, floating in the air.

State government has never been generous to us.

Even we, Cleveland's and the Cahole County, are the biggest contributors to the funding to make the budget for the future.

So how come all our public services are delivered without transparency for decades?

This is a good question.

For example, Terry Wong just mentioned about property tax.

Because we have an aging populations.

Do you really want to see more seniors to come to where I stay?

Um Pang Avenue?

The so-called emergency homeless shelter without food, without fresh air ventilations, without toilets, without toilet tissues.

Do we want that happen to our seniors?

No.

Talking about Payne Avenue.

There's a construction going on for over a year, but if you count a day, they put on the orange cones to block the area.

The construction didn't really start until how many months later?

All the residents, people working in the area, visitors, all have to endure the confusing traffic patterns and all get confused.

Is this how we want to deliver our service to our residents who are working hard paying tax diligently?

Now, when it goes to the harbor landfield, I went to that community meeting, and lots of discussion actually happened.

This community has been traumatized for decades.

Every time where is some project coming to help them?

Guess what?

It goes away.

This time I even urged Mr.

Casey to call the utilities committee meetings because we do want to know for a project applied, approved, funded.

Why Cleveland Public Powers has to back out at almost last minute?

So we will lose this money, and the money will go back to the federal government.

And City also has a different reason.

Oh, rumor has it everywhere.

It seems like it's a common occurrence in Cleveland.

Instead of going for the facts, we always have the rumors to confuse people even more.

Traumatize people even more.

People in Sloken village areas.

They haven't seen all other neighborhoods getting money getting invested.

Why they cannot have even just to get a wasted land to have some good use for everybody.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Madam Clerk, please share communications.

File number 1296, 2025 from Digital C quarterly report for third quarter 2025 received.

File number 1290 2025.

Oath of office for Thomas McNair, Chief Integrated Development, City of Cleveland.

File number 1308 2025.

Oath of office for Jove Rose Bordeaux Small.

Dedication Plat.

Road dedicate for small portion of land on the southwest corner of East 15th and Carnegie, Ward 6, approved by committees on municipal services and properties and development planning and sustainability without objection, plat approved.

From the Ohio Division of Liquor Control, file number one.

I'm sorry, file number 1287, 2025 regarding a transfer of location application at 12304 Mayfield Road Ward 6.

File number 1288 2025 regarding a transfer of ownership application at 2100 Superior Viaduct Ward 7.

File number 1287 2025 regarding a new license application at 11500 St.

Clair Avenue Ward 9.

File number 1305 2025 regarding a transfer of location application at 1105 Carnegie Avenue Ward 5.

File number 1306 2025 regarding a transfer of location application at 1701 East 12th Street Ward 7.

Please share appointments.

Are there any condolence resolutions?

Resolutions of condolence by Councilmember Griffin for William Orr.

By Councilmember Griffin for William Douglas Hall, by Councilmember Slife for William E.

Lolly.

Any other condolences?

Councilwoman House Jones.

I just uh called out a number for Mr.

Curtis Collins, please.

Did you hear that?

No.

Could you repeat it, Councilwoman?

Hold out a number, please for Curtis Collins.

So noted.

Councilman Michael Palency.

Thank you, Mr.

Chairman.

Would the clerk please hold out a number for Sandy and Santa, Miss Sandy and Santa, and Miss Julia DeFranco?

Thank you.

So no.

Thank you.

Would Councilmembers please rise for a moment of silence?

Thank you.

Are there any congratulatory resolutions?

Resolutions of congratulations by Councilmember Slife for Father Remus Grandma.

Resolutions of there are no other resolutions.

Thank you.

We do have one presentation.

And I'm gonna ask my colleagues if they can open up the uh will.

And uh I'm gonna ask if former councilman Matt Zone, uh, whose family was very instrumental in helping start EMS, and then I'm gonna ask if uh any of my colleagues, either uh present or past safety um directors or chairs can join him to my right.

