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^Also, Bibb was a Board member of RTA during some of that. Likely a lot of bad decisions went down while he was overseeing the agency as a board member and did nothing to stop things or was too clueless to know what was what. Its kind of a foreshadowing of how he would be as mayor....

Some interesting data points from Cimperman of Global Cleveland: "And we’re just hoping....that we can welcome up to 2,000 people. You know, our infrastructure can sustain it. " Currently, "we’ve got a community of over 500 [Afghans] in the city of Cleveland and close to 2,000 in the region." https://wcpn.ideastream.org/news/more-than-30-afghan-refugees-now-with-their-families-in-cleveland

Thanks for this. This was precisely my concern with Kelley that he is part of the existing 'system' and so we'd see more of the same. So i was happy to read your post--and I hope, if elected, he does indeed clean house as he promised. It is typical of any new mayor or president to appoint an all new cabinet, so my hope is that it is not just new people, but new thinking and new attitude.

I know many of you aren't fans of Scene, but they just published a good read: https://m.clevescene.com/scene-and-heard/archives/2021/08/25/seven-enter-two-leave-a-primer-on-the-2021-cleveland-mayoral-primary

It would be a great thing. Who qualifies as young here? Probably Dibello, Bibbs, and Basheer. But can any of these three candidates who offer such also be a good mayor? Unfortunately, no. The job requires more than just a "younger fresh perspective." I agree, the website is dated and horrible.

I've tried to do that throughout, but here's a summary: Kucinich--he's not building a political career like all the others are--so he doesn't have to compromise on important things and issues. He won't take crap. He will fight for things. Old enough to know what's what and how to get things done. Kelley--Strong understanding of council operations and current CDCs and players in the city. No real negative baggage like most of the other candidates. Seems articulate and honest, if not a little dull, but very pragmatic. Williams--with her work at the state understands better than the others how to work with the state and its large money pot. Seems articulate, capable and has presented ideas on how to deal with issues. Basheer/Zach/DiBello - I'm not a fan of any of them.

What's the story here? Did she get campaign funds from First Energy? Did she know what was really going on with Larry Householder? I'm asking earnestly because she is one of my top three choices as I narrow my list and head to the polls.

I fully agree with this!

So Sandra Williams? She's not a city hall crony and has some good ideas and she is certainly capable and credible.

I agree that there is an "afraid to be great" or "satisfied with mediocrity" attitude in the city. Yes, we need strong visionary leadership, BUT IT IS DEFINITELY NOT BIBB. Let's say all six non-Bibb candidates get 4/10 for vision and Bibb gets 5/10. And for the NON-vision criteria which is weighted a little heavier, the others get 5/10 and Bibb gets 2/10---Bibb still comes in at the very bottom. Yes, we need to change our strategy to grow and lead, but Bibb doesn't have the ability to be that leader, and though he may be more dynamic than say Kelley or Williams, his incompetence will lead us to a path of loss such that 5-10 years later we'll be in a much worse condition.

To its credit, the article was from the PD which had initially endorsed him. Ethics violations are serious things; they are not grasping at straws. Unless of course you're referring to the metal capacity or judgement issues, then that is even more serious and definitely not grasping at straws.

Running the busses around the square is NOT a big deal for what you get in return. Or as @LifeLongClevelander said in his great post above, use another avenue like Prospect. If you do run around the square the only cost is fuel and any vehicle wear for the extra 200 feet or so. So...nothing. You can't count bus operator time as if they spend an extra 2 minutes going around the square, just take 2 minutes off their break at the end of a run while drivers sit around for 15-30 minutes between runs.

Thank you for the clarity. Its much clearer than what Bibb can say himself....which again points to competence and ability. If he can't even tell his own story how is he supposed to handle something far more complex like the city? He's not an attorney if he did not pass the bar. He's just a guy who got his JD then didn't sit for or couldn't pass the bar. (And that itself piques one's curiosity).

You think RTA wanted him to fill out a form so RTA knows how much RTA is paying him? Could Bibb have really thought that? Its obvious they wanted to know the NON-RTA money he gets. Its only accurate to list the RTA money only if that's the only money he was making. And if its an intentional misinformation and the form was voluntary he should not have filled it out at all which suggests poor judgement. Bibb seems like a smart guy, so something is definitely shady or strange (brain fart?). Maybe acute mental incapacitation But the actual cause doesn't really matter. It happened. He did it for whatever reason. Anyone who wants a clean, minimally corrupt City Hall should not be voting for this guy--for this ethics issue and for other reasons. Think of this ethics filing violation revelation as a good omen---good thing this came out before the election!

