Residents press council about safety director vacancy, polygraph waiver and public records requests

Two residents used the City Council's public-comment period on Tuesday to press elected leaders about the city's vacant safety director position, to request records about a police promotion waiver, and to urge a quicker plan to address budget shortfalls tied to a recent failed safety levy.

Stephen Wilkinson of Kingston told council members he would make public-records requests directly to Council President Keller for a waiver that allowed Ken Fisher not to take a polygraph as part of his hiring and for any communications among several named officials from March 8, 2023, to May 1, 2023. "I would like to make a public records request for the waiver that Ken Fisher got to not take a polygraph and to be hired, who gave the waiver, and why it was given," Wilkinson said. He added he has outstanding public-records requests from earlier in 2024 that he says were not fulfilled.

Zachary Brooks, a resident of 832 Atwater Avenue, also urged the council to fill the safety director post and to produce a plan for budget cuts after what he described as the recent failure of a safety levy. "This is a position that nobody else on council, nobody in the administration is qualified to do," Brooks said. He pressed for a permanent hire rather than an interim arrangement.

Mayor Michelle Blanton responded that the safety director is appointed by the mayor's office and said she has not received broad feedback on how the role should be filled. When asked whether the position would be opened for hire now, Blanton said, "At this time, no." She told the council she would "evaluate" the matter now that concerns had been raised publicly and later told a council member she expects to present a plan to address budget cuts by the end of the first quarter.

Council President Keller clarified that the safety director is an appointed position and indicated the mayor would make decisions about filling it. During public comments, Wilkinson said he had learned from the law director that the current police chief was granted a waiver for a polygraph; that claim was presented as Wilkinson's account and not confirmed as a formal council record during the meeting.

What happened next: Wilkinson asked the council president to accept an emailed public-records request and to respond; Keller asked Wilkinson to submit the request through the city website and said staff would respond following standard public-records procedures.

Why it matters: Council members and residents framed the vacancy and the handling of public-safety staffing as connected to city liability and to the operational readiness of police and fire services. Residents asked for transparency about personnel decisions and for clarity on how the city will manage service levels after revenue shortfalls.

The council did not take formal action on the safety director post at the Jan. 21 meeting. No vote or formal appointment related to the safety director occurred during the meeting. The mayor and council members said they would consider the concerns raised and that staff would follow up on requested records.

Ending note: The public-comment speakers asked for documents and for a more definitive timeline; city staff instructed them to submit formal records requests through the city website so the city can process them under Ohio public-records law.