Commissioner, take the mic first.

Thank you.

And we can fill in behind the steps.

You can go all the way to that top one right there if you guys want to.

Council Lady, if you want to come this area.

Thank you.

All right, uh this presentation is to celebrate 50 years, uh, the 50th anniversary of Cleveland Division of Emergency Medical Services, uh, Cleveland EMS.

Uh this vital institution has stood as a lifeline of hope, care, and professionalism since its founding in 1975.

I had the uh the privilege and honor of joining the uh men and women of EMS on Friday evening to celebrate 50 years, and uh I can honestly say that it was really enlightening.

Uh I never knew that it was such a young organization and a young institution.

And to have some of the people who were the forefathers of that institution that were present and some of them that are here today, uh, was was just uh great.

I tell everybody this I had the good fortune in 2016 of leading the uh tax levy to try to increase our tax revenue in the city of Cleveland.

And when we did polling, the number one issue that most of the people of the city of Cleveland said that they wanted to see uh was better EMS services and making sure that we invest in EMS.

The people of the city cherish uh EMS and I also was very honored to hear the story who you're gonna hear in a moment uh from former councilman Matt Zone and how his mother led the charge to create EMS and let's give him and his family a round of applause.

Councilman Zone's father, unfortunately, and um it made me really reminisce on Friday night, and he could tell you the story better than I did, but it made me think he was 54 years old, a young person.

I'm 54 years old.

And Councilman Zone's father actually passed away from a heart attack, and because he passed away from that heart attack.

I tell people out of that tragedy became triumph.

Uh his mother then became the council person and started uh you know a major legacy of the zone legacy in uh the city of Cleveland, and just to hear how his family and him and he and his sister Peggy remembering how that moment led to this moment of celebrating EMS after 50 years.

So I'm gonna bring up councilman, former councilman Matt Zone, and then he could bring up Commissioner Wheeler and uh anybody else who wants to make any comments.

Councilman Zone.

Thank you, Mr.

President.

Um it's really bittersweet.

Um it was June 3rd, 1974.

It was uh a little bit past midnight, and I heard this uh blood curdling scream from my mother.

I was just 10.

I ran into my parents' room.

I saw my dad laying on the ground.

He had struck his head, there was blood all over.

And it took 52 minutes for a police cruiser to come to our house back in that day.

You either had to get a private ambulance service or you called the police and they showed up in a station wagon with the gurney.

And so um by the time they took my father to the hospital, we lived on West 61st in Detroit, was 77th in Detroit, 15 blocks away was St.

John's Hospital, and uh my father had perished.

Um several days later, Arnold Pinkney and George Forbes came to our house and asked my mom if she would consider serving out my dad's term, and she said I would do that only under two conditions.

One, if if uh my family supports that decision, and two, um, I want to bring uh an professional emergency medical service system to the city of Cleveland.

So today is 50 years to the day that the first academy graduated.

So I want to turn this over to Commissioner Um Wheeler, who's gonna introduce um, he's gonna say a few words, and then uh he's gonna introduce a gentleman who was really instrumental in helping us get some federal funds to make EMS happen.

But um just my final comment to the members of council.

That's the power of policy work.

You have the ability to create change, and uh my mom made it her mission to do that, and I know each and every one of you, you also have that power working with Mayor Bibb and his administration moving forward.

So, with that, I wanna turn this over to Commissioner Wheeler.

All right, thank you, everyone.

I would like to thank everyone for helping us celebrate our 50 years in service here.

Uh we have provided emergency medical care to the residents and the visitors here in the city of Cleveland for a proud 50 years.

I'd like to like to say that we are no longer babies, we're teenagers now.

So, 50 years considered a teenager.

Finally, we have a uh seat at the big boys table.

Um I'd also like to thank council, previous, current council for supporting the mission of Cleveland EMS, all the previous uh mayor administrations for supporting the mission of Cleveland EMS, and I'd like to thank Mayor Bibb and City Council for believing in me, giving me the opportunity to bring new innovative programs to the city of Cleveland that have never been done before.

