Sanduskians for Mayor/Ward

Talking Points

[ Home ] [ Advantages ] [ Charter Amendment Petition - Highlighted ] [ Links ] [ Ohio Mayors ] [ ORC ] [ ORC & peculiar - differing viewpoint to that of Sandusky's law director ] [ Politics vs No Politics ] [ City Manager vs Mayor ] [ More on Sandusky's municipal government ] [ What is good city government? ] [ Exception - thoughts about the City not getting competitive bids from engineering and architectural firms ] [ Term Limits ] [ Talking Points ] [ Register ] [ Proposed Changes ] [ Petition Rules ] [ Websites Index ]

 

April 27, 2001

1. Over the last two months, a group of residents of the City came together to discuss the interest and wisdom of providing for a local government where the Chief Executive Officer of the City is one who is directly elected by the people (Mayor) as opposed to one hired by the City Commission (Manager), and whether there should be a ward system to better represent various constituencies.

2. After an initial meeting, it was arranged to consult with the political science department of Bowling Green State University to learn more about the two types of Municipal Government and the effectiveness of each.

3. On January 20th, 2001 Dr. Rob Alexander, Ph.D. appeared before the group and made a presentation lasting almost two hours. The following points were established by Dr. Alexander:

  • Presently there are more City Manager forms of government than Mayor forms of government across the country; however, the clear trend over the last decade and even since the late 1980s has been a movement toward more Mayor forms of government. 

  • City Manager forms of government's strength is administrative expertise and tends to be more prominent in smaller cities where the manager bay have to war many administrative hats, i.e. economic development, human relations director, services director, etc.; however, in larger cities where there are separate heads of department and where there is more of a diverse population, the Mayor form of government seems to be the preferred method. The strength of the Mayor form of government is that it is more responsive to the citizens of the community and is better able to build consensus. It was also pointed out that in the Mayor form of government a chief administrative assistant, i.e.. safety services directory, vice-mayor, could be appointed to handle administrative matters.

4. After much discussion and given the size of the City of Sandusky, the fact that each department has its own administrative head who possesses the administrative expertise for that department, and that the City's residents are very diverse in racial, ethnic and socio-economic terms, the consensus was to pursue a suitable Mayor form of government of the City of Sandusky.

5. The group then reviewed different types of Mayor forms of government (the ORC and Norwalk City Charter)

6. The group also took into consideration the need for providing a smooth transition from the present form of government to a Mayor form of government. For example, the following points were considered:

  • the present number of City Commissioners

  • when is the next election for four Commissioners

  • who should establish the four wards

  • when does the present City Manager intend upon retiring

  • providing for no disruption in City services and maintaining expertise in the heads of the departments (it is anticipated that there will be very little change, if any, in the employment status of most of the City's employees and heads of departments)

  • how to maximize accountability in the Mayor and yet provide for proper checks and balances

  • how to provide the City Council members with pay increases commensurate with their duties and yet accountable to the electorate

7. The group at all times conducted itself in a very positive manner. This is not and has never been a referendum on any member of the City Commission or Administration. It is the group's position that all members of the City Commission and the Administration have been of great service to the City and its residents. However, the group believes that the citizens of the City should have a right to directly elect the person who will be the CEO of the City;; the person who runs the day to day operations of the City of Sandusky. Further, whether the Mayor system is the most effective and responsive form of government is not necessarily the issue; but rather, who is better to decide this question than the citizens of the City of Sandusky at the election booth on November 6, 2001.

 

 

[ Back ] [ Home ] [ Next ]

"Where there is a strong mayor, there is a well-run city, which attracts residents and visitors," Ingraham said.

Website maintained by BFGregory -  no money has been spent on this website.