A major story is brewing in North College Hill,
where reformist politicians, citizen activists and public interest attorneys
have been trying valiantly to reform the corrupt City, and have encountered
legal and political obstacles aplenty in response. This is a City that
will not reform easily.
Here are the bullet points:
1.
The City just last week experienced a second mayor
resignation since the last election. Read about that here.
2.
There is an election this fall for the Mayoral and
all Council seats, determining the direction of the City for coming four years.
The City until now has been in the grips -- as you will see below -- of
the bureaucrats and City Solicitor, who have something other than the best
interest of the public in mind. The reformers have a strong candidate for
Mayor in place and may capture control of the municipality.
3.
The reformers already control City Council, but the
administration and City Solicitor have been manipulating municipal governance
to attempt to place any reforms behind the control of the Council.
Now, what's going on?
· In
2011, the City hired the City Manager's wife to be "Economic
Developer" for the salary of $41,000.
· But in
order to boost the City Manager's OPERS retirement plan calculation, the
Manager's salary was increased by that amount, and the wife was paid nothing.
Under Ohio PERS calculations, retirement payments are based upon the
last three years of salary.
· Five of
seven NCH Council members voted in favor of the ruse to mislead OPERS.
· When
caught red-handed with the ruse, which was documented in writing, OPERS ruled
that NCH was paying the Manager "$41,000 fora position that
he does not hold and for work he does not
perform."
· Then,
the City administration and Solicitor switched stories, and began to claim that
the wife of the Manager was never serving as "Economic Developer" and
the City Manager was at all times performing those duties.
· This
was so even though the Council approved the pay increase based upon the City
Manager's wife performing those duties (two for the price of one!) and the City
Manager continued to tell Council for several years that his wife was
performing those duties. Indeed in 2012, the wife made a public appearance
at the NCH Business Association as NCH Economic Developer. She also
appeared at Council as the “Economic Development Director” in 2012. Council
was never told that the wife was not performing those duties until the Spring
of 2014.
· There
is a taxpayer lawsuit to fix all of this before Judge Robert Ruehlman that has
reached the stage of cross-motions for summary judgment. Pleadings in
that case are linked here.
· In
addition, Council has now passed resolutions to return the City Manager’s salary
to the amount that existed before the $41,000 “Economic Developer” ruse.
However, the City Administration continues to illegally pay him at the higher
salary, and refuses to stop the illegal expenditures.
So, through litigation or elections, the fleecing
of the taxpayers of North College Hill could stop this fall. It is up to the voters and Judge Ruehlman if
these clearly illegal expenditures continue.
Columbia Township has some of the same problems. Lack of transparency from the trustees and administration. Employee raises above inflation. tax and spend policies.
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