And we are on the cutting edge of pre-hospital care, thanks to City Council, the mayor's office, and Dr.

Escajeda and our previous medical director, Dr.

Collins, who have believed in all the wild things that I come up with, and they tell me to go with it.

If I can make it work, make it happen.

And that's what I believe.

You know, we are as strong as our weakest link, and I don't believe in weak links.

And failure is never an option.

My opinion, failure is just your inability to change your mindset, to change your mindset.

And we do not fail here at the division of Cleveland EMS.

So with that, I'd like to introduce the man who wrote the original grant, and he was the first EMS director, Lee Nathan.

Thank you.

Mayor Bibb, Council President.

I'm grateful to be standing here tonight.

Grateful for the opportunity that Cleveland provided to me to um initiate and operate the uh first emergency medical service system in Cleveland.

I'm grateful for the opportunity that Mayor Perk gave me, and I'm grateful for the relationship that I had with Mary Zone.

I remember sitting in the living room at the Zone's house after the tragedy of Mike's death and promising that I would do everything that I could to establish an excellent third service, an emergency medical service that was not diluted by the prerogatives of other city departments, but that could rise to a standard of excellence in this country.

And thank you for your enduring commitment through these years to maintain this excellence of Cleveland EMS.

It's developed into a wonderful organization that is committed to serving the citizens of Cleveland every day.

And I also want to express the appreciation that I have to Commissioner Wheeler.

His idea of bringing EMS into the future and making it as excellent or continuing this uh excellence that it has maintained up until this point is something that the uh really um should continue your support, is worthy of your support.

And so uh as we stand here 50 years ago uh the night, uh we're standing here 50 years in the future.

I'd like to think that with Cleveland EMS, the best is yet to come.

Thank you.

Sorry, doctor can speak.

Oh, doctors go with that.

Sorry.

Sorry.

Sorry, I'll be brief.

My name's Jeremiah Escajeda.

I'm a physician, I'm also um a citizen of Ward 3, um, but I'm also uh newly appointed medical director for the City Um Department of Public Safety, and I'm very honored to be amongst this team.

Um I think everybody else has said it better than I can say.

Um, but you know, the next 50 years are looking very bright for EMS.

Um EMS is all about necessarily um following the rules.

And I say that, I say that in a good way, and I mean in the institution of medicine.

EMS has really become a sophisticated enterprise that is based in medical research that provides care to residents of the city, of all cities, but of the city, um any time of day, um, doesn't matter who you are, doesn't matter what medical emergency is going on, doesn't matter your insurance status or your ability to pay, we will treat you to the best of our ability to do so.

Um, and I'm honored to be a part of that process as an example of EMS paving the way most recently in June of this year.

We implemented whole blood administration to citizens of the city and visitors who have sustained significant traumatic injury, and that is something completely new, even to the hospital systems in the city.

So EMS is quite literally changing medicine in the streets before it gets to the hospital, and I foresee us continuing to do so.

Um I would also like for anybody who has not yet seen Um Pulse of the City, the documentary that was very well done about the history of Cleveland EMS to please take take a watch at that as I understand it's publicly released.

Um thank you.

Thanks, everybody.

To um the command staff of EMS to Commissioner Wheeler to my honorable colleagues.

On Friday night, we had that opportunity, and I want to thank Matt and his family for the work that they did to put the program together.

I want to thank the mayor and the council president for being there along with the former commissioners of EMS.

Um I had a pleasure to work with Mary Zone as a member of this body.

She was tenacious about EMS.

Tenacious.

She she was not going to let it slip.

She was not going to let it slide through through one mayor after another, through Mayor Perk, Mayor Kucinich, Mayor Voinovich, Mayor White, Mayor Campbell, Mayor Jackson, and now Mayor Bibb.

There's been that commitment to EMS.

