Summary
- The voting board of the Cuyahoga County Board of Health (CCBH) approved several resolutions related to beach water quality testing, reproductive health services, lead remediation, water pollution control for homeowners, and connecting farm foods to schools.
- CCBH is investing money to continue monitoring water quality at Huntington Beach in Bay Village and other small lakefront beaches to keep swimmers informed of possible risks.
- The board swore in reappointed Board Member Sonja Rajki and re-elected its president (Dr. Gregory Hall) and president pro temp (Doug Wang).
Follow-up questions
- What are some key takeaways from CCBH’s work to connect farm foods to youth in schools?
- Using its funding, what role does CCBH play in lead remediation efforts, especially with the City of Cleveland’s recent difficulties managing this issue?
Scene setting
The meeting began 12 minutes later than scheduled at 9:12 a.m. The room, located at the CCBH office in Parma, was arranged in rows of chairs facing the front, with a couple of tables for board members, CCBH General Counsel John Mills, and other staff. There were about 30 attendees, including the board members. Here is the agenda.
Roll call was called:
- Dr. Gregory Hall (board president)
- Sonja Rajki
- Daniel Richards – absent
- Doug Wang
- Dr. Sherrie Dixon Williams – not present in the room until 9:19 a.m.
Rajki was sworn in as a CCBH board member and was congratulated for her reappointment and new five-year term.
A motion was made by Wang to re-elect Hall as president of the board, and Rajki seconded that motion. The board voted in favor of keeping Hall as president with three votes. Wang remained president pro tem (authority to serve as board president in temporary situations) with three votes in favor.
Then, Dr. Williams joined.
Public comments
- Time was allotted for public comments, but there were no public comments.
Review of Financial Statements presentation
- This did not take place.
Approval of resolutions
Hall moved the meeting into reviewing several resolutions. These resolutions can be found in the meeting agenda (not provided in person).
Here are some of the resolutions deemed “regular actions” on the agenda that the board discussed and approved.
HIV funding
Resolution 2016-017: Zachary Levar, deputy director of population health services for CCBH, spoke about a grant dedicating up to $550,000 in federal funds to reaching people with HIV who are out-of-care or irregularly out-of-care. The federal budget includes funding for this contract this year, Levar added. The resolution authorizes CCBH to accept the grant, which covers work from March 1, 2026 through Feb. 28, 2027. Approved.
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Farm to schools
Resolution 2016-019: Alison Patrick, a grants supervisor with CCBH’s population health team, spoke about a change to a contract with Food Works Group that would fund three new projects aiming to:
- Aggregate small and medium-sized farms into a hub providing food to schools.
- Improve communication with farmers about what to grow and how much for schools.
- Use data and storytelling to tell the impact of Food Works.
The resolution would authorize changing the cost from $45,000 to $107,250 to cover the expanded work. Approved.
$7.1 million lead remediation grant
Resolution 2016-020: Tom Fink, from the environmental health team, spoke about a roughly $7.1 million grant from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to continue lead remediation in low- to moderate-income households in inner-ring suburbs, in partnership with the City of Cleveland Heights. Find said they’re looking to remediate 295 homes with this grant. The resolution authorizes CCBH to accept the grant, with funding covering work from March 2, 2026, through March 1, 2030. Approved.
- Wang asked about the money designated for lead remediation returned to the state by the City of Cleveland recently. Fink said that this is a different pot of money.
Water quality at small beaches
Resolution 2016-021: Megan Symanski, supervisor with environmental health, spoke about a resolution to continue sampling the water quality weekly at 13 small beaches in Cuyahoga County. This contract with the Ohio Department of Health also allows the CCBH to test water quality at Bay Village’s Huntington Beach seven days a week between Memorial Day and Labor Day. This contract money covers all the beaches along Lake Erie that are in the CCBH’s jurisdiction. The goal is to keep people informed as they choose to swim. This contract provides about $29,000 for this monitoring. Approved.
- This sparked a brief conversation about water-borne illnesses, including the risks of poor water quality after rainfall. Symanski said the suggested wait time is 24-48 hours for lake swimming after rainfall.
- Wang asked if this funding allows for the adequate number of samples.
- Symanski and other staff responded that this $29,000 is enough to do the requisite testing. (Learn more about how the CCBH monitors water quality across the county.)
Homeowner septic and sanitary sewer connections
Resolution 2026-022: Heather Grisez, program manager for Household Sewage & Small Flow Sewage Treatment Systems, spoke on the Ohio EPA Water Pollution Control Loan Fund. This resolution would allow continuation of this funding (about $200,000). Half of it is designated for homeowners to help with septic replacements, and the other half is meant for sanitary sewer connections. Approved.
Reproductive health care
Resolution 2026-023: Amber Hitchcock, supervisor with nursing and clinical services, spoke on a contract for $99,000 with Kelly Stake, a nurse practitioner, under the state’s Reproductive Health and Wellness Program grant. It would allow Kelly to perform key services for comprehensive, high-quality reproductive health care. Approved.
- Williams asked how many people will be served this year.
- Staff estimated that 1,125 people would be served.
HIV grant to cover specialist salaries
Resolution 2026-024: A member of the nursing and clinical services team spoke about receiving an additional $62,194 from the state’s HIV Prevention grant that will cover disease intervention specialist salaries from March through May 2026. Approved. (Read more about CCBH’s HIV Prevention/Care programs.)
Budget
Resolution 2026-025: A staff member said CCBH takes the 2026 approved budget to create an estimated budget for 2027, a formality to meet the Ohio Revised Code. Approved.
Resolution 2026-026: Authorizes the director of finance (Michael Pissini) to dispose of excess or surplus assets. An official said that includes laptops, desktops, typewriters, and other items. Approved.
Board orders, rules, fees or regulations
Resolution 2026-028: A staff member in nursing and clinical services spoke on an annual review of fees for services at the CCBH Clinic. She provided the board with a color-coded sheet, showing increases and decreases in fees for services at the clinic (not available in-person or online). This was just a first reading. Hall told the staff member the board would see them back next month.
Second Reading:
- Completed, no items reviewed.
Third Reading
- Completed, Schedule A-F reviewed. [Editor’s note: More details on those items begin at this point in the agenda.]
Presentations: including Infectious Diseases Update, Health Commissioner’s Report, and Child Fatality Review Presentation.
- No presentations were given.
Public and Staff comments:
- No comments were made.
No miscellaneous business.
Motion to adjourn to the executive session was made and approved. Meeting adjourned at 9:42 a.m.
These notes are by Documenter Tommy Oddo. Documenter Tisha Barnes recorded audio.
If you believe anything in these notes is inaccurate, please email us at documenters@signalcleveland.org with “Correction Request” in the subject line.
