Jan. 22: Cleveland City Council

Covered by Documenters Aaron Skubby (notes) and Ayanna Rose Banks (live-tweets)

Nine straight council meetings

Residents showed up for the ninth consecutive Cleveland City Council Monday night meeting to demand that council pass a resolution supporting a ceasefire in Gaza. All nine residents who gave public comment addressed the ongoing violence and rising death tolls in Gaza. 

Some commenters warned Mayor Justin Bibb and City Council that failure to pass a ceasefire resolution would risk support for their re-elections in 2025. Some also said elected officials are failing to protect and represent all their constituents.

Kamal Alkayali, a Palestinian American and the manager of Algebra Tea House in Little Italy, spoke about allegations of recent harassment against the tea shop.

“Is Algebra Tea House also an overseas issue?” asked Alkayali, whose father owns the establishment.

New rules for public comment

Cleveland City Council did not pass a ceasefire resolution, but it did pass a new set of rules for public comment. Council had come under fire for potentially limiting public comments to matters of official city business. That is not part of the approved changes. City Council and Council President Blaine Griffin currently face a lawsuit over shutting down a public comment last September.

Food and drink are now banned in the chambers under the new rules, as well as “frivolous or repetitive” comments.

Winter shelter partnership between NEOCH and Metanoia Project

Council also approved up to $225,000 for providing shelter services to people experiencing homelessness during the winter season. It is an agreement between the city and the Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless (NEOCH) and Metanoia Project. 

During the 2021-2022 winter, NEOCH co-managed a seasonal shelter hotel program where more than 50% of the people exiting the program found permanent housing, according to the legislation. The need for seasonal shelter for the current winter season is expected to “meet or exceed” the previous need.

Read more from Documenter Aaron Skubby:

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Read the live-tweet thread from Documenter Ayanna Rose Banks:

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Service Journalism Reporter (she/her)
I am dedicated to untangling bureaucracy so Clevelanders can have the information (and the power) they want. I spent 10 years on the frontlines of direct service working with youth and system-impacted communities before receiving my degree in media advocacy at Northeastern University.

Cleveland Documenters pays and trains people to cover public meetings where government officials discuss important issues and decide how to spend taxpayer money.