OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Columbus City Council Public Hearing on Council Structure - April 24, 2026

Council Committees — Friday, April 24, 2026
BodyColumbus, Ohio
SessionCouncil Committees
DateFriday, April 24, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 3:08:52

Transcript — Verbatim
0:00

Hi everyone, we're gonna go ahead and get us started.

0:02

Uh wanna thank everyone who is either joining here in public chambers here tonight or is turning in virtually regarding this public hearing regarding the structure of Columbus City Council.

0:13

Uh first of all, I want to uh thank everyone for their flexibility with rescheduling this hearing.

0:18

Um wanted to be very clear about why that happened.

0:21

My father was unexpectedly hospitalized last week, and fortunately is now home and recovering, and I want to thank many of the folks in the community that reached out with their well wishes and prayers.

0:30

So seriously sincerely want to thank folks that that did that.

0:33

Um but appreciate being able to get here tonight.

0:36

I know there's a lot of interest in uh this hearing.

0:39

Um wanna talk about why we're here.

0:42

Uh over the last decade, there's been a lot of discussion about the structure of Columbus City Council.

0:47

There's been several charter amendments proposals, uh, which led to a change that became effective in the 2023 City Council elections.

0:55

As I said in a recent op-ed to the dispatch, while I wasn't on council at the time, uh I didn't vote in favor of that proposal.

1:02

I believed it was confusing and did not adequately address long-standing concerns regarding neighborhood representation among this body.

1:10

Uh the city has big questions in front of us as we continue to grow.

1:14

And how this legislative body is structured, we'll certainly have a direct result in how we answer those questions in the form of public policy.

1:21

I'm hopeful that this body and the community can engage in an honest dialogue starting tonight about what reform might look like.

1:29

I want to acknowledge that there's no singular council structure that certainly will make everyone happy.

1:33

Uh while I certainly have an opinion on the matter, I'm just one of nine council members and ultimately just one of 900 plus thousand people that call the city home.

1:42

While council has the power under our our charter under section 45 to put a charter amendment to the voters, I know there are others that put their ideas in the form of their own ballot initiative.

1:51

And that's okay.

1:52

We shouldn't be afraid of engaging residents and putting ideas forward and making folks case to the community.

1:59

Tonight's public hearing has a simple agenda.

2:01

Our director of our legislative research office will review the history of city council structure, the current structure, and how we got here, and and review how other cities in Ohio, imperial cities across the country, structure their legislative bodies.

2:15

Then we'll hear from the public.

2:16

As I've said, there's been a lot of uh discussion on this topic going back many years.

2:20

And that is certainly proven by the number of people who've signed up to speak tonight.

2:24

Uh last count we have 36 people who signed up to speak or uh have in that several others have submitted written testimony.

2:31

Uh just talk about a little bit of logistics for tonight with 36 speakers.

2:34

I want to hopefully try and get home to my kiddo's bedtime, and I'm sure some other folks want to do that too.

2:38

Uh but I will call your name forward, and I will also call a second speaker.

2:43

And if the second speaker could just wait right over here just so we keep folks moving.

2:46

I would appreciate that just so that we keep the the hearing uh as much on time as we can.

2:51

Um I'm gonna ask folks to try and keep their remarks to three minutes per our standard rules here at City Council, uh, but certainly happy to uh extend some Midwestern politeness if folks need a little bit longer to conclude their comments.

3:02

Uh certainly want to thank my colleagues who made time to be here tonight.

3:05

I know we might have another council member or two that will be coming in here later this evening, but certainly certainly Councilmember DePadia, Councilmember Deacca or Councilmember Whitech, uh certainly for being here.

3:15

Want to pause and see if you had anything you want to say at the outset of the hearing.

3:19

Councilmember.

3:21

Thank you.

3:21

Um thank you, Pro Tem for um holding this hearing.

3:25

I just wanted to say thank you to the community.

3:28

Um, I was born and raised here in Columbus Boomeranger.

3:32

I moved away, I came back, and I um have uh the pleasure of being born and raised in my district, living four houses away from my family home, and uh while on the Southeast portion for 11 years, I lived on the South Side, and so these are two places that were very near and dear to me.

3:51

And I think as we talk about um what representation looks like as we talk about getting familiar and really representing the people in the communities in which we live in, um, you know that's certainly something that resonates with me, and I just want to thank everyone for caring and loving our city for wanting the best for our city for all the work that folks have put in to ensuring that we have a fair uh system that represents people, that you have people that really um fundamentally understand the streets and the roads and the places that you go um and live in every day.

