Council votes to oppose mayor issue

Members go ‘round about petition, charter review process

Chardon City Council took a formal stance against the mayor issue on the Nov. 6 ballot, but not before an in-depth debate.

Council voted 6-1 on Oct. 11 on a resolution opposing Issue 14, an initiative charter amendment to provide for the mayor to be elected directly by voters. Councilwoman and former mayor Nancy McArthur dissented.

The council president currently is chosen by his or her peers and takes on the ceremonial mayor title along with leading council meetings.

The vote was taken after Councilman Andrew K. Blackley interrupted the hour-long argument by asking that the question be called.

He and other members expressed concerns about multiple aspects of the proposed charter change, including a legal opinion that the mayor would potentially be required to attend every municipal meeting.

“I think that that ends up opening an interpretation that the mayor should become a fulltime position,” Blackley said.

He also took issue with language giving the mayor the powers allowed under the Ohio Revised Code.

“I think that that ends up opening an interpretation that the mayor should become a full-time position.” — Councilman Andrew K. Blackley

“That is going to put them in direct conflict with our city manager form of government,” he said. “This creates, for me, a potential for constitutional crisis. It may not have been the intention, but I think that is going to be the effect. … We can’t leave an ambiguity like that in the charter.”

Petitioner Hannah Sekas, who helped lead the Charter Review Committee, said the sole intent was to change the way the mayor is elected. She said the council/manager form of government would be maintained.

Councilman Chris Grau asked whether any petitioners raised the possibility that a mayor with no experience could be elected.

Sekas said there is always a vetting process.

“People are going to ask, ‘What experience do you have on council?’ ‘Who would you choose as your vice mayor?’ … That’s part of the election process,” she said, “putting your credentials out there for the citizens to make a decision about who they want represent them.”

McArthur, the Charter Review Committee chairwoman, noted that many a mayor is elected by the people to serve a much bigger role than Chardon’s.

Grau argued that council members would be best to assess qualified candidates.

“We keep saying it’s a (ceremonial) role, but It’s more than that,” he said. “The person sitting there has a vitally important role in running our meetings and a whole lot of other stuff, too.”

Council President and Mayor Jeff Smock asked why the initiative appears to allow for election of eight council members.

Sekas said elsewhere in the document it specifies that the mayor would be one of seven council members.

She and McArthur continued to assert that any discrepancies easily could be cleared up before anyone runs for mayor.

Councilman Dave Lelko interjected, “I don’t agree with the philosophy of, ‘Let’s pass something and then we’ll figure out what it says.’ I totally reject that. … Let’s get it right the first time. This language that has been proposed does not do that.”

McArthur then asked whether council would be open to discussing the subject, regardless of the election outcome.

“There was no appetite for discussing it before, and I’m telling you the public is very angry at us, and rightly so with what happened in the charter review,” she said.

Smock said no one requested that council look at it previously.

Sekas said committee members believed they would be shut down by council.

“That is why they didn’t want to leave it up to council,” she said. “It could be tabled and never addressed.”

Blackley said he was open to a discussion, but said it could take time.

“We’ve had this charter 40 years,” he said. “I think it’s made this town the great town it is, so making a fundamental change potentially like that is very disturbing.”

McArthur questioned the hiring of attorney Todd Hunt to provide a legal opinion on the ballot issue without consulting all of council and the advice from Law Director James M. Gillette during the charter review.

“I do think you could have worked better with the committee, Jim,” she said. “I think that you were there to thwart some discussion. That was very obvious, and obviously a lot of the other members felt that way.

Gillette responded, “As far as I’m concerned, the issue before council tonight is not what happened at the Charter Review Committee meeting, it’s what’s been presented in terms of this petition.”

Deborah Chuha, who also served on the review committee, said she never heard about members having a negative experience.

McArthur said she sought feedback from participants.

Ballot Issue 14 is a variation of a recommended charter change to remove the title mayor which council rejected.

The issue is one of four charter amendments on the ballot. The 11-member review committee convenes every five years and includes two council members, two planning commission members and members of the public.