When Greg Landsman was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in the fall, he selected fellow Cincinnati City Council member Reggie Harris to appoint the person who would take his council seat. Always dutiful, Harris sifted through dozens of applicants and sought advice from other council members. There were plenty of great candidates, but one applicant bulged out without (understandably) being seriously considered. According to records from Harris’ office, someone who went by the name of "Big Johnny” had gone through the application steps, including answering questions about issues that were important to them. According to Big Johnny’s responses, they seemed to be pro-choice, pro-LGBTQ and pro-social-good. Big Johnny also professed to stand up for people of all types. “I've been discriminated against in the past because of my large testicles,” they wrote. Alas, Big Johnny’s application was dismissed as a joke, but perhaps we’ll hear from them again — they claimed that they would run for the U.S. presidency if they didn’t get the council job. cincinnati-oh.gov/cityofcincinnati.

Here are the 2023 Best Of Cincinnati® Reader and Staff Pick winners for City Life.

1. Arlinghaus Builders
2. 3D Renovations
3. Make Her Mark

1. Eden Park TIE
2. Devou Park TIE
3. Ault Park
4. Mt. Echo Park
5. Smale Riverfront Park
6. Bellevue Park
7. Mt. Storm Park
8. Alms Park
9. Shawnee Lookout
10. Fairview Park
11. Mt. Adams

1. Mariemont
2. Wyoming
3. Liberty Township

1. The Hub OTR
2. Cincinnati City Council
3. 3CDC

1. Sheree Paolello (WLWT)
2. Megan Mitchell (formerly WLWT)
3. Jessica Schmidt (FOX19)

1. WLWT (Channel 5)
2. WXIX (FOX19)
3. WCPO (Channel 9)

1. Steve Horstmeyer (FOX19)
2. Randi Rico (WLWT)
3. Kevin Robinson (WLWT)

1. Dan Hoard (Bengals, Bearcats)
2. Joe Danneman (FOX19)
3. George Vogel (WLWT)

1. Chuck Mingo (Crossroads)
2. Fr. Al Bischoff (Xavier University)
3. Archbishop Dennis M. Schnurr (Archdiocese of Cincinnati)