4:27

And so I'm excited to hear the conversation tonight.

4:30

I'm excited to hear from all of our residents so that together as a community we can find a path forward.

4:36

Thank you, Councilmember.

4:38

Uh I want to also acknowledge that Councilmember Ross has joined us.

4:41

Um thank you, Councilmember.

4:42

Uh, wanna now turn over to Director Matt Erickson from our legislative research office.

4:49

Thank you, President Puritan.

4:50

I appreciate it.

4:51

It's a pleasure to come before council again, talk a little bit about the structural history of City Council.

5:00

I will try to uh keep my time limited, give uh time for the residents to talk, as I'm sure this uh maybe the driest part of uh this evening's festivities, but I'll see what I can do, keep it pithy.

5:08

Uh in terms of the history of Columbus City Council and its structure, uh it's not dissimilar from most of the other major cities in Ohio uh in that up until a certain point in about the mid-19th century, uh uh Columbus was classified as a borough, and then in 1834, um uh up in between 1834 and 1912, even though Columbus did in fact have a uh city council, the the structure and the size of it and the way it functioned was largely at the direction uh and the prerogative of the state general assembly.

5:42

Uh you see that uh when Columbus was originally classified as a city back uh at that point in time in Ohio, um uh municipalities were classified as boroughs or villages or cities, Columbus had been classified as a borough uh up until its reclassification as a city in 1834, at a time when there were about 3,000 people calling Columbus home.

6:05

Uh and at the time uh when Columbus was classified as a city, the General Assembly had divided the city up into three wards, what were officially called wards at the time, uh, with four representatives apiece uh coming from each of those wards for a 12-member size of council.

6:22

Over time, as Columbus grew, as the city grew, the General Assembly made changes, uh, presumably at with with some uh direction or some influence uh by the actual local government itself.

6:35

Uh but the size of council would increase as the size of the as a number of wards would increase as well.

6:42

You see that between 1885 and 1894, we went from five wards to 19 wards, still retaining that two uh members representing each ward up until about the turn of the 20th century, when Columbus had at a time when we had about 125,000 residents.

7:02

Uh at the time, council consolidated to 12 wards with one member apiece, and as a point of fact, added three at-large members at the exact same time.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Community Engagement█████████████████████████████████████████████69%
Procedural████████13%
Racial Equity█████7%
Affordable Housing████6%
Homelessness█2%
Parks and Recreation█1%
Public Engagement█1%
Miscellaneous█1%
Summary of Proceedings

