Is that hard enough?

Okay, star.

Good evening, everyone.

Madam Clerk, can you please call the role?

Griffin, Bishop, Conwell, Gray, Hairston, Harsh, House Jones, Jones, Casey, Kelly, Moore, Polensic, Santana.

Present.

Welch.

You have a quorum, Madam President.

Thank you.

Everyone rise for a moment of silence, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance.

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

Such disruption may constitute a misdemeanor and violation of section six zero five point zero four.

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

Sorry, to the proceedings and direct the assembled officers to escort any person participating in disruption out of the chambers.

Again, this is the first and only warning.

Council members, if you could turn your chairs around to the speakers, and we're going to start with Michael Anderson from Ward Ten.

Topic Tanisha's Law.

Representing no one being paid by no one.

Michael Anderson.

Good evening.

Thank you for allowing me to be here this evening.

So I just want to say my name is Michael Anderson.

I am Tanisha Anderson's uncle.

And so we as a family, we do not believe that the two officers that came out that night actually came out with any intent to take Tanisha's life.

For 11 years, we have presented ourselves with dignity and respect.

So maybe in the beginning there were rallies and protesters, but emotions were very high, and understandably so.

It was 32 degrees the night Tanisha passed.

Faced and body smashed onto a slab of cold concrete.

She passed stark-necked from the waist down, handcuffed, yet right before passing, she began reciting the Lord's Prayer.

So you see, even in her passing, she left us with how she wanted this thing conducted.

I believe in this democracy.

As a Clevelander, born and raised, I've been very proud of the city.

I believe in this city.

However, there are family members who doesn't share my sentiments.

Tanisha's mother was one of them.

I wish this committee could have witnessed how her health deteriorated.

She stopped talking, she stopped eating.

Slowly but surely she left us.

Slowly but surely she did leave us.

Never knew something can get inside of your soul and rip it to threads.

Did you know Tanisha is honored, celebrated, and remembered in other cities around the U.S.

than our own.

Tanisha's name has been on the front page of Time magazine.

The third row of a jumbotron at Beyonce at a Beyonce concert.

American singer songwriter Janelle Monet, Kimberly Crenshaw, who is the founder of the Say Her Name campaign, joined forces with Beyoncé, donating their time and their voices, and created a 17-minute video of people who lost their lives to either police brutality or police neglect.

Tanisha's name is at the 11th minute, 20 second mark of that video.

In no way is this name dropping.

I'm just stating if she's being honored in more ways and manageable in places what's taken us so long as a city, her city, to follow suit.

But until this law is amended and passed, she is still laying there.

Just like just like she was on November, just like she was on November the 12th, 2014, 32 degrees on a frigid cold night, such as the one we're experiencing tonight.

So to Mayor Bibb, I appreciate your presence here tonight, and I'm hoping our meeting next month is a successful one because someone has to make some sense of all of this.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you, Mr.

Anderson.

Next up, we have Daryl Houston from Betford Heights.

Topic City issues, not representing anyone and not being paid.

Uh good evening, everyone on this cold uh Monday evening.

Uh I just wanted to share some of my personal thoughts.

Uh after being down here for about 12, 12 to 15 months now.

Uh I feel like I work down here.

But uh I just want to point out a few things that I'm hoping that everybody can start to pay attention to.

Uh, there's been some things going on between the mayor's administration and city council's administration.

And I would like for you guys to start to work together and not work against each other because you represent us, the taxpayers, and there's a lot of things going on in this city that needs to be addressed.

Okay, and I would like to see that addressed.

I'm going to continue to put this out there for the mayor.

I want you to radicate the lead in the city of Cleveland.

You have the funding, and I want it done.

Okay.

My granddaughter was affected by it.

She didn't have to be affected by it.

It didn't happen on your administration, but I want you to really take a look at that for me, please.

Another thing that I've been noticing, that Kinsman Bridge is terrible.

Okay.

And I mean terrible.

And I'm going to the county to speak about it as well.

But whoever's working operations over here, you're not doing a good job.

Okay?

I watched a young man, one of the youngest people in this podium, won one hell of a campaign.

This is leadership sitting right here in your podium, sir.

That young man, Richard Starr showed this whole community what it's like to campaign for his community.

And he got real results.

Okay.

Now that I still have the mic, I want to point out to the oldest two members here.

That would be Polenzik and Mr.

Conwell.

I, the community, did not appreciate what you guys did when they came out to address the community about the school system.

Both of you guys have been in those seats and have done, you have done nothing for Glenville, truly.

Polensic, you have done nothing for Collinwood.

Truly.

They're dilapid schools that's been on both you guys' watch.

Okay.

Community don't like it.

I suggest you guys start working for the community because you guys are well beyond retirement.

Well beyond retirement, and you're not serving our community.

Well, what we want, okay.

EMS is tired, the fire department is tired.

I would like to see the chief, uh, the fire chief come back.

I don't want to see my tax dollars on a six-figure sally with a guy sitting at home.

Come on.

And the Cleveland Browns, if we are all here in 2029, going to 2030, it will be the biggest mistake that the state of Ohio made in history.

This is a blue-collar state.

If that land is flat out there, you know what we should be doing?

We should be putting manufacturing businesses over in that area so we can take care of everybody in the state.

Okay.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Next up, we have Brenda Bickerstaff from Ward 9.

Topic, the Wine's press conference on crime public records.

So Jones, representing citizens for Safe for Cleveland and not being paid.

Good evening, everyone.

Good evening.

I want you to look at me, Mayor.

You know you're my guy, even though we agree to disagree.

You like my son.

He's about the same age as you were.

Okay.

We're going to class sometime, but we're gonna be alright.

But this is what I want to talk about.

And I want you and Mr.

Griffin to listen to this.

You had a press conference with the with Mike DeWine, the governor of the state.

That same governor passed.

Stay in your ground.

Kevin Conwell wrote him a letter and said, Veto that bill.

We're gonna have more killings here.

And guess what?

A lot of these people don't took on the face of the police.

I'm in fear for my life.

Bang bang.

I had a lot of those cases where people walked.

Let's not forget, you got to stand your ground.

Then open carry.

Everybody can get a gun now.

A lot of people with felony convictions is miscommunicating the law.

Oh, Miss Bickerstaff, we can carry.

No, you can't.

The law change, not for you.

You have to get a relief of disability to carry a weapon if you have a felony.

You have to go through the court, comma, please.

You gotta go through the federal court, and you have to go through the ATF.

It's steps you go through.

They have not gone through those steps.

But they're misquoting the law.

Because they're not lawyers.

So you talking about crime?

Is the crime bad?

It is, Joe.

But why would you turn around?

Counseling harsh and pass two laws that made it even worse.

Delante.

It's a setup, it's a setup for design.

They don't took that same position, Slife.

I'm in fear for my life.

Bang bang, you dead.

That's not the way this is supposed to be.

And now I want y'all to Google.

New York Times, get a study.

Police shootings have gone up since George Flew.

Then you got people.

Now I want this, I hope that Judge Oliver, listen to me, please.

Get rid of the consent decree when they come in compliance.

Everybody wants it gone.

We want compliance before it leave.

We want compliance, Kevin.

We want compliance, Jennifer.

We want compliance.

Her uncle is so humble.

But I'm a yield because it ain't about my brother today.

It's about her.

Getting that law passed.

But if only he knew, I'm gonna give him some information.

If only he knew.

So you sit up there talking about the crime when the governor has enacted the crime.

So mayor bim, I would appreciate you and Mr.

Griffin.

Get on the phone and talk to him about that.

Ask him to show you the letter that Kevin Conn will send him and say, don't pass that bill.

Don't pass staying your ground.

Rebecca Maurer, he said, don't pass it.

Veto that bill is gonna cause more problems.

Now look what it's doing.

Time.

Next up, we have Pete Van Lear from Ward 3 talking about Tanisha's law, not representing anyone, not being paid.

Thank you.

For the past several years, I've had the opportunity to research non-police response for people in crisis and bring together local service providers, advocates, and advocates with people doing the work in cities like Durham and Albuquerque, whose community safety departments have set the standard showing what community crisis response can be.

