April 28, 2008, 7 p.m., Garfield School.

First, I would like to thank Superintendent Estrop for making this wonderful new facility available to us this evening. Garfield School is a perfect example of what Lakewood can achieve when we work together, and it is particularly compelling because this building is a blend of the new and the old Lakewood.

I would also like to thank Council President Mike Dever and all of the members of Lakewood City Council for their attendance here this evening. Lakewood is fortunate to have an excellent City Council, and I say that not just because they have been supportive of my efforts in the first 100 days. Although, I would not say it is often or as loudly if they hadn't been. But, I say it because they have an oversight function, which I respect, and which they have exercised in these 100 days, and our local government is the better for it.

It was an uncommonly quiet Lakewood City Council meeting on Monday, March 31. In fifty minutes and with very little discussion, Council completed the process of approving the 2008 budget. Lakewood City Council President Michael Dever summarized the process that was used to develop the 2008 budget. Considered were recommendations by the Grow Lakewood Task Force, the development of a fiscal strength strategy, a core service survey of 470 city services and functions, and a municipal peer staffing comparison that compares the City of Lakewood’s staffing levels with five regional peers. In addition, the City of Lakewood Budget projections were examined and confirmed by the State Auditor’s office. The results of a performance audit released in a report on March 27, 2008 were also considered...

On Wednesday April 23rd, 2008 the Lakewood Police Department received a request for assistance from the Cleveland Office of the ATF. A 33yr old Lakewood man had been electronically corresponding with a juvenile in Indiana. The two were planning to commit a shooting incident at an Indiana school...

Starting this summer Lakewood residents should see more police officers on the streets and in the parks thanks to a public safety initiative Mayor Edward FitzGerald and Police Chief Timothy Malley unveiled during a public meeting on April 23...

Here are some photos from the April 25th Arbor Day celebration at Lakewood park.

On April 5th the Lakewood High School East Cafeteria and Civic Auditorium were teaming with hundreds of fitness and bodybuilding enthusiasts. The "2008 Vyotech Nutritional NPC Natural Ohio Drug Tested Bodybuilding and Figure Championships" received a record number of fans. Hundreds filed into the East Cafeteria for the fitness expo and to buy tickets for the bodybuilding and figure contest...

Read any issue of the Lakewood Observer and you’ll find many articles promoting races, runs, walks and community festivals. Add to that a calendar packed with high school sporting events in one of the region’s best stadiums and you have the recipe for an active, vibrant community...

Lakewood, Ohio, resident Zoe Lukens, ‘09, the daughter of Thomas and Nancy Lukens of Lakewood, presented her research on “The Search for Nationalism: Success and Failure in Senegal and Cote d’Ivoire” at the 32nd Annual Beloit College Student Symposium on Thursday, April 10. She is an Anthropology major...

It was a small public turnout for tonight’s Lakewood City Council meeting. Council President Michael Dever called the meeting to order at 7:37 p.m. Clerk of Council Mary Hagan called the role. All members of council were in attendance as well as Mayor Ed Fitzgerald and all department directors. The docket for the evening was 65 pages with 36 agenda items...

April is the month for Lakewood residents entering grades 6-9 next fall to register for H2O “Help to Others” Summer Service Camp. Registration forms are available at both Lakewood Public Libraries and Lakewood Division of Youth. Interested families can also access more information or download forms on the Division of Youth webpage at the City’s website: www.onelakewood.com. H2O Summer Service Camp is operated by the City of Lakewood, Dept. of Human Services, Division of Youth...

On Thursday, March 27th, while the FitzGerald administration and Lakewood city council neared finalization of cuts to a crisis budget, our national debt broke yet another record high at $9,412,362,408,343.83, an increase of approximately $18,232,806,983.13 from the preceding day, according to the National Treasury. Only months earlier, Ohio Governor Ted Strickland's office released an estimated budget shortfall of between $733 million and $1.9 billion for the 2008 fiscal year...

In February of 2007, a memorandum of understanding to sell Kaufman Park was signed by Thomas Jordon, Director of Planning and Development under the George administration. The signed memorandum states a sale price of $1,925,000, approximately $192,000 per acre.