Columbus City Council Public Hearing on Council Structure - April 24, 2026

This public hearing, called by President Pro Tem Rob Dorans, was held to discuss the structure of Columbus City Council, with a focus on the current at-large system with district residency requirements and potential reforms. The hearing featured a presentation from the Legislative Research Office and testimony from 36 registered speakers, plus written submissions. No formal council proposal was introduced; the stated purpose was to begin a community dialogue. The hearing lasted over three hours.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • Chris Tabner (personal capacity, petition committee member for "Our City, Our Say"): Expressed full support for switching to a true district-based system where each district elects its own representative. Argued the current at-large system is confusing and less democratic than the Ohio General Assembly. Asked council to support the citizen-led initiative, not introduce conflicting reforms, and not oppose the proposal.
  • Negan Harris (Near East Side Area Commission chair): Advocated for a balanced approach, acknowledging strengths of at-large (citywide perspective) and districts (neighborhood accountability). Warned of risks like political silos and NIMBYism in ward systems. Urged council to reimagine the system rather than simply patch it.
  • Will Petrick (resident): Supported the "Our City, Our Say" proposal. Argued the current system allows billionaires to control outcomes (citing Columbus Partnership). Responded to Council President Harden's concerns about housing, citing Minneapolis 2040 plan as an example where district system succeeded in housing affordability. Asked council to trust residents and share power.
  • Tom Albanese (Element Consulting Group, on homelessness): Did not take a position on structure but urged council not to forget marginalized voices, including renters and those experiencing homelessness. Noted that over half of Columbus residents are renters and many are cost-burdened. Shared experience from Chicago's ward system, which can work but requires strong citywide intent.
  • Zachary Sparks (Driving Park resident, Columbus DSA steward): Supported true districts. Accused council of co-opting a citizen-led initiative for their benefit. Said the current hearing was an attempt to control the narrative. Urged council to let citizens' initiative proceed without interference and to hold more hearings in different parts of the city at different times.
  • Vladimir Kogan (OSU political science professor, personal capacity): Argued against shifting to district elections, stating it would reduce African American voters' ability to elect preferred candidates (citing councilwoman Ross's election as example). Cited research showing district elections reduce housing supply and concentrate affordable housing in disadvantaged areas, referencing Chicago's report "A City Fragmented." Cautioned against well-meaning reforms that could worsen housing challenges.
  • Will Clatt (Clintonville Area Commissioner, union member): Strongly criticized the current system as rigged by the Columbus Partnership and billionaires. Said campaigns are too expensive, leading to predetermined outcomes. Called council members "made men" by the political system. Accused council of being afraid of competition and protecting a rigged system. Urged support for true district elections.
  • Jennifer Creighton (resident): Supported true district elections ("Our City, Our Say"). Argued that current district seats are in name only since elected citywide. Cited McCoy Park as example where district voices were overridden by at-large votes. Opposed any hybrid model with at-large seats.
  • Morgan Harper (co-founder of Columbus Stand Up): Supported the "Our City, Our Say" proposal. Stated that people feel their votes don't matter, and district representation would restore trust. Warned that alternative proposals with at-large seats would be seen as power preservation. Urged council to support the simple fix.
  • Mindy Justice (District 7 resident, housing advocate): Supported change but advocated for a hybrid model (e.g., 6 district and 3 at-large, or 7 and 4). Expressed concern that fully district system could hinder housing production. Said strong hybrid model would balance neighborhood voice and citywide needs.
  • Daniel Catello (volunteer with Our City, Our Say): Supported true districts. Recounted that only one council member responded to his outreach. Said the current system forces candidates to reach nearly a million voters, favoring wealthy interests. Urged council not to confuse voters with competing measures.
  • Jordan McLaughlin (founder of Evicks Private Equity Columbus): Supported Our City, Our Say. Criticized council for fast-tracking a deal for billionaire Jimmy Haslam (McCoy Park) while ignoring resident proposals like limits on private equity home buying. Said actions show housing is not a priority.
  • Jonathan Beard (resident, housing development professional): Opposed the "Our City, Our Say" proposal, saying it uses a gerrymandered map with no majority-black districts, which would disenfranchise Black voters. Argued council should put forward a better proposal with fair districts and a reasonable number of at-large seats (e.g., 9 districts and 3-4 at-large). Stated the current at-large system is rooted in anti-immigrant progressive reform.