In 2021, Durham City Council adopted a budget that funded 13 positions in a newly created Department of Community Safety as recommended by Durham's city manager.

Funded largely out of the city's general fund, has grown to 75 75 full-time staff this year, diverting more than 12,000 911 calls from police.

In 2020, Albuquerque City Council passed a resolution creating that city's community safety department, adding it to the existing first responder system to so it can take 911 calls.

After deep community engagement, the program started small in 2021 with three teams of responders operating in the city.

It's now a 24-7 program that completed its 100,000th call for service this year.

The director of Albuquerque Community Safety, like the police and fire chiefs, reports to the city's chief administrative officer.

Its mental and behavioral health field response division has 83 staff, and its administrative division has 21.

These are models, the models Tanisha's Law is based on, and for good reason.

Establishing cabinet level positions, departments provides them with clear lines of authority and access to city funding, institutionalizing them to ensure they will continue to meet community needs.

As you can see, these approaches allow them to adapt and grow.

There are other approaches, many of which rely in part on outside contractors to do the work.

They're worth exploring too, but I only have three minutes, right?

As you no doubt know, the Ams Board currently funds a care response pilot operated by frontline service and two Cleveland zip codes.

The team is doing amazing work, but their potential is limited because they can only respond to 988 calls, not 911, as community responders do in Durham, Albuquerque, Baltimore, Atlanta, Cincinnati, St.

Peter's St.

Petersburg, Seattle, and many more cities.

Also, with the Ams Ward facing cuts, this pilot program, which is already slated to end in December, could be on the chopping clock, out of city's control.

Integrating community crisis response into the city's infrastructure would help ensure this program continues operating and becomes part of 911.

I understand resistance to doing something new and different.

Other cities have faced similar doubts, including from police officers.

But that resistance has melted away as they have now seen how effective it is to send trained mental health professionals and peers with lived experience on nonviolent 911 calls, allowing our police to focus on their core work of preventing and solving crime, violent crime.

I leave with you, leave you with a modest but transformative proposal.

Take the more than $900,000 a year the city now spends on ShotSpotter and use it to keep our community safer by passing and funding Tanisha's law.

So please hold a committee hearing as soon as possible.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Terry Wang from Ward 3.

Topic how to prevent crime, not representing anyone, not being paid.

Good evening, everyone.

I know crime prevention can seem broad, but I'm asking this question in the very specific context of whether Cleveland should continue using Shotspotter or switch to a product called Raven developed by Flock.

Last week the safety committee met to discuss these technologies and question CSU researchers who conducted the shot spotter study.

But instead of pressing for evidence or accountability, most council members spent their time expressing personal preferences about surveillance or focusing on procedural minutiae.

Interesting, maybe, but completely unrelated to determining whether these tools actually reduce gun violence.

Only Councilwoman Gray tried to hit the target.

Did shot spotter prevent any deaths?

But even that question, while well intentioned, can't be answered.

No gunshot detection system can be scientifically linked to a prevented homicide.

So what was the purpose of installing ShotSpotter?

And why asked CSU to studies its effectiveness when the researchers themselves said they couldn't reach conclusions, not because the science isn't there, but because the data wasn't made available to them.

Neither ShotSpotter nor the Cleveland Division of Police provided the full data set the researchers needed.

This is especially troubling because Cleveland didn't need the CSU study to know how ShotSpotter performs.

Nearly 30 years of usage and research has shown that up to 90% of shot spotter alerts yielded no evidence of a gun related crime.

This is one of the reasons I opposed ShotSpotter when I was a commissioner and installed data retention and sharing protections that were later removed by P.

Van Lear, who you just heard speak, working in collusion with the city because he is not an independent commissioner working for the community.

Meanwhile, the crime that affects most Clevelanders every day is economic.

Car break-ins, stolen bikes, catalytic converters, daily harms that stabilize working people.

And beyond that, the economic violence of low wages, housing insecurity, and lack of opportunity.

Decades of research has also shown that socioeconomic stability, not surveillance microphones, is what makes communities safer.

Yet Cleveland still doesn't have a dedicated car recovery unit, a guaranteed living wage, grocery stores in every neighborhood, or meaningful property tax reform.

Now the city is considering replacing ShotSpotter with Flox Raven, which uses the same acoustic model, the same promises, and no independent evidence that it performs better.

Why does Cleveland's political leadership keep choosing tools that don't work instead of investing in things that do?

I hope the public will check back in the coming weeks as I present research and background on Flock and how the city appears to have violated both the consent decree and charter section 1155 in installing Flock's automatic license plate readers, which do far more than simply read license plates.

Thank you.

Next up we have Jake Taylor from Ward 15.

I can't uh lack of receiving funds for lead, not representing anyone, not being paid.

Um Jake.

Uh first just thanks for what you do.

I appreciate it.

Um I am a duplex owner on West 73rd Street.

Uh I have been sorry, I've been fixing up my own house and then this house down the street for like the last few years.

Uh trying to have it be lead safe and as as you know, well kept as humanly possible.

I don't have, I work in education, I do not have the funds to replace all the windows and to do all the different things I've been told I would need to do to get my lead safe certificate.

Uh so I applied for a grant last November.

Uh I've checked in every 90 days for over a year asking about the funds to replace the windows and to do the work to remediate any cause for concern for my tenants.

Uh and every 90 days I get a we're not really sure, Mr.

Taylor, we're transferring the funds over to a new owner.

We'll get back to you.

So it's been a little over a year.

Uh and I just have not really heard anything.

Rebecca and Jenny have been super helpful in trying to connect me with different people who might know how to help me, but at the end of the day, it's just it's been a year.

I still am not able to fix it.

Uh both units of all four units are full of folks who would also love these things to be fixed.

Uh, but like I said, the the cost to remediate these things are quite high.

And as an educator, I just I just can't do it.

Uh, and so uh I just would love to have these funds so I can do right by my tenants and do right by the house.

Uh and I'm just not really sure like what the holdup is.

Uh I haven't done that much investigating, but just want to kind of come and share, you know, just a regular person trying to fix up a duplex.

So that's all.

Thank you.

Thank you.

They got the money.

They got the money.

Thank you.

We're now moving to communications.

File number 1473, 2025 from Jonathan S.

McCorry McGorey, uh, assistant law director.

Notice of donation from Cuyahoga County Board of Developmental Disabilities of 10,000 for adding adult changing tables.

Adult changing tables to the restrooms at Cleveland Hopkins Airport.

File number 1474 2025 from Kevin Brown, Director of Senior Housing Development, National Church Residences.

Notice of intent to apply to Ohio Housing Finance Agency for multifamily funding programs for senior housing development known as Kirby Manor, located at 11500 Detroit Avenue, Ward 15.

File number 1475 2025, oath of office for Anthony Whitfield, Planning Commission member.

File number 1476, 2025.

Oath of office for August Flucher, Planning Commission member.

File number 1477, 2025.

Oath of office for John Lair, Director Public Works.

File number 1478 2025.

Oath of office for Phil Jubert, Commissioner of Division of Urban Forestry, Department of Parks and Recreation.

File number 1479 2025.

Oath of office for Sydney Johnson, Assistant Director, Department of Parks and Recreation.

File number 1480 2025.

Dedication Plat for Woodhill Homes Development Project.

Review and approval of the second subdivision located in between Woodland Avenue and Mount Carmel Road, Ward 6.

Approved by committees on municipal services and properties and development planning and sustainability without objection.

Plan approved.

From the Ohio Division of Liquor Control, file number 1482, 2025, regarding a transfer of ownership application at 2258 Professor Professor Street, Ward 3.

File number 1483, 2025, regarding a transfer of ownership application at 12408 Union Avenue, Ward 4.

File number 1484, 2025, regarding a new license application at 478 East 152nd Street, Ward 8.

File number 1485, 2025, regarding a new license application at 1440, Puritus Avenue, Ward 16.