I agree--this is very shady. The logic makes absolutely no sense--especially for someone who supposedly went to law school. So he's either cognitively challenged, simply disrespectful of rules, willingly shady, or he just lacks common sense and judgement. But whichever of the four, it certainly means he is not fit to be mayor. That is suspicious too. Did he finish law school? And if he did, maybe he not pass the bar. His website is worded very awkwardly and strangely about this. It says, "He later returned to Cleveland to undertake his J.D. and M.B.A. from Case Western Reserve University." One EARNS a JD or ATTENDS law school--one does not "undertake" a JD. So, the English usage here is so bizarre, one cannot tell what he is saying. He--perhaps very carefully--doesn't say he obtained his JD from Case, as, if he didn't but suggested he did--could be easily be found out by CWRU itself protesting a false claim. And if he DID get his JD at Case, why not just say so? Maybe because he failed the bar and doesn't want to be called out on that?

maybe "business development" conference room, leveraging city club for the next major project?

That IS interesting that we had the same reactions on 6 out of 7 candidates! Regarding Bibb, its hard to put the nail on it precisely, but I get a very bad vibe from him. I realize a lot of what he says about what the existing issues are makes sense from an academic perspective, but I wholeheartedly doubt he has the ability or even the right answers to truly tackle the issues that he talks about.

Sandra also made a profit on some OSU football tickets using campaign money back in 2013 or 2014 and pocketed the profits and got busted. That shows poor judgement to say the least and I certainly don't like that--though I'd take that behavior over drunk driving (Zack Reed) where one could actually kill innocent people. But again, given the group we've got to choose from, Sandra is better than most--in terms of policy and approaches and credibility.

Kucinich may not be the best candidate, but I'd say Kucinich is the definitely the person least likely to put up with entrenched internal bureaucracy or private interests. At his age and disposition, he's not going to put up with crap.

I watched and/or listened to all the debates and the Nick Castelle series "After Jackson". I've listened and watched carefully and I'm very familiar with this city and how it works and its history and how things happen both in Cleveland and across the US. We all have our opinions on the best way forward with things---from shootings to minibikes to jobs to population loss to residential tax abatement policies, etc. I don't think anyone here--myself included--is an expert on crime AND education AND development AND aging AND childcare AND street maintenance AND lead..... So we make our assessments on the areas we do know and our own instincts on the others including sizing up each of the candidates as leaders, as effective leaders, as individuals, as individuals of character and ability and intent, etc. My reading of Bibb is not positive at all. I think he is educated and well-spoken, but he utterly projects a no-confidence as being a person that would be able to be even an average mayor. Yes, mayors appoint a cabinet. But listening to Bibb talk, he won't even appoint a proper or competent cabinet. They may be educated and well-spoken, but not competent to run the city. Bibb will get steamrolled by private interests in a way the others (maybe Dibello as well) would not. TBH, I'm quite surprised at all the strong support Bibb gets from members of this forum. While I get the argument that the group of seven are not something to be wowwed by, certainly Bibb is not the best of the seven--or even the second or third best. For me, after watching the second debate--Sandra Williams went up a few points, Ross DiBello went down a few points, Bibb stayed at the very bottom, Basheer went down a few points, Zach Reed actually went up a few points, Kucinich dipped a few points, and Kelley went up a few points. I'd love to hear who others support and why. The primary is coming up fast!

Public Square has become a great civic place and park in the city. It's also a symbolically important square in the city. It should not have buses running through it. Cleveland should have a nice central square as does countless other cities in the world. I was just listening to the second mayoral debate (recorded). Bibb just said "As mayor, I'm gonna do everything in my power to...open up the buses back to Public Square." I assume he meant open up Public Square to buses. But more importantly, it's just another example of how clueless he really is and why he'd be horrible for the city as mayor. Do everything in his power to destroy the great public park and space that Public Square has become? At timestamp 1:14:54:

Interesting concept, but the path looks too close to Rwy 6L--near the right angle of the red line above--for FAA operational rules (we don't use ICAO in the US), but the bigger issue will be DHS/TSA security requirements more so than FAA rules.

^Great news. The more hotel rooms, the better! It enables the city to draw and host more major events without running out of hotel rooms like it did during the RNC and people had to stay over an hour away. Granted, this is only 62 units, every little piece helps. I wonder if it will have a dedicated space and front desk on the ground floor like typical hotels and maybe a dedicated elevator. Now let's hear about the 21c Hotel in the Baker Bldg and the new Sherwin-Williams-related hotel and the yet-unbranded 160-room hotel that is part of Circle Square!

^The more hotel rooms, the better! It enables the city to draw and host more major events without running out of hotel rooms like it did during the RNC and people had to stay over an hour away. Granted, this is only 62 units, every little piece helps. I wonder if it will have a dedicated space and front desk on the ground floor like typical hotels and maybe a dedicated elevator. Usually buildings with a hotel and permanent residents (apt/condo/office tenants) are segregated so that hotel guests don't get access to areas of the long-term lease holders.

Cleveland Kitchen growling quickly. Listed at No. 341 on inc.com’s list of 5,000 fastest-growing private companies. Cleveland Kitchen grows into huge national brand, lands on Inc. 5000 list https://www.cleveland.com/entertainment/2021/08/cleveland-kitchen-grows-into-huge-national-brand-lands-on-inc-5000-list.html