Council Considers Changing Schedule For Meetings

On Tuesday, January 19, 2016, Council President O’Leary called the Lakewood City Council to order at 7:48 P.M.

The first order of new business consisted of a communication from Council President O’Leary assigning committee responsibilities to the Council members. Committee chairs were assigned as follows, Councilman David Anderson (Ward I) for the Housing Committee, Councilman Dan O’Malley (Ward IV) for the Public Safety Committee, Councilman Tom Bullock (At-Large) for the Finance Committee, Councilman Ryan Nowlin (At Large) for the Public Works Committee, Councilman John Litten (Ward III) for the Rules and Ordinances Committee, and Councilwoman Cindy Marx (At-Large) for the Health and Human Services Committee.

Next, Councilman Anderson asked Council to consider changing the scheduled dates of Council meetings from the first and third Mondays of each month, which is the current schedule, to the second and fourth. The reason he asks Council to consider this change is due to the fact that Council currently meets the same nights that the Board of Education does. Many residents over the years have complained about not being able to be as engaged in the city as they would like to be because they are stuck with having to choose which meeting to attend. Although Councilman Anderson says that he understands that it may sound easy to change the dates of the meetings, he appreciates that there could be unintended consequences and scheduling issues with the change. He said he would like to conduct conversations between Council and the Administration to discuss these issues and possible remedies that could lead to the change.

Councilman Bullock asked if Councilman Anderson knew whether the dates of the meeting were set by City Charter, ordinance, or tradition. Councilman Anderson said he understood it from his reading of the Charter that it was up to Council to decide when they want to meet annually.

Councilman O’Leary asked the Law Director, Kevin Butler, if he could confirm the avenue in which the Council meeting schedule is made. Director Butler said that the schedule is codified in the ordinances but can be amended by Council.

Council received and filed the communication, but did not refer it to any specific committee.

Councilwoman Marx than brought it to Council’s attention that the backyard hen keeping pilot has completed 12 of its 18 months. She stated that now is the time that Council and the Administration should begin having conversation on the merits and/or pitfalls of backyard hen keeping in Lakewood. She said that Council, all members of the Administration that are impacted by the program, and families participating in it should be a part of the discussion.

Council received and filed the communication.

Next Councilman O’Malley reintroduced an ordinance from last year that never made it past its second reading. Due to current rules any ordinance referred to a committee for more than six months terminates at the end of the term of Council. The ordinance was aimed to protect the right and opportunity of all persons to be free from all forms of discrimination in employment, housing, public accommodation, and education. The ordinance makes mention of the following areas of discrimination: age, race, color, creed, religion, national origin, ancestry, disability, marital status, veteran status, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, or physical characteristics.

Councilman O’Malley thanked Councilwoman Marx and Councilman O’Leary for all the initial work they did putting the ordinance together.

Councilman O’Leary thanked Councilman O’Malley and said that one of his regrets from last year was not being able to address the ordinance comprehensively, so he is happy to see it back on the docket.

Council referred the matter to the Committee of the Whole.

Mayor Summers then asked Council to consider a resolution that recognizes two Lakewood Heritage Advisory Board (LHAB) members on the completion of their terms. Marcia Moll was a member of LHAB for 20 years while Heather Rudge was for 18 years. Considering the fact that the LHAB came into existence 20 years ago, much of what LHAB has accomplished andb is thanks to the hard work of these two women. LHAB has been a part of declaring historic districts and properties in Lakewood, they worked hard in helping create the first and current manifestation of Lakewood’s landmark legislation, and they hold an annual public ceremony to award property and home owners with Preservation Awards.

Council passed the resolution.

Next Planning and Development Director, Dru Siley, introduced a new version of the City’s sign ordinance. Last year the Planning Department began a comprehensive review of the sign ordinance with the goal of making sure it complied with the values in the City’s Community Vision. During this process a Supreme Court ruling was made that impacts the way sign codes are structured. Therefore the Planning Department had to revisit the code with these new restrictions in mind. With the code finally completed it is being submitted for Council’s consideration.

Council simultaneously referred the ordinance to both the Committee of the Whole and the Planning Commission.

Director Siley then asked Council to consider changes to an ordinance regulating the outdoor use of electric and fuel burning cooking devices. A plan for several new townhomes with decks on top of the garages are being considered and the City wants to make sure they have a clear and safe code that is enforceable.

Council referred the ordinance to the Housing Committee.

Coming to the end of the agenda, Council President O’Leary began calling up members of the public who had signed up to address Council. Three members of Save Lakewood Hospital who have become regulars to the meetings spoke to Council in addition to several people in regards to a suspected pit bull. The City recently informed a family that their dog is suspected of being a pit bull and that a hearing was scheduled for February 23 to determine that fact and whether it can say in Lakewood.

The dog, Scrappy, belongs to Aleeah Williams, a 4 year old girl with cystic fibrosis, and her father. Elizabeth Spais, Aleeah’s grandmother, was one of the people who attended the meeting to relay their story and begged the City to allow Scrappy to stay.

The family acquired the dog a year ago when they were living in Cleveland and had no indication what the breed might be. To treat Aleeah’s condition she must do daily breathing treatments in addition to having to wear a vest that shakes her violently for 15 minutes, twice a day. The dog has become a constant companion and after struggling with Aleeah over her treatments she now sits calmly and plays with Scrappy who stays by her side and comforts her through them.

On July 4, after the fireworks in Lakewood Park, Aleeah was struck by a firecracker on their walk home. She received third degree burns on her arm and chest. In addition to her other daily treatments, burn treatments were added and it became apparent to Aleeah’s father that he could not do it alone, so he moved in with his parents who lived in Lakewood. Ms. Spais said that during Aleeah’s excruciating burn treatments Scrappy stayed by her side through the screams and tears. “She would scream for 15 minutes, and I can’t believe the police were not called because the screams were hideous,” she said.

She continued saying, “At this point, with everything she has gone through, I can’t fathom the idea of having to sit this child down and say, they’re coming to take your dog away.”

She closed by asking Council reconsider the pit bull ban in general, but “at the very least allow us to have Aleeah continue to have a dog.”

Law Director Kevin Butler then summarized the process the city takes when it identifies a dog suspect of being a pit bull, for the sake of the members of Council. He did state that there are certain exemptions in the code that allow pit bulls in the city, such as for service animals. He then went on to clarify for the members of the public that the process of identifying and removing pit bulls from the city is codified and therefore neither Council nor the Administration are able to make exemptions. It would take a change of the legislation to allow for that.

In addition, Director Butler mentioned that comfort care and assistance animals, as defined under certain federal laws, don’t automatically qualify as service animals. This class of animal, he stated, is not explicitly identified in the ordinance and offered that it is a policy Council could consider addressing.

With no further business before Council, President O’Leary adjourned the meeting at 8:43 P.M.

Christopher Bindel

I have been a Lakewood resident my entire life and have been covering the Council meetings for the LO since March of 2009. I am a former Mayoral appointee to the Citicens Advisory Committee, a Council appointee to the Board of Zoning Appeals, on the Board of Directors for Pillars of Lakewood, and President of Eaters of Lakewood.

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Volume 12, Issue 4, Posted 2:15 PM, 02.02.2016