File number 1495, 2025, regarding a transfer of license application at 19800 South Waterloo Road, Ward 8.

Condolences, resolutions.

Resolutions of condolence by Councilmember Starr for JC Boyland by Councilmember Slife for John Patrick Lennihan by Councilmember Conwell for Nellie Grace Glasgow.

Any other condolences?

Councilwoman Spencer.

Thank you.

Please hold out a number for CSU students, Al B Chela and Samira Chaferi.

So noted.

Anyone else?

Council members, please rise for a moment of silence.

Thank you.

Any congratulatory resolutions?

Resolutions of congratulations by Councilmember Griffin for 100 Black Men of Greater Cleveland.

Resolutions of recognition by Councilmember House Jones for Cameo on their 82nd Annual Lebanese Independence Day.

By Councilmember Hairston for Reading Ram Academy Youth Renaissance Empowerment Award, Karen Howard as the honoree.

By Councilmember Hairston for Reading Ram Academy Youth Renaissance Empowerment Award for Terrence Lewis.

Presentations today we have a presentation by uh for Trans Day of Remembrance, Councilwoman Spencer, Councilwoman Maurer, Moore, who else?

Oh, Councilwoman Welsh.

Oh, and Councilman.

Oh, do you had something?

Go ahead.

Huh?

Put out a number for Mike St.

Clair.

Oh, okay.

So go ahead, you can go on with the president.

So noted.

Okay.

Okay, where did I?

Trying to go zero.

Okay.

Oh, go ahead.

Hi.

Thank you.

Good evening, everyone.

If anyone else is here who would like to stand up with resolution 1469-2025, you're welcome to join us down here on the council floor.

Please come forward.

All are welcome.

Thank you so much.

Council members, if you could open the well for additional folks coming down.

Thank you.

Get up on the steps.

Thank you all for being here.

Thank you.

Come on, join us.

Yes.

Sure, thank you.

It is for trans day of remembrance.

Thank you.

Sorry I didn't clarify that.

Thank you.

Um I um I'm Jenny Spencer, I represent Ward 15 on Cleveland City Council, and my colleagues, Councilwoman Moore and Councilwoman Welch are also sponsoring this resolution, and I know you'll each want to say a few words, and those on the floor are welcome also to speak.

But I will open us up.

Um this resolution is an acknowledgement of Trans Day of Remembrance, which is this week, and I will not read the entire resolution, but these words are important, and so I do want to read from the resolution.

Whereas on Transgender Day of Remembrance on November 20th, 2025, and annually, the City of Cleveland will gather as a community to honor and uplift the memory of those transgender individuals whose lives were taken by hate and violence.

Whereas together with our community, this council remembers their lives with love, acknowledges the pain of their absence, and recommits to creating a future where all can live safely, openly, and fully.

And whereas trans existence is a testament to authenticity and courage, a reflection of the strength it takes to live fully and openly in a world that does not always make space for it.

Every act of showing up as oneself is a dedication of hope and self-love.

Whereas this council reaffirms the city's commitment to transgender equality and laws enacted and codified that protect our LGBTQ plus community against discrimination.

For example, Cleveland Codified Ordinance sections 66701, 66705, and 66302 prohibit discrimination in places of public accommodation and employment because of sex, sexual orientation, and gender identity and expression, along with other protected classes.

And whereas, in addition, codified ordinances section 1871 5 and 1872 prohibit a city contractor from discriminating against any employee or applicant and require the contractor to take affirmative action to ensure that applicants are employed and that employees are treated during employment without regard to sex, sexual orientation, and gender identity or expression, along with other protected classes.

And whereas, among other duties included in codified ordinance section 14302, the director of human resources is required to formulate a plan of education or promote fair employment practices by employers, labor unions, employees, employment agencies, and the general public to eliminate employment discrimination based on sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, or expression, along with other protected classes.

The director is also required to cooperate with and provide technical assistance to those entities for the elimination of such employment discrimination.

Whereas, lastly, codified ordinance section 66706 prohibits the practice of conversion therapy that seeks to change a person's sexual orientation, gender identity, or expression by a mental health professional on minors.

The executive director of the LGBT Community Center is here, Phyllisvan Harris with her staff and with many, many others who are present tonight.

And so there is much work to be done to continue to make our city a place of equality for all.

Where's Carrie?

Carrie's role and leadership is so critical, and there is much important community work to be done and policy work to be done.

And Carrie's role is a through line that transcends political cycles, transcends elections, and so the work will continue.

But I'm so proud to stand with these amazing advocates and leaders tonight.

Thank you.

And I will be uh brief and and just remark on perhaps the uh serendipity or perhaps the importance uh that I came in with with both my pride flag button and then of course saw Mr.

Anderson and ended up wearing the uh the Tanisha's button, which I also saw that so many of the folks behind us are wearing, and then what that says about our work around solidarity that when we stand up for the most vulnerable in our community, it's not to subtract from the vulnerability of others, but rather to build towards a collective liberation that we all need, and truly our trans community has been on the forefront of that work, just like so many other vulnerable communities throughout Cleveland's history.

So I want to say thank you.

I just want to say that this is so important because representation is important, the lives of trans individuals matters.

Um whether you're out or you're not out, it is in so important that you know that you matter.

And when we put forth uh legislation like this, it shows youth, it shows adults, it shows individuals who are um in this work, outside of this work, who are trans, who are transitioning, that they matter.

And so um I just want to introduce uh Seven Phyllis Harris, who has been an instrumental part of my life.

I used to work at the LGBT community center of Greater Cleveland.

I think it is so important that on a regular basis, as we have new leadership coming in, that just acknowledge the fact that we have no more queer representation here on council anymore.

Um, and so for this to be the last piece of legislation that councilwoman Spencer is representing, that councilwoman Moore is representing, that I'm representing, that you do not forget the lives of LGBTQ plus individuals, that they are very much a part of the fabrics of not just American history but Cleveland history, and they deserve to have space, not just in these walls, but they deserve to have space in our communities.

They deserve to have space in our schools.

The LGBT community center was one of the first schools uh or centers to have a school of one, to have a school specifically for LGBTQ youth, and a lot of people don't understand that that information or how important that was for us to bring that to the city of Cleveland, to know that children they matter, and whether they are queer or they're they're figuring out where they're at in their lives, that they have a space that they can come to.

And so I'm proud to sit here and represent not just this community, but to stand with um all of the individual individuals besides me and behind me to represent this, and I just want to acknowledge all the individuals who are working at the LGBTQ community center.

I know I was working in the middle of the pandemic.

It is hard work, it is such hard work, and they show up every day for the individuals in this community.

I just want to thank them so much, and thank you to my fellow councilwoman for um showing up in this way.

Thank you.

I just want to um quickly say also um I'm full of gratitude first for the invitation to show up tonight.

And so when I got the email emails, the way that I got the emails, I knew that it was important, and both from um um Pete Van Lear and then um council person um Spencer and I um I said to my team, oh, this is important.

Um I read the context to to both issues, but I knew, and as you can see, there are so many brilliant people on the front lines, um, keeping this city um um safe, um, accessible and real in terms of our dreams as LGBTQ folks here.

So it is not my voice that you absolutely need to hear, but what I want you to know is that we're here to partner with you, the city of Cleveland.

We love this city.

I'm born and raised here.

Mr.

Conwell.

I I I've never um really had a conversation with you, but I've followed you and know your work and um councilperson house.

I remember when you called me and you were doing work as um grassroots works supporting um black girls in the uh Thorough Marshall, where I used to go and watch um baseball being played um when I lived over in that neighborhood.

So I love this city, and this is your team around ensuring that trans people have rights and safety and security and opportunity and presence in this administration.

So thank you.

And I want you to meet someone because I'm an OG, but we got some new G's on the line here.

And so I want you to meet one here who is my partner in terms of how we um lead and curate the organizational rhythm at the LGBT Community Center of Greater Cleveland.

Have some other colleagues here.

Get to know us.

We're your partners.

If you want to be expert about being good and serving all people of this great city, these are the people who are gonna get it done for you.

