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Broadview Heights council debates term limits, committee selection and public input for charter review
Summary
Councilors debated adding the mayor to proposed term limits, considered changing how the Charter Review Committee is appointed, and discussed resident access and transparency after a constituent raised concerns about committee notices.
Councilor Joe Price proposed expanding a pending charter amendment on term limits to include the mayor and asked the council to sponsor placing the proposal before voters. "I would like to have similar language created ... to include all elected officials," Price said, urging the council to give residents the choice in November.
The council discussed the Charter Commission’s recent recommendations and vote tallies; Council President Robert Boldt said the commission voted 7–2 to apply term limits to council and 6–2 against a mayoral limit, and that he abstained on one vote. Law Director Vince Ruffa confirmed the reported counts. Price said he favored a 12-year (three consecutive four-year terms) cap to preserve stability while creating turnover opportunities.
Councilor Jennifer Mahnic voiced strong opposition to term limits, arguing residents already have the ability to remove or reelect officials at regular elections. "Our residents set their own term limits for us at reelection," Mahnic said, urging caution about limiting long-serving local officials.
On the Charter Review Committee, Price proposed changing the selection process so the mayor would appoint the chair while each council member would appoint one committee member. Price said the revision would reduce perceptions the committee is "slanted" or "stacked." Mayor Samuel J. Alai pushed back, saying the existing process includes mayoral picks and council recommendations and warned that altering the committee immediately after it completed its work could be perceived as undermining that body.
Councilors debated balancing appointment authority and transparency. Councilor Glenn Goodwin and Councilor Brian Dunlap argued distributing appointment authority evenly among council members would improve perceived fairness and public confidence. Dunlap said annual convenings and clearer notice could engage more residents.
Councilor Jennifer Mahnic relayed concerns from a resident (identified in discussion as Mr. Tarter) who said website notices made it unclear when the public could speak to the Charter Review Committee. Ruffa advised that the council could provide guidance and "guide rails" for committees rather than amending the charter for every procedural detail, noting that placing procedural rules into the charter can make future changes difficult.
Council President Boldt said the council will continue discussion at the next work session when a full council is present, and members expressed support for putting some of these questions before voters so residents can decide.
The work session did not record a final vote on any of these proposals; councilors agreed to revisit the items at a future meeting.