  • Haley Mahern (District 7 resident, MPA graduate): Presented research showing Columbus experiences racial clustering and that at-large voting dilutes minority voting power. Cited statistical significance of racial differences across districts. Said Columbus fulfills two of three Gingles test requirements. Concluded that true district representation is essential for equity.
  • Joe Decker (social studies teacher, CEA Board of Governors): Spoke on behalf of CEA's 4,000 members supporting Our City, Our Say. Said the at-large system allows wealthy and powerful to choose politicians. Cited McCoy Park as example of district will being overturned. Said teachers support the proposal to fulfill democracy.
  • William Easton (Clintonville resident): Called for honesty. Said the April 20 council vote on McCoy Park was predetermined, the hearing was called only after petition signatures were gathered, and council is already planning competing measure. Argued that the system is a "managed democracy" controlled by wealthy donors.
  • Joe Motill (resident): Supported Our City, Our Say. Criticized council for not including campaign finance reform in the hearing. Cited historical corruption at the founding of the at-large system. Said Columbus is the last major city with this archaic system.
  • Willis Brown (Bronzeville resident, Our City, Our Say supporter): Supported true districts. Gave example of a contentious development where council voted 9-0 despite community opposition, and the district representative did not give them a single vote. Argued district representation would allow communities to vote out unresponsive representatives.
  • Elizabeth Reed (District 7 resident): Supported district-only system (no at-large). Said McCoy Park vote would have been different under district system. Also called for campaign finance reform. Addressed concern about committee chairs: argued that all council votes on budget, so no single district controls funding.
  • Minister Ashe (Columbus Fair Districts): Supported district representation but opposed the "Our City, Our Say" map as gerrymandered. Presented an alternative map with two or three majority-black districts. Called for fair map and district representation.
  • Jim Villers (Downtown Alliance for Voter Engagement): Supported Our City, Our Say. Said the council gave momentum to petition by the McCoy Park deal. Argued district elections reduce need for large donations. Asked council not to interfere with the citizen initiative.
  • Adrian Hood (retired AF MSgt, former candidate): Supported true districts. Said in 2023 election, voters were infuriated to learn they could vote for her even from other districts. Said the 2016-2017 reform effort failed because Columbus Partnership spent over $1 million opposing it. Criticized council for talk without action.
  • Colleen O’Connell (union officer, petition committee): Supported Our City, Our Say with no at-large seats. Said at-large seats require massive spending and make officials beholden to billionaires. Said infighting is a choice; council can choose to not let it happen.
  • Abe Van Helmand (Strong Towns Columbus): Supported district-based reform. Said the at-large system at Columbus's scale creates distance between residents and city hall. Housing concerns should not be the only lens; the city can do multiple hard things at once.
  • Stevie Pasmante (Transit Columbus board): Supported Our City, Our Say. Rebutted housing argument: said trust residents to make good decisions; current system hasn't met housing goals anyway. Said organizers work hard to bring NIMBYs along; council should trust that work.
  • Rachel Wenning (Hilltop resident): Criticized council for using flawed research (Evan Mast study) to oppose districts. Said the study looked at small cities decades ago and found a reduction of only 5 housing units. Argued that housing is not the only issue; democracy matters.
  • Katie Shanahan (election law attorney): Strongly contested Professor Kogan's testimony on minority representation. Said at-large systems have a documented racist history designed to dilute Black political power. Noted that districts 4,5,8,9 are majority-minority currently. Argued district representation would empower communities. Criticized council's actions on McCoy Park, ICE cooperation, and lack of meaningful public engagement. Urged council to stay out of the way of the citizen initiative.
  • DJ Burns (activist): Criticized the current system as corrupt and dominated by Columbus Partnership. Said campaign finance is obscene. Urged council not to dilute reform with hybrid measures. Supported Our City, Our Say but noted the map needs to be fair.
  • Dana Masoner (Bronzeville, former area commissioner): Supported district representation. Noted Columbus is the only city in the top 50 without district representation. Said housing development happens under all systems; the city should not use housing as an excuse.
  • Sandy Bolsinias (resident): Supported Our City, Our Say. Said most voters have no idea who represents them. Ward system would allow residents to personally meet candidates and make educated choices.
  • Stuart Wyland (Strong Towns Columbus): Supported Our City, Our Say as a start. Emphasized the need for functional feedback loops. Said housing is not the only issue. Called for incremental change and continuous improvement.
  • Gerson Leal (DSA member): Supported Our City, Our Say. Said cost of living has skyrocketed while corporations profit. Believed district representation would reduce corporate influence.
  • Samaria Chicas (Driving Park resident, area commissioner): Supported true district elections. Said her neighborhood has seen little meaningful change for decades. Believed district council members would be more responsive and accountable.

