Residents pressing the newly seated North Ridgeville council for fiscal transparency opened the Nov. 17 meeting, urging a formal forensic audit and limitations on the city’s use of emergency legislation.

Greg Fanning, of 6025 Havencrest Court, told council that the recent vote rejecting Issue 8 by 32.81% was a mandate for “accountability, transparency, honesty, and fiscal responsibility.” Fanning named specific expenditures — new gateway signs, City Hall renovations and recent hires including an arborist — and questioned why such items appeared while the administration sought additional tax revenue. “If the city cannot afford basic infrastructure … then why are we paying an arborist?” he asked, adding: “What do you have to hide?”

Robert Baumgartner of 6327 Stony Brook Road urged council to “reassert your authority” and curb what he described as routine misuse of the emergency clause, saying the clause had been used to extend a 180-day smoke-shop moratorium and to approve other measures without public input. “When everything is treated as an emergency, nothing is,” he said, urging the council to reserve emergency powers for true threats to public health, safety or financial stability.

Council members pushed back and sought clarification. Finance Director (name not given in transcript) said the city is audited annually by the Auditor of State and that those audits examine records and fund summaries; she said she could not predict whether an additional forensic audit would produce information beyond the state audit. Council member Winkle, chairing finance, described a recent 14‑hour budget review and said staff would work to make the budget and supporting materials more accessible to the public.

No formal vote on a forensic audit or changes to emergency-clause policy occurred during the meeting. Several speakers framed their requests as instructions for the incoming council and pointed to next steps: improved budget transparency, public availability of committee materials and possible policy changes to emergency-clause use.

The council took no immediate legislative action on the audit request at this meeting; the issues raised may inform upcoming finance committee and council discussions.