I'd like to introduce you to Bonal.

Hi.

Thank you.

Thank you, Councilwomen.

Thank you, Phyllis.

Um, I'm Golnar Farrasta, uh managing director of the LGBT Community Center of Greater Cleveland, and I say that with great pride, and I think it is an honor to have that privilege to serve Cleveland to serve our communities.

I think this is a really important opportunity to acknowledge the humanity in all of us.

At the end of the day, that is what it's all about.

And I I am really proud of our city and our council for standing up and saying that all people are important, regardless of what you look like, what you wear, who you love.

At the end of the day, it's about recognizing the humanity that is intrinsic to each and every one of us.

We cannot let the politics of division, we cannot let the oppression Olympics divide us.

We are here to be in solidarity across all the issues that impact all marginalized communities right here in Cleveland.

And so thank you so much for give giving us this time.

Thank you to everybody that's shown up.

We do not do this work alone.

We work alongside community.

We stand on the shoulders of those that have come before us, and it is important that their sacrifice, that their work is not in vain.

We are watching things roll back across the board.

It's not just LGBTQ plus issues, it is issues around uh maternal health, it is around health equity, it is around economic justice, it is around community violence, police violence, institutional violence, economic violence.

All of these issues impact all of us.

If you are human, you are in one way or another impacted by these issues.

And so I just want to put a call out for solidarity for us to come together and not let these external forces of division continue to divide us and put us in the framework mind-frained of scarcity economics.

We should think abundance because when we pool our resources together, we pool our power together, we pool our people together, we can achieve great things.

And I want to be able to say that Cleveland is the place where all of these things come together, and that we are a place where all people can thrive, not just a few people can thrive.

Thank you.

I think uh greetings everyone.

My name's Carrie Gibbons, and my pronouns are she and they, and I am the city of Cleveland's first LGBTQ liaison.

And I couldn't be more proud to be standing here with all the folks before me and all the folks in front of me.

Um, and most importantly, all the folks behind me.

Um in this role, I am here to simply build the bridges where we can learn how to move forward together because we have to do this work together.

It can't be done in silos, it has to be done together.

So, like Golnar said, we gotta we gotta have solidarity.

So, solidarity starts now.

Uh and it starts with honoring those who have passed the trans community who have passed before us.

So, thank you for this time and thank you for this moment.

I think we'll ask for a photo, but before we do that, would anyone else like to say a few words?

Cool.

All right.

Would you like to say anything?

Hi, my name's Cameron Papera.

I'm from Colors Plus Counseling.

I'm a therapist.

Um, this message of hope is really important to all ages, especially youth, but all ages across the board, all especially our intersectional minorities, need to hear this message of solidarity and health and knowing that how divide divided the world is right now, especially in our country.

This can truly save lives to hear messages that are coming from the top down that you are worthy or valid, and it doesn't matter what your identity and all the identities that you are, but you are important and authentic.

Um we've lost way too many trans black women in Cleveland.

We've lost too many trans people, period, and this will be a way of saving and not in a very dramatic way, but literally saving their lives by having them, even if they can't go to a community space, even if they can't go because they can't make it there for one reason or another to another accepting place.

This is sending the message that they matter and that they're worth living.

So thank you for considering this and thank you for taking that time.

Uh council of people to be able to do this.

Good evening, everyone.

I'm uh Zoe Johnson.

Um I came to City Council end of March, I think, and uh give a comment on trans day of visibility, and this is a more you know somber version of that, I suppose, but I think it's you know definitely important to understand that this is not just something that um you know we can just happily ignore and live our our lives and and try to do the best that we can, and we can still have problems, whether that's from our government or employers, anything like that.

So yeah, I just want to thank uh councilwoman uh Spencer and Councilwoman Maher and everybody behind me from the LGBT Center and uh Cuyoga County Young Democrats and Cleveland Stonewall Democrats.

Um, I've had a lot of help, you know, just knowing who to talk to, and um how I can get to a microphone here, and just to say that you know, I'm really appreciative of everyone in this great city and everything that we stand for, and I think that this is a symbol of um you know, us uh of what makes Cleveland great, right?

Just one one little piece uh of the greater puzzle.

So um, yeah, thank you very much, everyone.

Everyone just gather for a photo together.

We'd love that.

Thank you.

Scoochin, tiny note, tight note.

Okay, madam clerk.

First reading, emergency ordinance referred by for administrative review and committee review.

Ordinance 1447 2025.

My council members Welch, Bishop, Slife, and Griffin by departmental request to establish subfunds 65, subfund 011 and 10 subfund one fourteen for the deposit and remittance of new community authority parking charges at certain city-owned uh parking lots.

I'm sorry, parking facilities, and to transfer any such collected charges into the appropriate new subfund.

Ordinance 1448 2025 by Councilmember Griffin by departmental request, authorizing the director of finance on behalf of Cleveland Municipal Court to enter into one or more contracts with communic community service for one professional services necessary to place criminal defendants and community service and two for placement of criminal defendants in Cleveland work crew program, both as referred by the court for Cleveland Municipal Court, each for a period of one year with two one-year options to renew, exercisable by the director of finance, ordinance fourteen forty-nine twenty twenty-five by council member Griffin by departmental request, authorizing director of finance on behalf of Cleveland Municipal Court to enter into one or more contracts with Oriana House for professional services necessary to provide appropriate placement for the for defendants to be assigned into supervised pretrial release without the sanction of incarceration and to provide related services for Cleveland Municipal Court for a period of one year with a one year option to renew.

Authorizing Director of Finance on behalf of Cleveland Municipal Court to enter into one or more contracts with Oriana House for professional services necessary to provide appropriate placement for the for defendants to be assigned into supervised pretrial release without the sanction of incarceration and to provide related services for Cleveland Municipal Court for a period of one year with a one-year option to renew.

Ordinance 1451 2025 by Councilmember Slife by Departmental Request.

Designating the Cam's Corner Bank Building as a Cleveland Landmark.

Exercisable by the Executive Director of Community Relations Board.

By Council Members Hairston and Griffin by Departmental Request.

Authorizing Director of Economic Development to enter into a grant agreement with Greater Cleveland Media Development Corporation or its designee to assist with the general operating expenses of the organization.

Ordinance 1455 2025 by Council Members Bishop Polenzik and Griffin by Departmental Request.

Authorizing the purchase by one or more contracts of labor and materials necessary to retrofit a division of police command bus, including installation for the division of motor vehicle maintenance, department of public works, andor department of public safety.

Ordinance 1456 2025 by Council Members Welch, Bishop Hairston and Griffin by Departmental Request, authorizing the Director of Parks and Recreation to enter into an amendment to a property to the property operations and programming agreement effective June 30th, 2016 with downtown Cleveland as a as an assignee of the group plan commission to provide a restricted contribution to support the ongoing maintenance obligations at Public Square.

Ordinance 1458-2025 by Council Members Star Bishop Harrison and Griffin by Departmental Request to amend the title in sections 456, 7 and 8 of ordinance 738-2025 relating to an agreement with Penrose Holdings or its designee for the sale of the Warner Swayze building and entering into loan agreements with Penrose or its designee to provide assistance to partially finance the redevelopment.

Ordinance 1460 2025 by Council Members Welch, Slife, and Griffin by Departmental Request.

Authorizing Director of Port Control to or other appropriate director to terminate the City of Cleveland's lease with Cleveland Cuyahoga County Port Authority for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum's original site and approving the consolidation of the original site and adjacent expansion site into a single lease agreement directly between City of Cleveland and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum.

Ordinance 1461 2025 by Council Members Bishop Hairston Conwell and Griffin by Departmental Request.

Authorizing the purchase by one or more requirement contracts of trees and labor and materials needed for urban forestry services, including but not limited to maintaining and planting trees and removing trees, stumps, and tree waste material for the division of urban forestry, Department of Parks and Recreation, and Department of Aging, Public Works, and Community Development for a period of one year with a one-year option to renew.

Ordinance 1462-2025 by Council Members Bishop and Griffin by Departmental Request.

