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Richmond Heights council approves slate of appointments, contracts and equipment purchases; one abstention on finance director vote
Summary
The Richmond Heights City Council on Jan. 13 approved a series of resolutions including appointments to the Belle Oaks authority and Greenwood Farm board, several procurement agreements for vehicles and equipment, and intergovernmental and engineering contracts; Councilmember Nelson abstained on the finance director appointment.
The Richmond Heights City Council approved a package of resolutions on Jan. 13 that included multiple board appointments, contracts for services and purchases of vehicles and equipment.
Mayor Kim A. Thomas introduced the measures, and the council voted to approve Resolutions 1-2026 through 3-2026 and 5-2026 through 11-2026 and 13-2026, typically after motions to suspend the rules. The agenda items approved included: appointing Rachel Gardiner as the city’s appointee to the Belle Oaks New Community Authority board (Resolution 1-2026); appointing Thomas E. Fountain as another Belle Oaks appointee (Resolution 2-2026); appointing Cherita Shaw to the Greenwood Farm Historical, Cultural & Arts Association board (Resolution 3-2026); authorizing an agreement with TruGreen Commercial for lawn services at city properties (Resolution 5-2026); authorizing purchase agreements with Liberty Ford for multiple 2026 Ford vehicles for public service, fire, police and recreation use (Resolution 6-2026); purchasing a 2026 wheel loader through Sourcewell (Resolution 7-2026); procuring fleet-management software from Ron Turley Associates LLC (Resolution 8-2026); entering a memorandum of understanding with the Cuyahoga Soil and Water Conservation District for NPDES stormwater permit measures (Resolution 9-2026); contracting Verdantas for engineering services for the Edgewood Road improvement project (Resolution 10-2026); approving a second amendment to the contract with Senior Transportation Connection of Cuyahoga County for transportation service (Resolution 11-2026); and authorizing an interfund transfer for fiscal year 2026 (Resolution 13-2026). The ordinance to amend Section 131.04 of the Administrative Code regarding contracting authority of the mayor (Ordinance 12-2026) was held on first reading.
Most measures were adopted unanimously after council moved to suspend the rules. One item drew a recorded abstention: Resolution 4-2026, which approved Mayor Thomas’s appointment of Travian M. Atkins as director of finance. The roll-call record in the meeting shows a 6–0 tally with Councilmember Nelson abstaining. Nelson said she “knows some other information and wants to check something out first” and told the council she was not comfortable explaining her rationale for abstaining during the public meeting. Council President Bobby Jordan asked Nelson to reconsider; the meeting record includes a statement from Hunt regarding how the city’s codified ordinances treat refusals to vote when an abstention lacks a proper reason. The council president stated that the motion had passed.
No other recorded votes opposed approval; the meeting minutes show motions passed by unanimous consent for the items listed above.
The council adjourned at 8:43 p.m.; Tracey Blair, clerk of council, took the minutes.