The memorandum was signed by the City and Giltz and Associates, Inc, an Ohio Corporation. Not an official sales agreement, the memorandum was subject to “Planning Commission and Council Approval”. It and related documents were obtained through a public records request made to the City in early 2008...

A capacity crowd filled the city hall auditorium on March 27th for the final hearing before the council's vote to approve the 2008 budget. The budgetary process, consisting of at least a dozen meetings over the last three months, has suddenly piqued the publics interest. Many long and tedious hours had already been spent by the administration, council members and a few curious onlookers debating the viability and necessity of each department and division...

A Walkable Lakewood: Why it is important for our health, our economy, and our safety...

First of all, let us begin by thanking all of our customers who kept their sidewalks, porches, and steps free of snow. For those who went the extra mile and put a box at ground level so the carrier did not have to go up steps unnecessarily, special thanks to you!!!

My 21-year-old daughter and I live in an apartment on Clifton Blvd. where parking is not available. We park on the street. On Friday, March 14th, the evening of the big snow storm, a no-parking ban went into effect on Clifton Blvd. For those of us who park on Clifton, we scrambled to find a space on the nearest side street. I called the Lakewood Police Department to check on the status of the parking ban. The parking ban would be in effect through Saturday and side streets would be included, Iwas told. The person on the phone stated emphatically that cars will be towed on Saturday if not moved off the side streets. Neither my daughter nor I could afford the cost of a ticket and a tow so we asked where we could park. The closest location was Lakewood City Hall, about a half mile from our home...

In a Special Board of Education Meeting on Tuesday, March 17th, the Lakewood Board of Education approved a new contract for the Lakewood Teachers Association. The two-year contract will go into effect on August 1, 2008 and will terminate on July 31, 2010.

According to treasurer Rick Berdine, the new contract will not result in cost increases, due mostly to attrition through retirements. Board president Charles Geiger added that the school board and administration have worked diligently to ensure fiscal responsibility through the development of the new budget, staying within the limits of a five-year financial projection...

Expenditure growth has outpaced revenue growth resulting in structural imbalance of the General Fund since 2000 for the City of Lakewood.
The General Fund is the primary operating fund for the City that supports services such as police, fire, refuse collection, and parks. General Fund revenues are generated primarily through income tax, licenses, fees, and property tax collections.
To balance the annual General Fund Balance, year-end fund balances were used resulting in the depletion of this safety net from over $5.6 million at the end of 1999 to a year-end fund balance of under $350,000 in 2007....

On February 26th, Lakewood Alive held an informative meeting giving the public an overview of the financial challenges facing the city of Lakewood. The members of the panel for this discussion were: Mayor Edward FitzGerald, Finance Director Jennifer Pae, Councilman Mike Summers, Yvette Ittu, CFO Greater Cleveland Partnership and former Lakewood Finance Director, and Kevin Obrien, Executive Director for the Center of Public Management...

On a snowy Tuesday, Febraruar 26, in spite of the local Obama-Clinton debate, many Lakewood residents packed a room at Harrison Jr. High to listen to "Making 'Cents' of Lakewood's Finances",a presentation sponsored by Lakewood Alive. In the presentation, numerous speakers talked about the economy in northern Ohio. The two initial speakers described the economic situation in Cuyahoga County, but it was the discussion of Lakewood's financial situation that motivated the residents to leave their warm living rooms and TVs...

The Lakewood Chamber of Commerce and the Lakewood City Schools Community Education and Recreation Department are excited to bring the LAKEWOOD HOME SHOW back to Lakewood on March 8 and 9...

Celebrate your love of Lakewood by buying the sweeties in your life a Lakewood Gift Certificate for Valentine's Day!

Lakewood Gift Certificates are available in denominations of $5, $10 and $20, and can be purchased at Phoenix Coffee at 15106 Detroit or Geiger's Clothing and Sports at 14710 Detroit Avenue...

On Saturday, January 14, the City held one of many public meetings to discuss the 2008 budget. Saturday’s meeting pertained to internal service funds and capital expenditures. Internal funds are transfers between departments that pay for such things as health care insurance; capital improvement funds are those used to buy equipment that exceed a certain dollar amount...