And ladies and gentlemen, as I mentioned Friday night, because there's someone that needed to be recognized, was John James, a member of our staff.

John James.

Who many, many years ago, worked with me and putting together a white paper on EMS.

And we went around the country looking at the best EMS operations.

And as a result, that was under the White Administration toward the end of the mayor's wife's term.

They adopted and they embraced all the recommendations that were made in that white paper.

So when you talk about council and administration working together, it took place.

And then some people forget when George Wonderwich's daughter died, was hit by a driver on Lakeshore Boulevard.

There was another deep dive.

Molly, there was another deep dive in EMS because of response time for her horrific loss of her life.

So to my brothers and sisters in council, as Matt indicated, and Matt again, I want to thank him and his sister for the wonderful job they did on Friday night.

Council has made a difference.

And again, I want to thank every mayor.

I want to thank this administration.

But I would be remiss again if I didn't thank Commissioner Wheeler as I did Friday night, because you've done an excellent job, Commissioner.

You've done an excellent job.

And to Director Drummond for supporting EMS as you have.

That's been very important.

Because we are a team.

When it comes to life saving, there's nothing more important.

And I and again, the council never gets thanked enough.

I gotta tell you that, but this council has stood up repeatedly and repeatedly.

We've done everything we've been asked for to help EMS and then some.

Then some.

So again, I want to thank my colleagues that are the present colleagues and those that are no longer here for the work that they've done to make EMS one of the best emergency medical operations, in my opinion, in the state of Ohio.

So thank you all.

Thank you.

Madam Clerk, first reading emergency ordinances referred for administrative review and committee review.

Okay.

Ordinance 1295, 2025 by Councilmembers Bishop and Griffin by departmental request, authorizing the Director of Capital Projects to enter into an amendment to the memorandum of understanding with the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority to provide additional services for improvements and extend the contract.

Determining the method of making the public improvement of repairing, constructing, and installing various, including installing various, including but not limited to curb ramps and authorizing the director of public works to enter into one or more public improvement requirement contracts for the making of the improvement.

Ordinance 1304 2025 by Councilmembers Slife and Griffin by Departmental Request, authorizing Director of Port Control to enter into one or more contracts with West Creek Conservancy for the design and implementation of wetland mitigation projects for the Department of Port Control.

Ordinance 1307 2025 by Councilmember Spencer, changing the name of Herman Park, located at Herman Avenue in West 59th Street to Judge Raymond L.

Pianca Park upon completion of Herman Park renovations and site improvements.

Ordinance 1310 2025 by Councilmember Spencer, requiring the Director of Department of Community Development and or Director of Finance upon receipt of any voluntary payment in lieu by Heirloom Company to deposit such payments for the sole purpose of Herman Park renovation and site improvements.

Thank you.

First reading emergency ordinances to be passed.

Ordinance 1309 2025 by Councilmember Moore, authorizing Director of Department of Community Development to enter into agreement with the Slavic Village Development for the Rooms to Let Project for the purpose, the public purpose of providing venues and activities encouraging the transformation of immersive spaces from urban vacancy to renewal and housing conversion through the use of Ford 12 casino revenue funds.

Thank you.

Read the motion to suspend the rules.

By Councilmember Hairston that the rules be suspended in the legislation just read be placed on final passage.

Seconded by Councilmember Kelly.

Thank you.

Carter.

Griffin, Bishop Conwell Gray, Hairston Harsh, House Jones, Jones, Casey Kelly, Moore, Polensick, Santana, Slife, Spencer, Star Welch.

14 Yes.

Carter on passage.

Griffin, Bishop Conwell Gray, Hairston Harsh, House Jones, Jones, Casey Kelly, Moore, Polencick, Santana, Slife, Spencer, Star Welch.

14 Yes.

Thank you.

Second reading emergency ordinances to be passed.

Ordinance 1082-2025 by Councilmembers Palencick and Griffin by Departmental Request.

