Cleveland Heights council presses mayor on staff safety, nonemployee access after administrator resigns

A special meeting of the Cleveland Heights City Council Committee of the Whole on April 2 focused on staff safety, alleged workplace misconduct and whether nonemployees have improper access to City Hall after the recent resignation of City Administrator Dan Horrigan. Council members pressed the mayor for details about an ongoing human-resources inquiry and asked the law director to research council’s authority to regulate access to city property.

The meeting drew renewed attention after a public records release and news coverage tied to Horrigan’s departure. Dan Horrigan, who resigned after roughly 2½ months on the job, told the council in a memo that “Your wife's presence here at City Hall has caused a number of employees to feel uncomfortable and at least 1 occasion unsafe,” and asked that the mayor’s wife “discontinue her presence here at City Hall and refrain from directing city Cleveland Heights staff in their work capacity.” Council members read aloud and cited that…