Ordinance 1464 2025 by Council Members Conwell and Griffin by Departmental Request, authorizing the Director of Public Health to enter into one or more contracts with Merrick House, friendly in Settlement Inc., West Side Community House, Lexington Bell Community Center, Birthing Beautiful Communities, the Metro Health System, Ronald White, DBA, the Transparency Project, Case Western Reserve University and other organizations to provide mom's first services to women at risk of poor birth outcomes in the City of Cleveland.

Ordinance 1470 2025 by Council Members Palency, Bishop Harrison and Griffin by Departmental Request, giving consent of the City of Cleveland to the County of Cuyahoga for the resurfacing of Nottingham Road from St.

Clair Avenue to South Corporation Line to apply for and accept an allocation of County Motor Vehicle License Tax funds for the improvement, authorizing the Director of Capital Projects to enter into any relative agreements and making the improvement and to cause payment to the county for the city's share of the improvement.

Ordinance 1471-2025 by Council Members Bishop and Griffin by Departmental Request, determining the method of making the public improvement of repairing or replacing specific non-compliance sidewalks under the noncompliance sidewalk repair program, formerly known as the 5050 Hazardous Sidewalk Repair Program, authorizing Director of Capital Projects to enter into one or more public improvement requirement contracts for the making of the improvement for a period up to two years and authorizing the director to apply for any gifts or grants from any public or private entity to implement the program.

Ordinance 1472-2025 by Council Members Starr, Bishop Hairston and Griffin by Departmental Request to vacate a portion of East 73rd Street.

Ordinance 1481 2025 by Council Members Starr, Bishop Hairston and Griffin by Departmental Request to vacate a portion of East 70th Street.

Ordinance 1486 2025 by Council Members Starr, Bishop and Harriston by Departmental Request to vacate a portion of East 71st Street.

Ordinance 1487 2025 by Council Members Moore Bishop Hairston and Griffin by Departmental Request to vacate a portion of Ridman Avenue Southwest.

Ordinance 1489-2025 by Council Members Welch, Bishop, Harrison and Griffin by Departmental Request to vacate a portion of West Third Street.

I'm sorry, to vacate a portion.2987 acres of West Third Street.

Ordinance 1490 2025 by Council Members Welch, Bishop, Harrison and Griffin by Departmental Request to vacate a portion of.2990 acres of West Third Street.

Ordinance 1491 2025 by Council Members Welch, Bishop, Hairston and Griffin by Departmental Request to vacate a portion of.3451 acres of West Third Street.

Ordinance 1492 2025 by Council Members Bishop Harrison and Griffin by Departmental Request.

Authorizing Director of Parks and Recreation to apply for and accept a grant from the Land and Water Conservation Fund for Luke Easter Skate Park Project to accept cash donations from the MGK Foundation and the Skate Park Project for this purpose.

Determine the method of making the public improvement of designing and constructing a skate park at Luke Easter Park and authorizing the Director of Parks.

Enter into one or more professional service contracts and other contracts needed for the making of the improvements to apply for and accept gifts and grants and authorizing director authorizing the direct employment of the necessary labor for the division for the Department of Public Utilities for contracts executed no later than December 31st 2030.

Ordinance 1496 2025 by Council Members Bishop and Hairston by Departmental Request authorizing the Director of Capital Projects to issue a permit to Cleveland Clinic Foundation to encroach into the public right of way of alaying court by installing using and maintaining a concrete driveway and riprap erosion control barrier along the existing ravine.

Councilwoman Gray, has remote Councilwoman Councilwoman Gray.

Councilwoman Gray.

Yes, uh Madam Chair, could you add me to 1492 2025?

So noted.

First reading emergency ordinance to be passed.

Ordinance 1457 2025 by Council Members Santana Hairston and Griffin by Departmental Request to amend Section 3 of Ordinance 1000 2025 relating to a forgivable loan with Metro West Community Development Organization or its designee to acquire and stabilized mixed commercial buildings throughout the ward 14 service area.

Ordinance 1459 2025 by Councilmember Welch authorizing the Director of Department of City Planning to enter into agreement with Historic Warehouse District Development Corporation of Cleveland for the Warehouse District Public Space Improvements, providing a placemaking project including murals, signage, and improvements, increasing visibility and safety through the use of Ward 3 casino revenue funds.

Ordinance 1463 2025 by Councilmember Harsh.

Authorizing the Director of Department of Economic Development to enter into agreement with Old Brooklyn Community Development Corporation for the Memph for the Memphis and Pearl Redevelopment Project, providing post remediation construction activities, increasing the opportunity for additional investment for underserved properties through the use of Ward 13 casino revenue funds.

Ordinance 1465 2025 by Councilmember Starr, authorizing Director of Department of Economic Development to enter into a contract with Burtonville Car Development Corporation for the Dales Barber Arbor Park build-out, providing financial assistance to acquire, construct, enlarge, improve, or equip its business through the use of Ward 5 Neighborhood Equity Funds.

Ordinance 1466 2025 by Councilmember Griffin, authorizing Director of Department of Community Development to enter into agreement with Fairfax Renaissance Development Corporation for the Fairfax Neighborhood Technology Training Center Program, providing activities free to the public, increasing the opportunity to learn how to use computer technology and to develop digital skills through the use of Ward 6 Casino Revenue Funds.

Ordinance 1467 2025 by Councilmember House Jones to amend Section 2 of Ordinance 1088 2025 relating to the agreement with Midtown Cleveland Inc.

for the Asian Expo.

Read the motion to suspend the rules.

By Councilmember House Jones that the rules be suspended and the legislation just read be placed on final passage, seconded by Councilmember Slife.

Catherine Cleveland Bishop Conwell Gray.

I'm sorry.

Griffin.

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

16 years.

First reading emergency resolutions to be adopted.

Resolution 1468 2025 by Councilmember Palencick objecting to the transfer of stock of C1C2 liquor permit to 870 East 185th Street.

Resolution 1469 2025 by Council Members by Council Members Spencer and Moore.

Resolution 1469 2025 by Council members by Councilmembers Spencer and Moore recognizing the Transgender Day of Remembrance on November 20th, 2025, and annually to honor the memory of transgender individuals whose lives were taken by anti-transgender violence and reaffirming the city of Cleveland as a community where transgender individuals are welcome and our commitment to transgender equality and codified anti-discrimination protections and laws for our LGBTQ plus community.

Read the motion to suspend the rules.

Councilwoman Gray.

Madam Chair, could you add me to 1469 2025?

So noted.

Call the row.

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

16 years.

Call the role on adoption.

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

16 years.

Second reading emergency ordinance to be passed.

Ordinance 1086 2025 by Council Members McCormack and Griffin by Departmental Request.

Authorizing the purchase by one or more requirement contracts of industrial and building related supplies, materials, equipment, and services needed for maintenance, repair, and operations of facilities, including installation if necessary for the Department of Poor Control for a period of one year with three one-year options to renew.

Ordinance 1251 2025 by Council Members Slife and Griffin by Departmental Request, authorizing Director of Port Control to employ by contract or contracts, one or more qualified insurance brokerage firms, firms, or firms.

Firm or firms to provide brokerage and administrative services for a planned owner-controlled insurance program needed for the terminal modernization development program at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport for a period of seven years.

Ordinance 1252-2025 by Councilmembers Slife and Griffin by Departmental Request, authorizing the Director of Port Control to employ one or more professional consultants for wayfinding services to assess, audit, and make recommendations to improve the ticketing lobby operations at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport for a period of one year with a one-year option to renew, exercisable by the Director of Port Control.

Ordinance 1253 2025 by Council Members Slife and Griffin by Departmental Request, authorizing the purchase by one or more requirement contracts of labor and materials necessary for constructing, repairing, maintaining, removing, replacing, disposing, and installing concrete surfaces and structures on roadways, taxiways, runways, ramps, and other paved surfaces for the various divisions of the Department of Poor Control for a period of one year with three one-year options to renew.

Ordinance 1304-2025 as amended by Council Members Slife and Griffin by Departmental Request, authorizing Director of Poor 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 Poor Control.