Authorizing directors of public safety and finance to enter into one or more contracts with heritage health systems for medical billing services for inmates and prisoners for the departments of public safety and finance for a period of one year with two one-year options to renew, exercisable by the Director of Finance.

Ordinance 1215-2025 as amended as a substitute for ordinance 808-2025 by Councilmembers Hairston, Polencick, and Griffin by Departmental Request to supplement the codified ordinances of Cleveland, Ohio, by enacting new section 401.711 relating to the definition of underspeed vehicles and to enact new sections 4501 to 08 and 99 relating to underspeed vehicles.

Ordinance 1216-2025 by Councilmember Griffin by Departmental Request to establish the local government test fund.

Ordinance 1217-2025 as amended by Councilmember Griffin authorizing the clerk of council to enter into an agreement with Granicus to purchase cloud-based software subscriptions and services for an integrated let integrated legislative management system for Cleveland City Council.

Ordinance 1224 2025 by Councilmember Griffin by Departmental Request to provide for the transfer and amendment of $350,000 within the general fund.

Thank you.

Read the motion to suspend the rules.

By Councilmember Hairston that the rules be suspended and the legislation just read be placed on final passage.

Seconded by Councilmember Kelly.

Call to roll.

Griffin, Bishop Conwell, Gray, Hairston Harsh, House Jones, Jones, Casey, Kelly, Moore, Polensick, Santana, Slife, Spencer, Star Welch.

14 Yes.

Call to roll on passage.

Griffin, Bishop Conwell, Gray, Hairston Harsh, House Jones, Jones, Casey Kelly, Moore, Polensick, Santana, Slife, Spencer, Star Welch.

On 1215, 2025, 13 Yes, one nay.

On all others, 14 years.

Thank you.

We'll move to introductions.

Are there any introductions?

Any introductions?

I do not see any introductions.

Are there any announcements?

Any announcements.

Councilman Kevin Conwell.

Yeah, I want to do an introduction.

Do the announcements.

We see Dr.

Dwayne Owens is here.

There he is, yeah.

He's one of the legends in Glenville, one of the sons of Glenville.

You can put his hands up again.

Everybody knowing.

The announcement is that uh you and I, Council President, this Thursday at Martin Luther King Library have a housing fair with the housing court judge Monet Scott.

And the uh the event is from 4 p.m.

to 6 p.m.

this Monday.

All kind of resources dealing with housing.

Um so I advise people to be there.

You know, so that's my announcement on that one.

Thank you, Councilman.

All right, thank you for bringing that up.

Uh any other announcements?

Uh move to miscellaneous, miscellaneous, uh, Councilman Christopher Harsh and then Councilman Brian Casey.

Thank you, Mr.

President.

Uh so it's kind of hard not to talk about the elephant in the room, the hundred million dollar elephant in the room.

Um, as we know, the mayor just announced that a deal has been struck with the Haslam Sports Group.

Um, and while I think we all try to wrap our head around the full scope of what's being proposed and still trying to do some fact-finding of our own.

I think there are a few things that I hope my colleagues can just sort of put on the front burner as we think about this.

Um first off is that uh the 25 million dollar uh upfront payment that the Hasman Sports Group is slated to make to the City of Cleveland will certainly be gone by 2029.

Uh 2029 being the year in which demolition of the existing stadium would need to begin.

The $30 million that's slated for the demolition itself is no one's estimate for what it's going to actually cost.

Everybody in this room has heard 50 million or above.

And I think there's a very big question about what happens if the demolition cost exceeds the 30 million dollars currently slated to cover it.

There's also a question about if costs go above 30 million dollars.

Uh who covers the overrun, but then who deals with site prep.

Removing structures is one part of the process.

Preparing ground is another part of the process, and and who pays for that.

Um 30 million does come well underneath what I've ever heard about the demolition of that stadium.

And then the other 45, I think was pretty well spelled out, will not be used for any kind of demolition or remediation at all.

