• Michael McDonald retires from his position as Community Relations Second District Representative

    PHOTO BY CHUCK HOVEN Wednesday, February 5, 2025; Retirement party for Community Relations Second District Representative Michael McDonald, Sachsenheim Hall, 7001 Denison Avenue: (L-R) Ward 13 Council Member Kris Harsh, Lynn Scheerhorn, Michael McDonald, Ward 12 Council Member Rebecca Maurer, and Ward 16 Council Member Brian Kazy.      (Plain Press March 2025) Friends, family, and…


  • Voter registration and turnout varies greatly by City Council Ward

    by Chuck Hoven      (Plain Press December 2024) Data from the Cuyahoga County Board of Election’s website shows a smaller percentage of Cuyahoga County’s registered voters chose to vote in 2024 than in the previous two presidential elections in 2020 and 2016. Out of the 894,091 registered voters in Cuyahoga County, there were 587,282 ballots…


  • Neighborhood Family practice receives Council support for new facility

      (Plain Press November 2024) Cleveland City Council announced at its October 14th meeting the awarding of a $500,000 federal Urban Development Action Grant (UDAG) loan to Neighborhood Family Practice to help finance a new facility at W. 130th & Lorain Avenue.   According to a statement from Cleveland City Council, the legislation, sponsored by…


  • Participatory Budgeting Cleveland wants public involved in decisions about spending of American Rescue Act funds

    PHOTO BY TAURUS KINGS PHOTOGRAPHY Members of the Participatory Budgeting Cleveland Team:  Gwen Garth, Trevor Pollack, Laylah Allen, Molly Martin, Austin Davis, Robin Brown, Loh, Daniel Ortiz, Angelique Salizan, Kayla Knight, Chrissy Stonebraker-Martinez, and Jonathan Welle. Participatory Budgeting Cleveland wants public involved in decisions about spending of American Rescue Act funds by Bruce Checefsky (Plain Press,…


  • The Pace of Passage: How Quickly City Council Makes Laws and What That Means for Clevelanders 

    The Pace of Passage: How Quickly City Council Makes Laws and What That Means for Clevelanders  by Doug Breehl-Pitorak,  Cleveland Documenters (Plain Press, October 2021)   During a July forum for mayoral candidates, Cleveland City Council President Kevin Kelley answered what seemed like a simple question: “What are your thoughts on what constitutes adequate public notice and…


  • Council members balk at $20M ‘blank check’ for citywide broadband pilot

    Council members balk at $20M ‘blank check’ for citywide broadband pilot by Lee Chilcote (Plain Press, October 2021)   A proposal to allocate $20 million to help bridge the digital divide in Cleveland by creating citywide broadband met with some opposition at Monday’s city council meeting, with some members asking why there wasn’t more community involvement or a concrete plan…


  • Low voter turnout allows small pockets of voters to determine results in Cleveland’s Primary Election

    Low voter turnout allows small pockets of voters to determine results in Cleveland’s Primary Election by Chuck Hoven    Only 15% of Cleveland’s 247,742 eligible voters voted in the Primary Election. A total of 38,360 Clevelanders cast votes in the primary according to the unofficial preliminary results from the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections. 13,506 of…


  • City Club hosts Clevelanders for Public Comment in a forum and a mock public comments session

    City Club hosts Clevelanders for Public Comment in a forum and a mock public comments session by Chuck Hoven (Plain Press, May 2021)      The resident led movement, Clevelanders for Public Comment, now has a majority of Cleveland City Council — nine members — committed to passing legislation written by Near West Side activist Jessica Trivisonno that…


  • Precinct Committee members select Martin Sweeney to represent District Three in Cuyahoga County Council

    (Plain Press, February 2021) At a January 14th virtual Candidate Forum, three candidates –Brendan Heil, Ryan Ross, and Martin Sweeney — vied to be the representative for Cuyahoga Council District 3 for the remainder of the term of retiring County Council member Dan Brady. The term expires in 2022. The candidates were not seeking a vote of…


  • Customers voice concerns about how Cleveland Public Power treats them

    Customers voice concerns about how Cleveland Public Power treats them (Plain Press, November 2019)        Cleveland Public Power (CPP) customers brought concerns about the services and practices of the power company to a public hearing held on October 17th. The hearing was hosted by the End Poverty Now Coalition and held at St. Paul’s Community…