Erie council advances multiple ordinances, rejects home-rule referendum vote

City Council of Erie considered a string of ordinances and resolutions on Jan. 22, 2025, adopting most measures while rejecting a proposed ordinance to authorize a May referendum on creating a home-rule charter study commission.

The council approved a change to the city's sidewalk-closure rules to exempt short-term closures by public utilities, amended the rental-housing code to exclude the Housing Authority of the City of Erie from the landlord definition, and passed a parking-in-bike-lane restriction. The council also read several grant-appropriation ordinances on first reading, and approved local historic designations. A resolution approving the Higher Education Building Authority to issue bonds for Gannon University passed with one abstention.

The action list below captures the formal outcomes announced during the meeting and the sponsors or procedural notes recorded on the record.

Votes at a glance

- Ordinance (Council file 16492 / Official Ordinance 3, 2025) — amendment to Article 101 to authorize a referendum to study a home-rule charter. Sponsor: Council Member Nelson; second: Council Member Titus. Outcome: failed on final passage, vote tally 3 yes, 4 no.

- Ordinance (Council file 16493 / Official Ordinance 4, 2025) — amendment to Article 521 to prohibit parking in bike lanes (lanes of travel). Sponsor: Council Member Nelson; second: Council Member Schauff. Outcome: passed on final passage, yeas 4, nays 3.

- Ordinance (Council file 16494 / Official Ordinance 5, 2025) — amend Article 7 1911 to exempt short-term closures by public utilities from sidewalk-closure permit requirement. Sponsor: Council Member Brzezinski; second: Council Member Titus. Outcome: passed on final passage, unanimous 7–0.

- Ordinance (Council file 16495 / Official Ordinance 6, 2025) — amend rental-housing definitions to exclude the Housing Authority of the City of Erie from the definition of "landlord." Sponsor: Council Member Witherspoon; second: Council Member Brzezinski. Outcome: passed on final passage, unanimous 7–0.

- Ordinances read and adopted on first reading (all announced as 7–0 on first reading): council file 16496 (appropriating $100,000 from PHFA / FAIR for owner-occupant repair grants), council file 16497 (appropriating $1,000,000 for a DOJ BJA FY24 auto-theft enforcement grant), council file 16498 (appropriating $81,889 for DOJ FY24 JAG program police equipment), and council file 16499 (appropriating $1,000,000 from ARP fund interest to the capital improvement fund). Council file 16500 was pulled by the sponsor.

- Historic structure designations (resolutions) — local designation of 411 State Street and 1372 West 6th Street under Article 7 (historic resource protection). Action: resolutions approved, 7–0.

- Resolution approving the City of Erie Higher Education Building Authority to undertake a project for Gannon University and to issue bonds. Sponsor: Council Member Shaw; second: Council Member Titus. Outcome: resolution passed; Council President Witherspoon abstained and the resolution passed with a 6–0 recorded vote and one abstention on the record.

Context and next steps

Several ordinances took effect after final passage; others were advanced on first reading and will return for additional council action. The failed home-rule ordinance means the council declined, by a 3–4 vote, to place the proposed May referendum on the ballot; sponsors and opponents debated timeline, petition deadlines, and public outreach during the discussion.

No additional formal follow-up motions were recorded in the meeting minutes for the failed home-rule item; separate committees and staff follow-up were referenced for grant administration and implementation tasks tied to several first-reading appropriations.