Feb. 3: Cleveland City Council
Covered by Documenter Ronaldo Rodriguez Jr. (notes)
Residents ask council for sanctuary city policies
Cleveland City Council heard from several residents at its Feb. 3 meeting asking officials to make Cleveland a sanctuary city after recent raids in the region by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers. Reports of ICE raids across the country follow President Donald Trump’s executive order “to immediately repel, repatriate, and remove illegal aliens across the southern border of the United States.”
Cleveland Heights resident Annie McAneny, an educator and representative for the Cleveland Liberation Center, asked council to pass legislation to prevent the Cleveland Division of Police from collaborating with ICE agents and to fight to keep ICE out of local schools. The Cleveland Metropolitan School District, for its part, has said it has clear protocols in place if ICE agents show up at schools, although it has not publicly shared details.
“ICE has no place in our schools,” McAneny said. “We owe them nothing, so we will tell them nothing.”
McAneny also asked Mayor Justin Bibb and council to pass legislation bringing sanctuary city policies to Cleveland and to “please engage the public in this process.”
Sara Fadlalla also urged council to introduce sanctuary city legislation, saying the city “must challenge the jurisdiction [that] fascist federal practices have within our city.”
Some cities across America have designated themselves as sanctuary cities by adopting policies that restrict local authorities from cooperating with federal authorities in the enforcement of immigration laws. Sanctuary policies can include restrictions on the sharing of information with federal agents, banning immigration detention centers in the city, and refusing to allow ICE into city jails without a warrant.
Cleveland City Council approved legislation in 1987 naming Cleveland a sanctuary city. The legislation ultimately became a resolution, lacking the legally enforceable hallmark of a city ordinance.
Council approves docking DigitalC
Cleveland City Council passed legislation to amend the city’s contract with local internet service provider DigitalC after the company failed to meet its subscription goals for last year.
DigitalC will lose nearly $1 million of city money after signing up around 2,900 households in 2024, short of the 3,500 subscriptions expected. The local nonprofit provides internet service to Cleveland residents for $18 per month.
Ward 13 Council Member Kris Harsh voted against the measure. Harsh previously voted against moving the legislation forward at council’s Utilities Committee meeting on Jan. 30.
Canon Healthcare moving HQ to Cleveland
Cleveland City Council passed legislation approving a five-year, 50% payroll tax credit incentive to Canon Healthcare, paving the way for Canon to open its new headquarters in Cleveland.
Canon Healthcare is expected to move into the former IBM building at Cedar Avenue and East 105th Street. It plans to spend more than $33 million to purchase and retrofit the building to house Canon Medical, its research and development arm.
The legislation says Canon Healthcare will create 50 jobs in Cleveland with an average salary of $150,000.
Canon develops technological innovations in medical imaging, such as MRIs and CTs, and scanning equipment.