Ordinance 1317 2025 by Council Members Slife and Griffin by Departmental Request, authorizing Director of Poor Control to employ one or more professional consultants to provide financial and accounting consulting services for a period of one year with three one-year options to renew exercisable by the Director of Port Control.

Ordinance 1380 1318 2025 by Council Members Slife and Griffin by Departmental Request, authorizing the Director of Port Control to employ one or more professional consultants to provide on-call asset management services for a period of one year with three one-year options to renew, exercise exercisable by the Director of Port Control.

Ordinance 1322-2025 by Council Members Conwell and Griffin by Departmental Request, authorizing Director of Public Health to enter into an agreement with Case Western Reserve University, Jack Joseph and Morton Mandale School of Applied Sciences for Professional Services to continue programming through first year Cleveland and authorizing any agreements needed to implement such programming for a period of two years.

Ordinance 1401 2025 by Councilmember Griffin by departmental request authorizing Director of Finance to employ one or more professional consultants to provide accounting services and implementation assistance of the current and future governmental accounting standards board statements for the city's annual comprehensive financial report and to provide accounting services in preparation for forparation and calculation of current GASB that are already implemented by the city and to transfer that knowledge to the appropriate city personnel for a period of one year with two one year options to renew exercisable by the director of finance.

By councilmember Griffin by departmental request, authorizing the amendment of the 2024 revolving line of credit and or the issuance by the City of Cleveland of additional airport system subordinated indebtedness in the form of revolving lines of credit or commercial paper program in the aggregate principal amount not to collectively exceed 476 million dollars at any one time to pay costs of improving the airport system, authorizing amendments to the 2024 loan agreement and the 25th supplemental trust indenture and or entering into one or more revolving credit agreements, reimbursement agreements, official statements, dealer agreements, supplemental indentures, notes evidencing subordinated indebtedness and other agreements related to subordinated indebtedness and authorizing and approving related matters.

Authorizing the clerk of council to enter into an agreement with housing research and advocacy center for rights DBA Fair Housing Center for Rights and Research to provide professional services regarding the vacant and abandoned property action council.

Ordinance 1431 2025 by Councilmember Griffin authorizing the clerk of council to enter into agreement with Western Reserve Land Conservancy, DBA Thriving Communities Institute to provide professional services regarding signature green space creation, planning and policy, vacant land reforestation, and reforced our city program.

Ordinance 1445 2025 by Councilmember Griffin authorizing the Clerk of Council to enter into an agreement with on technology partners for the professional services necessary to advise and assist in the maintenance and performance of computer technology projects and to provide specific computer technology services services for Cleveland City Council.

Read the motion to suspend the rules by Councilmember House Jones that the rules be suspended and the legislation just read be placed on final passage, seconded by councilmember Sly.

Call the room.

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

16 YAs.

Call the rule on passage.

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

On 1304, 2025, 15 years, one nay.

On all others, 16 years.

Any introductions?

No.

No one.

Okay.

Any announcements?

Any miscellaneous?

Councilwoman House Jones.

Thank you, Madam Chair.

First and foremost, I know Mr.

Anderson and constituents and really the community who has been rallying around the passage of Tanisha Law have gone, but I really wanted to thank them for taking the time to come out to advocate for Tanisha's Law.

I really just want to share with the body with the administration, things that have been happening.

So on the January 22nd, 2024 is when the initial Protect and Connect grant was actually passed in Cleveland City Council.

From that point, Council got win that the administration wanted to change the scope of that work.

And so it had been time that is went past going back and forth.

And for people who are not familiar with the Protect the Connect grant.

Generally, what was proposed and what was used, this is part of the abstract, priority consideration is requested for support for underserved communities and for promoting effective strategies to identify and reduce harm to individuals with MHDs or co-occurring MH SUDs.

It indicated that the purpose of Cleveland's program is to modernize Cleveland's 911 system in order to better respond to crisis calls for service and primary primary activities include hiring clinical dispatchers, providing mental health training to all dispatchers, and purchasing data collection software that can be used for information sharing by all partner agencies.

Then they've come around and say, oh no, we want to do the analysis.

Give us more time.

We need to do more studies.

And then you ask, well, how much time do you need?

Only to find that they just put in a request to the Department of Justice back on November, September 25th of 2025 to get a rescoping or to go back to the original intent from the time that they had requested to change the original intent, all the while not really even communicating with Cleveland City Council.

It's only because we find out information that we engage with them.

Because one of the things when Councilmember Moore and I went a part of the uh crisis care cohort, uh it's really essential to have a really good strong 911 system to be able to be able to implement an effective uh crisis care community care.

When we introduced Tanisha's Law on November 4th of 2024, we have just got a response back from the from the administration on November 10th of 2025.

So that was 371 days.

When we have processes to say, when when legislation is introduced, the administration has 30 days to give a to give something back.

It was 371 days just to get a response back.

And I mean, quite frankly, I mean, I have frustration within this own council body.

When you have rules, but everybody selectively decides when they want to enforce rules and when they don't.

When there are cities across this country that have shown leadership that have not only just done a pilot, but they have saw the value and investing in other ways to serve people.

When you look in how we go and get mad get money, we always want to tout.

We're wanna we want to serve underserved people.

That's we we use those taglines to get the money, but when it comes to really investing to do the work and change this system to actually serve underserved people, we got problems with it.

The fact that the administration with a clear face could say they won't don't want to support this legislation, but don't even have the decency to actually give a real suggestion as to well, where is this gonna work?

Which department is gonna do it?

371 days, and you can't even say that.

I it is so frustrating working in this space.

Every day, I am fighting with somebody for something goofy to center underserved people.

Last Friday, I I I was I met with the law department, and I appreciate the team for meeting me or whatever.

But I sat in my car, and I just had to sit like Stephanie.

Why are you so frustrated?

Why?

Because many times I have not been able to verbalize it.

But it hit me.

I'm frustrated because every day I am here.

I have to justify my existence and the value of our people.

And I am tired.

I am so frustrated in this building.

People can do whatever they want for all these other things.

But to center people, you gotta beg for food.

And people think it's okay.

And I'm not going to be nice about this.

This press is so real for our people.

And like I said, if you can see what is happening at the White House and what people can do in 10 months, and you telling me we can't do center our people.

Y'all frustrate me so much.

Y'all really do.

But I am grateful.

I am grateful to my community members who have granted me the opportunity to come back and do this another four years.

I am more resolved than ever to make sure we change these rules for the people who deserve it.

And I promise you, I will not be silent.

By giving grace to this body.

When there's so many things that are wrong from this body and the administration.

Because I want to be a team player, and people want you to go along and get along.

But people really need to know how disturbing these behaviors are in this in city hall.

It is disturbing.

It is despicable.

And people try to justify wrong when many of these laws are racist and discriminatory.

Our obligation is to change them.

It is not to concede to the Ohio Constitution or the US Constitution when those things can be racist themselves.

Our obligation is to center our people.

And I'm tired of fighting with y'all just to acknowledge basic humanity.

I thank you for granting me this time, but I promise y'all, 2026, oof, 2026.

Thank y'all for y'all time.

Thank you, councilwoman.

Um thank you.

I uh just talked with um safety chair Mike Palencick about um Tanisha.

Um and I think you say you just received it.

Yeah, last week.

And um, you know, I want to be there, and matter of fact, I will be there 100%.

A lot of time you don't have to ask in leadership, you just go ahead on and do it to make sure that it get done.

Um speaking about that, even in the schools when I was trying to talk with the mayor last uh last week, and um cut my microphone off.

I'm not against the plan, it's the execution of the plan.

You have to talk with the council members and all key stakeholders, but I was trying to tell him.

I never do anything in my ward.

I've been around since 2001.

I even I reach out to you, Brenda, don't I?

Early in the morning, I'll call you and we discuss things before you execute.

You have to do that.

And that's what I was just saying, because he understands he's an extremely bright guy, and he understands the rules.

You talk with all the key stakeholders, and what he did, Dr.

