Good morning all. Here are some quick news hits.
In case you missed all the fun Wednesday, Cincinnati City Council got a little intense. A major and somewhat controversial development project by Cincinnati Childrens Hospital that needs a city zoning change to move forward, but it was put on hold — along with more than 100 other agenda items including an enormous MSD deal and whether or not to replace the pedestrian bridge leading to Music Hall — because three council members were absent.
Yvette Simpson had a family medical emergency, Charlie Winburn was at the optometrist and Wendell Young — who opposes the Children’s deal — emailed saying he was on vacation. Young’s detractors have posted photos of the councilman at the National Night Out police event here in town the night before. Young and Simpson also missed two Neighborhoods Committee meetings needed to pass the zoning change out of committee. Because Ohio law requires a seven of Council’s nine members to vote to suspend rules regarding the number of times proposed legislation is introduced, Council couldn’t act on anything. This led to a long speech chastising the absent members by Mayor John Cranley, who contrasted the absences with U.S. Sen. John McCain’s showing up to vote in the Senate after a brain cancer diagnosis. After that, Winburn had his own criticism for the mayor.
“He’s so insensitive to people’s personal lives,” Winburn, a one-time Cranley ally, told the Cincinnati Business Courier. “It belittles the office of the mayor. It’s questioning people’s motives, and he doesn’t want people to question his motives. I’m sorry that he wants to be mayor so bad that he’s willing to hurt three of his innocent colleagues.”
• Anti-blight nonprofit Keep Cincinnati Beautiful overbilled the city by $15,700, a city audit has found. KCB also had inadequate policies for how it would conduct its programs, leading to “inconsistencies,” the review says. The nonprofit will refund the overbillings, which City Manager Harry Black says were the result of errors and not intentional wrongdoing. The city will continue to work with the organization as changes are made. The nonprofit’s long-serving accountant left in 2016, leading to some confusion about record-keeping. Executive Director Mary Huttlinger was placed on leave and later resigned after board president Brad Lindner presented the city with the financial discrepancies.
• It’s maybe Cincinnati’s most significant modernist structure, it’s been empty for years, and it sits in a potential keystone spot downtown. So, what’s being done to revitalize the Terrace Plaza Hotel on 6th Street downtown? Here’s one idea for the big old block of bricks from an Indianapolis developer that could be moving closer to reality.
• A new ad by Procter and Gamble that tries to tackle racial bias has garnered praise and consternation on social media nationwide. The ad, called “The Talk,” features black parents talking to their kids about the kinds of discrimination they could face as they grow up. The two-minute online video doesn’t look to sell any P&G items. While the ad has won some praise, it has also raised the ire of people who somehow think it is racist against white people and denigrates law enforcement. You can see the ad here.
• Hamilton County’s sales tax revenue is expected to fall $2.2 million short of earlier projections, County Administrator Jeff Aluotto told heads of county departments at a meeting yesterday afternoon. At the same time, spending is $2.2 million above expectations, he says. That could cause some budget issues. Aluotto said sales receipts from the state were more sluggish than expected, especially after April. He said he’s hopefully it will be a short-term dip and in the meantime suggested pausing some major spending on projects and instituting a temporary hiring freeze.
• Not exactly a first-place ranking you want, but it definitely feels accurate to me. Ohio has the most student debt of any state in the U.S., according to personal finance website wallethub.com. You can find out more here about how they determined the Buckeye State has this dubious distinction.
This article appears in Aug 2-9, 2017.