Uh five million of it in chunks of five years for an undisclosed purpose, and then the two million, which had the Haslems have to agree to, uh strung out over 10 years, but that doesn't start until 2029 as well.

So the demolition needs to happen up front.

And so 45 of the hundred million dollars can't be used.

25 of it will be gone, leaving us with 30 million dollars to tear down a structure that cost the taxpayers of Cleveland 700 million dollars.

And if it doesn't cover the removal of the stadium, then the taxpayers are on the hook, I would presume, unless there is a contingency for the Hasm Sports Group to cover any cost overruns on the demolition itself.

So while we just got this news three hours ago, um there's still a lot of information that needs to be understood by uh me at least, uh, I would hope my colleagues as well before we can figure out how to move forward with something like this.

Um I do want to go back to what I've said from day one, which is that building a dome in Brook Park is a terrible idea.

It is terrible for the region, it is terrible for our economy, it is terrible for downtown, it is terrible for the infrastructure that we have built up over the course of the last 30 years.

I drove past Richfield to get to Cleveland when I was a kid, and I remember all that economic activity stopping outside the city borders, and everybody in Cleveland saying that that was a bad strategy.

And so we tore down Richfield, or it fell down, whichever story you prefer, and brought the calves downtown and celebrated uh the uh introduction of one of our major sports teams into our downtown economy.

And I've never thought that moving the Browns out of downtown Cleveland was a good idea.

I I will uh stand by that, but um I also know that uh if these winds change and that stadium is coming down, the people of Cleveland, as my colleagues have said before, need to be made whole by this, and I just don't see 30 million dollars doing that.

So I look forward to finding out how the math is supposed to math, as the kids say, um, and getting more details on this, and that's all I wanted to say tonight, Mr.

President.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Councilman Brian Casey.

Thank you, Mr.

President.

November 6, 1995.

Some of you may know that date in Cleveland history.

It was the day that Art Model had announced that he was moving the team out of Cleveland.

And every politician in the city of Cleveland, from that day until they came back, was blamed.

Every politician, from downstate to the halls of City Hall.

And nothing has changed.

Mayor Bibb.

I hope that your two Caes in Brantall was worth it.

Because part two of your legacy is going to be that you allowed them without a fight, without a God-given fight.

I would rather die poor fighting to lose that team than to take one dime from individuals like the Haslums to keep them.

Everything I own to tear that stadium down and live with the honor that I didn't lie next to them and accept their money.

It's not good money at all.

Today felt like we're downstate.

We know that the state of Ohio and the Republicans downstate are for sale, but I never would have thought that the city of Cleveland would have been for sale as well, let alone for only a hundred million dollars.

Maybe you don't get it.

Maybe you do.

Maybe you're a lot smarter than anybody else sitting here.

But my phone has been blowing up, not only from the media, but from the residents, saying why?

Why didn't he continue the fight?

And I couldn't answer that question.

I hope that you can sleep tonight, knowing that a lot of people in the city of Cleveland believe that you sold out today.

And I wish I would have never ever had to stand up here and say anything like that, because I didn't believe it myself, but I'm starting to lean with the residents who've been calling.

And maybe it's I'm the spokesman for fighting to keep the Browns here, and maybe I've had a lot to do with trying to get them not to go to Brook Park.

Maybe that's why I get the calls.

It doesn't matter to me, but I just wanted to relay that to you.

And I have another issue, Mr.

President, and that is this GovQA.

There's an issue with GovQA.

And for me personally, I have my personal information.

My social security number is out there.

My driver's license is out there, my address, telephone numbers of myself and my wife, and it was because somebody in the administration uploaded that information into GovQA.

And then I find out today, Mr.

President, that that had information has been in there since 2022.

Three years, my personal information has been sitting in GovQA, unredacted.

Today it still sits there.

Even after the administration knew that it was there, still hasn't been redacted or taken out of GovQA.