Morgan did a survey analysis.

He went around and visit all the schools and talk with the parents to hear their issues and concerns.

So then you put together your scope of what you're going to do.

And then before you deliver it, you talk with the key stakeholders to let them know what you're going to do.

And you just don't leave them out there so that Councilman Kevin Conwell, Councilmember Mike Palencic, Councilwoman Stephanie House Jones will receive 20 calls.

And then we said we didn't even know he was going to put it out there.

We didn't even know.

We can blame for everything.

And I heard Dr.

Morgan mentioned that the schools are empty, and I understand that.

But there's other things that we have to do, even integrating Glenville and Collinwood.

Collinwood has a great, great history, and so does Glenville.

And here's the other thing they didn't mention.

A lot of these schools that you mentioned, Councilmember Mike Palency, like Steve Stephen Eau, Done Elementary School, not Charles H.

Lake, Iowa Maple, Forest Hill Parkway.

A lot of those schools, before you guys got there, was put there because of racism.

They didn't want us, my generation, to go to schools with white white people on the west side.

And Don Freeman, as well as Collander, this Presbyterian minister who tried to block the bulldozers for overbuilding schools so that we wouldn't go to schools on the west side was ran over by bulldozer and Stephen E.

Howe, elementary school.

And then when you because they overbuilt the schools.

That's why so many schools on the east side, because a lot of people were saying, Councilman, why are they tearing down all the schools on the east side?

No, because they overbuilt because they didn't want us to go there.

They didn't want us to get books.

We got there, as they would say, hand-me-down books.

We hit we got discrimination and segregation.

Look up uh Clonder.

Look him up.

But by you not talking with us in Glenville, we weren't able to tell you the way.

And someone not even from Glenville was behind me saying, but I'm out there and I know the way.

And I'm not trying to fight against you guys.

I just understand processes.

I'm an MBA, so you know, and a project manager also.

So I know and I understand the way.

So I talked with my residents.

What I said, I said, uh, this is what I'm gonna do.

And I did it on Thursday.

I visit East Clark, talk with the principal there, talk with the parents and and people there, and and I agree with how you guys were doing it, but then I need to in leadership get ahead of the game.

I went to uh memorial school, talked with the people there, didn't say anything bad.

They were they were there.

But as the council member, you gotta get ahead of it so you can be out front and to be there.

I even went to Kenneth Clemens school that same day and talked with them also.

You gotta lead by leadership.

But if you don't tell me the way and you execute before that, then you're gonna get a lot of noise this there.

So I had to jump back and read so I can understand the way.

So I wasn't upset with with Mayor Bibb, but he knows he's an extremely bright guy about the execution of uh of the plan.

So I'm there.

Um I want to introduce and I'll close it out.

My good friend here, Kevin Chill heard, one of the number one rappers in Jeremy there.

We're gonna uh take our bands and go into the schools and talk with the children and let the children get on our instruments um next year.

And when a lot of times when you do things like that, they'll hop on your instruments on the drums, on the piano, on the vibes, and they'll talk with you, and they like to talk with the musicians more than you go in there talking politics, you know, right you heard, and then that way we'll open up to them and they'll open up the things and we'll bring resources for them.

So that's very important.

Thank you for the time, and I'll yield to Councilmember Mike Polencick.

Councilman Mike Polenzik, Councilman Jones will close us out.

Thank you.

Thank you, Madam Chairperson, my colleagues, members of the administration.

I too want to rise to speak about the schools.

You know, I understand full very well what uh mayor Bibb hasn't inherited as the mayor.

Very much aware of it.

But through my brothers and sisters and to the members of the administration, here's the challenge for us today.

We are very much aware that we are going when I came in this body, there were 33 members.

33 members of City Council.

This council chamber was designed for 50 members.

Wow, Michael.

50 members.

Look around.

50 members.

That's how they believe the city would grow in population.

So in this past decade after decade, now come January 1st, we're going to go to 15.

We're going to go through the census again in 2030 with the redistricting in 31, 2031.

If we can't figure out how to stabilize our neighborhoods, we're going to lose two more wards from the east side.

I'm going to tell you that right now.

We're going to lose two more wards from the east side.

So, and I want to thank the mayor today for sitting down with me to talk about the schools at length.

I don't believe they have given him the mayor the full picture, CMSD, because they never gave any of us the big picture.

They've never explained how they squandered all the ARPA funds.

I mean, it's just embarrassing what they did.

But here we the challenge for us is this, specifically on the East Side, and some of my brothers and sisters on the West side have gone through the same thing.

They have closed 28 schools on the East Side that I could identify.

I think I messed a few of them.

Twenty-eight schools.

And every time I drive down 55th and I go past Wilson, that's been sitting there gutted for 20 plus years.

That's been their legacy in our neighborhoods when they close schools.

Do not close Iowa Maple.

He did it anyway.

Look where the kids went, the families left.

The East Glenville neighborhood.

They went into charter schools.

They told us when they closed MLK and East that those kids were going to go to Glenville.

Did they go?

No.

They left the city or went into charter schools.

So here's the challenge for us.

We have got to really, and I'm I'm and I'm going to appeal to you, Madam Chairperson, because you also have education under your wing.

We've got to pin them down as a what's their game plan.

They want to close, just they want to close four schools on the Northeast side, three right now in the present Ward 10, which I'm going to inherit uh come January 1st, and one in Ward 8, and then going to other sections of Eastside.

What is their game plan for the close, soon be closed school buildings?

We see what their track record is.

They let them sit and rot.

Or they put the burden upon the administration or the city to deal with the boredom up or do whatever we have to do.

But the bottom line is this.

People talk with their feet.

Families talk with their feet, and somehow there's a mindset in this city that folks, regardless of their circumstances, especially on east side, like they got a chain and ball on their leg and ain't going nowhere.

You keep closing schools on the east side of the city, and then families are going to continue to leave like they have going to Euclid, Richmond Heights, South Euclid, Maple Heights, Warren's, Garfield, da-da-da-da.

I could go through the whole regime because I've seen it here.

Unfortunately, some even some of the speakers tonight don't even understand how that how the process works.

Council has no control over the schools.

We do not control the schools.

The mayor appoints the school board.

They appoint the CEO.

Council does not run the schools.

We don't pass on their budget.

We don't do any of that stuff.

But as Councilman Conn will indicate, we're confronted with the end results of the carnage in our neighborhoods of empty school buildings.

What they did at Collinwood is criminal.

They stripped all the programs.

Stripped all the programs, wouldn't let the pool sit there empty.

Empty for eight plus years, because why?

What do they say privately that black kids don't want to swim or can't swim?

How insulting.

How disgraceful that is.

One of the best ROTC programs stripped it.

Stripped all the critical programs.

And then they come back and they tell us, well, we've got no kids.

Well, you keep taking programs out of East Side School.

Why would you put a child in there?

You wouldn't.

So this is what I'm predicting.

You could write today's date down.

Unless we collectively work at the mayor and his team can reverse some of these decisions, we are going to see an exodus out of this city.

Out of the east side.

We're going to see more families leave and more families go into underperforming charter schools, which does none of us any good.

None of us any good.

So we've got to draw the line in the sand.

I'm prepared to dry the line in the sand because I see what they have done.

There's nobody here longer than me.

I see what they've done to the east side of the city.

They've devastated these sites.

Our families have fled.

Glenville, North Glenville's lost 22% of its population in less than 10 years.

Well, why not?

They close all the freaking schools.

Why would you stay in a neighborhood when you have no schools?

We, the council, working with the mayor and his team.

We got to pin these folks down.

Because this is this is very, very serious what they're about to do.

This is going to destabilize neighborhoods.

It's going to cause families to flee.

And I've already been told, we're getting out of here, we're out of here, we're out of Dodge, we're leaving.

Or we're going to try to find the nearest charter school as a stopgap in the interim time.

So, madam chairperson, you chair the committee to the administration, and I appreciate the mayor sitting down with me this afternoon to listen to what I have to say.

Because I don't believe they're leveling with him.

In fact, I know they're not leveling with him.

