Public Meetings Report for the week of March 4, 2024

💰🏛️The 2024 General Fund budget hearings, where Cleveland City Council members discussed how the city should spend about $778 million of public money, came and went in the blink of an eye – at least compared to recent years.

Cleveland Documenters and Signal Staff followed along for all 30-odd hours of budget hearings. From a tree maintenance backlog to struggles with the city’s Exterior Paint Program, in this episode, we explore some additional budget items Documenters noted in their recent coverage.

👂🏿🎧📻👇🏿

Listen to this week’s Public Meetings Report here:

You can also find this episode on your favorite podcast app:

Listen to Signal Cleveland: On Air on Spotify
Listen to Signal Cleveland: On Air on Apple Podcast

The Documenters whose work contributed to this episode are:

  • Prerna Agarwal 
  • Dan McLaughlin
  • Alicia Moreland
  • Tina Scott
  • Barbara Phipps 
  • Carolyn Cooper 
  • Chanel Wiley
  • Marvetta Rutherford
  • Robyn Heard
  • Aaron Skubby
  • Emma Sedlak

Their work has been compiled this week by Doug Breehl-Pitorak. The Public Meetings Report is produced by Gennifer Harding-Gosnell.

Show Notes:

Documenters coverage:

Cleveland City Council General Fund Budget Hearings

  • Day 1- February 20, 2024 Live Tweets [1] and [2]
  • Day 2-February 21, 2024 Live Tweets [1] and [2]; Notes [1] and [2]   
  • Day 3-February 22, 2024 Live Tweets; Notes [1] and [2] 
  • Day 4- February 23, 2024 Live Tweets [1] and [2]; Notes [1] and [2] 

Signal Cleveland reporting: 

Recordings: 

Other resources: 

The Public Meetings Report is a weekly audio rundown of what happened in local government meetings here in Greater Cleveland – in five minutes or less! The show is based on the work of Cleveland Documenters – residents like you who are trained and paid to document these meetings for the public. Produced by Signal Cleveland and Cleveland Documenters, in partnership with WOVU 95.9FM “Our Voices United,” a Burten, Bell, Carr community radio station.

Signal background

Audio Producer (she/her)
I create audio stories meant to engage and inform people in a way that pushes beyond media stereotypes. I aim to build trust between local media and the community, striving to teach people “how” to think about life in Cleveland, not “what” to think.

Documenters Program Director (he/they)
I steward the Documenters community. That includes holding and maintaining space to raise up Documenters work and questions. It also includes creating easy on-ramps to civic life and deeper civic participation via the exchange of civic information, knowledge and skills.

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