Discussion Items

  • President Pro Tem Dorans opened the hearing by explaining its purpose: to discuss council structure after years of debate, and to hear from residents. He noted his personal opposition to the 2018 charter change, calling it confusing. He clarified this is not about any specific proposal.
  • Councilmember DePadia thanked the community and shared her perspective as a lifelong Columbus resident, emphasizing the importance of neighborhood representation.
  • Director Matt Erickson presented an overview of Columbus City Council structure history, including:
    • From 1834 to 1914, Columbus had ward-based representation.
    • The 1914 charter created an all-at-large system, seen as anti-corruption at the time.
    • Attempts to reform in 1968, 1975, and 2016 were rejected by voters.
    • In 2018, voters approved a nine-member at-large system with district residency requirements, first implemented in 2024.
    • Columbus is the largest U.S. city with an all-at-large council.
    • Comparison with other Ohio cities (mostly hybrid systems) and peer cities (mostly district-only systems).
  • Council asked questions about the variance provision (1% population difference) and the requirement for charter review every 10 years.
  • Councilmembers Dorans, DePadia, Ross, and others engaged with public speakers, asking questions and clarifying positions.

Key Outcomes

  • No votes were taken; this was a public hearing only.
  • President Pro Tem Dorans stated that council may hold additional hearings and plans to continue community engagement.
  • He clarified that no official council proposal currently exists; the hearing was to gather input and begin dialogue.
  • Several speakers urged council not to introduce competing ballot measures that could confuse voters.
  • The "Our City, Our Say" coalition is actively gathering signatures for a November 2026 ballot initiative to establish true district elections (nine districts, no at-large seats).

Meeting Transcript

Hi everyone, we're gonna go ahead and get us started. Uh wanna thank everyone who is either joining here in public chambers here tonight or is turning in virtually regarding this public hearing regarding the structure of Columbus City Council. Uh first of all, I want to uh thank everyone for their flexibility with rescheduling this hearing. Um wanted to be very clear about why that happened. My father was unexpectedly hospitalized last week, and fortunately is now home and recovering, and I want to thank many of the folks in the community that reached out with their well wishes and prayers. So seriously sincerely want to thank folks that that did that. Um but appreciate being able to get here tonight. I know there's a lot of interest in uh this hearing. Um wanna talk about why we're here. Uh over the last decade, there's been a lot of discussion about the structure of Columbus City Council. There's been several charter amendments proposals, uh, which led to a change that became effective in the 2023 City Council elections. As I said in a recent op-ed to the dispatch, while I wasn't on council at the time, uh I didn't vote in favor of that proposal. I believed it was confusing and did not adequately address long-standing concerns regarding neighborhood representation among this body. Uh the city has big questions in front of us as we continue to grow. And how this legislative body is structured, we'll certainly have a direct result in how we answer those questions in the form of public policy. I'm hopeful that this body and the community can engage in an honest dialogue starting tonight about what reform might look like. I want to acknowledge that there's no singular council structure that certainly will make everyone happy. Uh while I certainly have an opinion on the matter, I'm just one of nine council members and ultimately just one of 900 plus thousand people that call the city home. While council has the power under our our charter under section 45 to put a charter amendment to the voters, I know there are others that put their ideas in the form of their own ballot initiative. And that's okay. We shouldn't be afraid of engaging residents and putting ideas forward and making folks case to the community. Tonight's public hearing has a simple agenda. Our director of our legislative research office will review the history of city council structure, the current structure, and how we got here, and and review how other cities in Ohio, imperial cities across the country, structure their legislative bodies. Then we'll hear from the public. As I've said, there's been a lot of uh discussion on this topic going back many years. And that is certainly proven by the number of people who've signed up to speak tonight. Uh last count we have 36 people who signed up to speak or uh have in that several others have submitted written testimony. Uh just talk about a little bit of logistics for tonight with 36 speakers. I want to hopefully try and get home to my kiddo's bedtime, and I'm sure some other folks want to do that too. Uh but I will call your name forward, and I will also call a second speaker. And if the second speaker could just wait right over here just so we keep folks moving. I would appreciate that just so that we keep the the hearing uh as much on time as we can. Um I'm gonna ask folks to try and keep their remarks to three minutes per our standard rules here at City Council, uh, but certainly happy to uh extend some Midwestern politeness if folks need a little bit longer to conclude their comments. Uh certainly want to thank my colleagues who made time to be here tonight. I know we might have another council member or two that will be coming in here later this evening, but certainly certainly Councilmember DePadia, Councilmember Deacca or Councilmember Whitech, uh certainly for being here. Want to pause and see if you had anything you want to say at the outset of the hearing. Councilmember. Thank you. Um thank you, Pro Tem for um holding this hearing. I just wanted to say thank you to the community. Um, I was born and raised here in Columbus Boomeranger. I moved away, I came back, and I um have uh the pleasure of being born and raised in my district, living four houses away from my family home, and uh while on the Southeast portion for 11 years, I lived on the South Side, and so these are two places that were very near and dear to me. And I think as we talk about um what representation looks like as we talk about getting familiar and really representing the people in the communities in which we live in, um, you know that's certainly something that resonates with me, and I just want to thank everyone for caring and loving our city for wanting the best for our city for all the work that folks have put in to ensuring that we have a fair uh system that represents people, that you have people that really um fundamentally understand the streets and the roads and the places that you go um and live in every day. And so I'm excited to hear the conversation tonight. I'm excited to hear from all of our residents so that together as a community we can find a path forward. Thank you, Councilmember. Uh I want to also acknowledge that Councilmember Ross has joined us. Um thank you, Councilmember. Uh, wanna now turn over to Director Matt Erickson from our legislative research office. Thank you, President Puritan.

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