And we've got to make sure whatever action we take collectively as a body is what's right for our citizens and their kids.

I want to say it again, what's right for our citizens and their kids.

I'm paying more property taxes today than I ever have in my life living in the city.

I'm paying more property taxes per 100,000 than some of the best suburbs in Caga County.

Go look at your property taxes based on 100,000.

I was talking to a family member over the weekend who lives on Avon Lake, telling me how much property.

And I said, Do you realize that I'm paying more property taxes living in the city of Cleveland per 100,000 than you are?

And he looked and he said, You're absolutely right.

Think about that.

New house in Avon, based on 100,000, I'm paying more freaking taxes.

My families are paying more taxes.

We supported the levy.

They never told us what they were going to do.

And then, coincidence, the day after the elections, bing, they announced it.

When they told us they've been working on this for a year, it was all premeditated.

So again, I want to thank you for the time to my honorable colleagues.

Whether you're East Side, West Side, this affects all of us because it destabilizes our city.

We cannot afford to lose any more families.

We have to be able to attract people with children, keep our families with children.

So I'm looking forward to working with the mayor on this issue and his team.

And I want to say this again, I want to say this to the administration.

They're not leveling with you.

They're not giving you the big picture.

And we have to take the big picture in consideration when we make the ultimate decisions.

Thank you, Madam Chairperson, and my colleague.

Thank you.

Um, Councilman Joe Jones.

Thank you, Madam Chairwoman.

To the mayor to the administration, to my colleagues.

I'd like to rise to first say thank you to the voters award one for your sending me back for another four years.

I'm truly humbled by the experienced, thankful, appreciative.

But what's more important is it has been an amazing year.

It has been a dynamic year.

It has been a year of learning for me.

It has caused me to revalue and think of things in a whole different perspective.

And part of that comes from God.

No, all of it comes from God.

Because he came here and covered my back against the line towns, against the accusations.

But more important, he humbled me to my core to allow me to take a different perspective and a different look.

So it changes everything.

I heard some of my colleagues today about their frustrations about government.

Government is a frustrating situation when you're trying to deal with multiple people and you're trying to get business taken care of.

And sometimes when I'm down here, I'm working with all parties.

And I have to not work for my own personal self.

But I work and make decisions for the people I represent.

When I make decisions, I take hits sometimes, but I take those hits because I want my neighborhood to be safe.

I want my community to be a neighborhood where people can truly enjoy the American dream.

Folks, we live in the richest country on the planet.

We shouldn't even be having any issues and problems.

But the way the system is developed is developed for a few to control the masses of the many.

And so when we sit in these seats here, I've been coming to this hall since I was nine years old, sitting over there in that corner, watching George Forbes and all of the politics during that period of time.

And during that time, fast forwarding over here, I remember the schools.

That all kids had was one choice and one option.

And so Fannie Lewis got up and started fighting for charter schools to give black people an opportunity to have a choice.

And that was then.

And the people of the city of Cleveland, a lot of them was racist, decided to leave.

They call it the white flight.

They left out of the city of Cleveland and they hurt us economically.

To such a degree it took a long time for us to fundamentally come back financially speaking from that.

But we spend a billion dollars a year.

Can somebody here tell me why we can't educate our people?

Our young folks.

Year in, year out.

Can someone tell me why we're even thinking about building a new school when we're closing schools?

Doesn't make sense to me.

So if you want to be, you want to do what's right, you have the money to do us right.

You got to get the people, and that's the problem.

You don't have the right people in position.

You don't have the right leadership in position.

The type of leadership that has vision, that dares to see Cleveland different from what it is.

And when you stand up and start talking about that change, you become a target.

People start looking at you.

We don't like what he's got to say.

We don't like maybe how he said it.

But we have people in this city right now, and I don't need to tell none of my colleagues, because many of you already know it.

When you try to get the debris picked up, and you can't get it picked up.

There was a time I couldn't get no debris picked up in my neighborhood.

So I had to go out there and pick up the debris.

I had to go get the trailer.

I had to go and pull money out of my pocket just to clean it up because it wasn't going to be done.

Because my citizens cried about it.

When I come down here and I start fighting for my people in this city, the first problem I have is people who don't want to do their job.

They got a job.

But they want to give me all kinds of slack, all kinds of problems, all kinds of issues, and all sorts of excuses on why they can't accomplish what they're being paid to accomplish.

And then when you start fussing with them a little bit and push them back, then oh, you're doing the wrong thing.

Or you're saying the wrong stuff.

Some of the folks who work for us, gave them a chance.

He was drunk, gave him a chance, brought him back, and then he messed up again.

Good worker, got a problem.

That's a rare exception.

But then there are those who I have took my trailer and my lime or just to get out and show them how to cut some grass.

And they still got it wrong, and they were getting paid from the city.

And they took way too long to do the work.

Now, safety and security.

Let's roll over there on that one because that's a big issue.

And Brenda Bickerstaff covered it really well about how the system is set up to keep crime going, to keep violence going, to keep guns in the neighborhoods.

It is so bad in the 4th district, and there was a time I was told that this city, this is a different administration, that they place their assets where they have their problems and issues at.

So I say, well, if that's the case, then the 4th district should be swamped with police.

It should be swamped with police.

And when I came back, you know what was crazy to me?

Is to have a senior citizen's home shot up.

To have a senior citizen's home shot up.

And then when I called over to the commander, it was like nonchalant.

It was like, where you been?

It was normal.

Where you been?

You ain't heard of that before?

And I'm saying to him, are you kidding me?

Why have we started taking issues that are horrible and still really fundamentally addressing it?

Now, here's another issue.

We're spending 300.

I can't be safe with 300 million, maybe another 45 million in grants from the federal government in the city of Cleveland.

You can't keep me safe with that kind of money.

These are major issues that we can address down here.

Now I gave a plan out, same kind of plan University Circle uses, gave it to this body, talked about it in the committee.

We ought to have the same kind of protection and safety as those neighborhoods.

They're spending the same amount of money.

Why can't we keep our people safe like Shaker?

Like University Circle?

Like Shagren.

Falls.

North Olmstead.

Independence.

Garfield.

So we we got some issues.

And we're not taking it seriously.

Look at our lakefront.

We've been talking about development from one administration to the next administration to the next administration.

And we'll keep on talking about it, and we'll keep on dealing with these issues until we deal with grabbing the bull by the horn and pulling it down and technically resolving that.

And the way we do that is by working together.

This council, this administration should be working together in partnership.

We shouldn't have the issues we got.

I've heard some of the talk about some of our folks and how they're upset about the Browns leaving.

I'm upset too.

We should be thinking about how we expand this great city.

We have a city that no other city can brag about.

All that water on that lake.

Heck, if I was the mayor, I'd be starting a bottling company.

The greatest water ever.

On Lake Erie.

And it is about, it is about how we turn our city into a financial gold mine.

Because we've done that before, Madam Chairwoman, I'm closing.

We we made so much money in this city that we bought all of that land all the way where they have, where they're building now in Beechwood.

All that territory out there where the golf course is at, all that used to be the city of Cleveland, because we had nowhere else in this city to park our money.

So we invested into real estate.

So when it comes to having vision, we got to have the vision of talking about how we expand our city, how we bring new businesses into our community, how we improve education, how we make our city safe.

And then when we do that, Mike Polenzik, with the solutions, then we can start bringing population back.

Then people are gonna want to come back to the city of Cleveland.

Why?

Because we got a set an educational system that's second to none.

We used to be six in the nation, this city, number six in the nation in terms of education.

So we can get back there, but the political will must be in place.

And when you put that political will in place, madam chairwoman, on all of these issues, we won't have no frustration.

But the biggest thing is we got to get past ourselves.

We got to think about God, we got to work together, we gotta be serious about changing the conditions.

I'm thankful I'm Councilman Joe Jones, and I approve that message.

Madam Clerk, please excuse the absence.

Seconded by Councilmember Slife.

Council is adjourned to the call of the chair.

The next meeting will be held November 24th.

Thank you,