YOUNGSTOWN Council letter supports agreement with CIC

No lawmaker asked why the legislation was being revived before voting yes.
By DAVID SKOLNICK
and PETER H. MILLIKEN
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITERS
YOUNGSTOWN -- City council erred when it passed a nonbinding resolution of intent to end its relationship with downtown's redevelopment agency and has every intention of honoring its agreement, said Councilman James E. Fortune Sr.
Fortune, D-6th and chairman of council's finance committee, said the proposal to end the city's agreement with the Youngstown Central Area Community Improvement Corp. was accidentally placed in a "big packet of house-cleaning legislation" he submitted from his committee to council for consideration earlier this week.
"We got something confused; there is no intention of disrupting the CIC," said Fortune, the Democratic nominee for council president.
Fortune received signatures Friday from the six other city council members and council President John R. Swierz on a letter supporting the CIC's involvement in plans to build an $8 million addition to the George V. Voinovich Government Center. The state Bureau of Workers' Compensation and the Mahoning County Children Services Board would move to the addition and bring 130 jobs to downtown.
"Needless to say, any confusion regarding the status of the [CIC] will create a climate of uncertainty and reluctance during the decision-making process," the council letter reads.
Background
Legislation to dissolve the city's agreement with the CIC was submitted by Swierz, then-7th Ward councilman, and Councilman Ron Sefcik, D-4th, in November 2001 to the finance committee. At the time, council agreed to give the agency six months to produce more results.
The legislation sat in Fortune's files until this week.
Each summer, Fortune said, he takes proposed legislation from his committee, some of it quite old, and brings it to council for consideration. Fortune said he inadvertently included the CIC nonbinding resolution in the packet of a half-dozen or so pieces of legislation he gave to council to consider this week.
"My committee has so much old legislation that during the summer recess, we clean it out," Fortune said. "We were doing a summer housecleaning and that got confused and crossed up. Once that happened, we moved expeditiously."
Council voted 6-0 Wednesday in favor of passing the nonbinding resolutionto authorize the city's controlling board to dissolve the agreement later this month.
Councilman Artis Gillam Sr., D-1st and the CIC vice president, was the only one of the seven council members who did not attend the meeting.
Council's action came as a separate vote on that item alone, not on a combined series of resolutions or ordinances, and followed a brief discussion about the mechanics of enacting the measure. That discussion occurred during a finance committee meeting immediately before the full council meeting.
In the meeting
In the committee meeting, city Assistant Law Director Kathleen Slavens explained to the members that they'd have to pass a subsequent ordinance authorizing the board of control to dissolve the city-CIC agreement.
That agreement designates the CIC as the city's agent for development downtown.
None of the lawmakers asked why the dormant resolution was being revived. Nor did they discuss the merits of, or reasoning behind, the resolution, either in committee or on the council floor.
Asked Saturday night if he had discussed the matter individually with any members before Wednesday's vote, Fortune said no.
After further review, however, council members changed their minds.
"Everything is fine with them," Fortune said of the CIC. "The CIC is playing a very important part in our downtown recovery. We'd be remiss in our job to not maintain them. There's a future for us, and we definitely want the CIC to be a part of that."
Jason Whitehead, the new CIC executive director, and Reid Dulberger, chamber executive vice president, couldn't be reached to comment Friday.
Annual payment
The city pays about $120,000 annually to the Youngstown/Warren Regional Chamber to oversee the CIC, which manages, markets and leases city-owned downtown properties.
If the city would abolish its agreement with the CIC, the city funding would cease, but the city can't abolish the agency, explained Council President John R. Swierz. Besides city funding, the CIC receives rent and parking lot income from properties it manages.
skolnick@vindy.com
milliken@vindy.com