And I have my other issues as we've spoken, Mr.

President, with how I found out about this whole thing.

But something needs to be done with GovQA.

If over 400 people have access to unredacted information, that is a problem.

I'm asking the law director to please, if there is any unredacted information in GovQA, to please have somebody go through that information tonight, tomorrow morning, and get the unredacted information out of GovQA.

That is a failure on everybody's behalf when it comes to public records of public officials or any employee of the city of Cleveland.

Mr.

President, we have spoken a number of times on that topic.

I've been able to vent to you personally regarding the Brown situation to hear the mayor of the City of Cleveland stand at a press conference and talk about uh a dome in Brook Park and how it's going to be great for the region, just disappoints me.

Just disappoints me.

Thank you, Mr.

President.

Uh Councilman Michael Pelic.

Thank you.

Thank you, Mr.

Chairman, honorable colleagues, Honorable Mayor, members of the administration, members of the Union public.

I'm the only one here from the original Brown's deal, the only one left in the body.

And I was one of the nine who voted against it then.

I couldn't hold my nose at the time to vote for it.

And what I said then, unfortunately, I was right, I wish it had been wrong.

But this one I don't understand.

And I'm trying to understand it, and I'm trying to get a better grip on what transpired today.

I'm looking at the numbers.

And I got out the calculator a little while ago, and I sat in my office there and I looked at what was being presented to us.

And let me say this to the viewing public and to everyone here.

The present Brown Stadium cost us over $500 million.

I think rate probably about $540 million.

Then when you take in the infrastructure, the water lines, the sewer lines, the road work, CPP, which was never a part of the original deal, never calculated to it.

We might be close to $700 million.

I don't know what exact fair, because I don't think anybody can tell us.

So we spent a substantial amount of money Cleveland residents.

And we were told all these great things.

We've lost six wards.

We have lost six wards due to reduction since we passed the original Browns package.

So the proof is in the pudding that all the promises that we were made that were made to us were not correct.

But I understand.

Put a gun to the mayor's head at that time, put a gun to council.

They extorted us.

I'm very much aware of their extortion.

So that takes me to today's deal.

And again, I'm looking at it, the 100 million, and Mayor, I think you're you're a very bright guy, and you have a lot of bright people within your administration.

So I'm hoping at some point we can get a briefing because this is what I don't understand.

The deal is a hundred million.

And the demolition has got to come out of that hundred million, which is estimated to be about 30 million.

This project, the payment from the Brown spans a 20-year period.

So if you get out your calculator and you figure out the cost of money, inflation, um, in that 20-year period, uh, the 100 million becomes about 60 million.

Becomes about 60 million.

When you take the 30 out of the 60, you got 30 million left.

So basic math, 30 million, we wind up with zero.

We wind up with zero.

That's what I don't understand.

We wind up with zero.

So someone, and I would respectfully request that someone sits down and explain this one to us.

Because I don't understand the numbers.

One thing I learned when I came in this body, this body taught me how to count.

I thought I knew how to count before I came in here, but I really learned how to count when I got in here.

The math doesn't make any sense to me.

Jimmy Haslin got 600 million out of the State of Ohio.

Plus, he's asking for another, it all depends.

One day it's 80 million, the next day it's 140 million for the road work.

During this whole discussion, he and his wife bought a 25 million dollar waterfront property in Florida.

Had the state given us the 600 million, we could have completely redone Lakefront Stadium.

Completely redone it.

And did all provided all the amenities.

So as he's got his hand out, like someone standing up here on Prospect Avenue before a Guardians game or Cavaliers game with their hands out.

I I I got to understand the finances here, Mr.

Chairman.

So I'm hoping, Mayor, that maybe you can shed some light on this, because you're not dumb.

Because you're not dumb.

I don't believe you're dumb, and I don't believe the people that work for you are dumb.

But someone's gonna have to explain this deal to me because it doesn't make sense.

Financial sense to me.

