Mayor presses for receivership action on long‑running nuisance property, faults committee for inaction

Mayor Brennan told council he and Housing and Community Development Director Markell Davis and the city prosecutor spent the day in Cuyahoga County court seeking appointment of a receiver to address a property at 4394 Groveland Road that the city has long judged a nuisance. He said the property has been in and out of court for more than 20 years and that the city’s prior request for a receiver had been denied; he described the house as a threat to public health, safety and welfare and urged action.

"The current and ongoing condition of this house is a threat to the public health, safety and welfare of residents," Brennan said, and he asked the court to appoint a receiver to clean out and rehabilitate the property.

Separately, Brennan asked that council take the long‑pending request to add a longstanding coordinator position in Housing and Community Development back out of the Building & Housing Committee and refer it to the Committee of the Whole for discussion and an up‑or‑down vote. He said the department is understaffed and that the committee had declined to hear the matter.

Councilmember Winifred Weizer disputed that characterization, saying the committee had been working with the administration and that staffing and clarifications between SafeBuilt (building) and Housing had been discussed. She said the committee planned a deep discussion of staffing and expected vacancies to be filled soon.

No formal referral was made during the meeting; the mayor asked for the item to be scheduled for the Committee of the Whole.