The numbers don't add up.

We wind up with Zippo.

We wind up with zip.

And they move to, they move the Brook Park, and then he wants to compete against us.

It's not the 10 games.

It's not the 10 football games.

He wants to build an event center.

He wants to compete against Huntington Convention Center.

He wants to compete against Playhouse Square.

And he wants to compete against Rocket Field House or whatever the hell they call it now.

Okay.

So that's what I'm concerned about.

And then our friends, so-called friends in Columbus want to subsidize the desolation and uh loss of revenue to the city of Cleveland.

So, Mr.

Chairman and to the honorable mayor and his team.

I would hope at some point that we can get a briefing.

I don't care if it's closed or I don't care where it's at.

Someone's got to leave explain to me the finances here.

It don't add up.

We wind up with zip.

In 20 years, we wind up with zip.

And so, and we lose, we lose the football team.

We lose the potential investment downtown.

And you know, I want to see a nice lake front like everybody else does.

But again, someone's gonna have to say this to me, just like with the previous Brown Stadium.

Someone's gonna have to show how the lakefront is gonna benefit Huff and Central in Collinwood and West Park and all the neighborhoods that we were told that we're gonna benefit from the original Brown Stadium.

Someone's gonna have to explain to me how lakefront development is going to stabilize our neighborhoods because last time I looked, we're going to 15 wards, and in 2030, we're gonna do it again, and if we don't stabilize this population, specifically on the east side, we're gonna lose two more wards.

Are going.

Two more wars are going.

So then who's gonna be throwing it together in wards?

Or what's gonna happen in our city to our neighborhoods.

So, Mr.

Chairman, I offer you a little bit of historical perspective to my honorable colleagues here and to the mayor.

Um sit down, explain this one to us.

I'm not here.

You're I don't look upon you as an adversary.

I don't do that.

Uh I I don't have any private agenda.

I don't have any private agendas.

You're not an adversary, but you're our leader.

You're our you're the chief executive, and the numbers just don't make sense to me.

Thank you, Mr.

Chairman Minor McColly.

Thank you, Councilman.

Councilman Kevin Conwell.

You know, um every time they come to us, the administration, I mean every time, they don't tell us how they arrive to the number.

And Mr.

Mayor, you know, they need to bring us a spreadsheet.

Don't come and narrate to us and we sit down and we bob our heads.

You gotta show us a spreadsheet and how you arrive to the numbers that you're narrating, um, Councilmember Mike Palency.

I want to see, you gotta bring the paperwork before the mayor is extremely bright.

I know he looked over, they didn't just come talk with him like they talk with us.

They bring spreadsheets so we can read the finances.

How did you this it's the way you arrive to your decisions?

And if you just come sit down and you talk with us, and so we can try to seek to understand what's going on orally, that's not good.

That's not good.

So, with all due respect, they should at least bring us the seat, their spreadsheet.

How did they get to their decision?

That's only fair, and that's the right way, so we can understand it.

Thank you very much.

Thank you.

Uh, I did have a conversation with the law director, and I will follow up with the mayor because um I think everybody would like to have some kind of um briefing.

Uh also have already reached out to our legal team, so we'll figure out um what legal obligations council has as well.

We did have a brief conversation with the law director, but all of the things that all of you guys are talking about, uh, we're working on doing some fact-finding around it.

Okay.

We'll get we'll get all of that, Councilman.

Thank you so much.

All right.

Uh that is the end of miscellaneous.

Madam Clerk, please excuse the absences.

By councilman, excuse me, by councilmember Hirson, that the absence of council members Gray, Slife, and Spencer are hereby excused, seconded by Councilmember Kelly.

Thank you.

And uh before we adjourn, I do want to make everybody aware that Councilman Charles Slife has a new addition to his family, so please send out a message to uh Councilman Charles Slife.

Thank you so much.

Council is adjourned to the call of the chair.

The next meeting of council will be on October 20th, 2025.