Cleveland’s Ward 15 covers Kamm’s Corners, part of West Park and Cleveland Hopkins International Airport. The race will be decided in the Nov. 4 general election.

Charles Slife (current council member)

Credit: Charles Slife

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Share a bit about your previous experience in elected office, government or community work.

I was appointed by Council in 2019 to fill a vacancy.  I was then elected to a full term in 2021. I am currently vice chair of Council’s Transportation & Mobility Committee and am also a member of the following committees:

– Development, Planning & Sustainability

– Health, Human Services & the Arts

– Safety

– Workforce & Education

Previously I served on the Utilities Committee.  I have represented Council on the Planning Commission since joining the body in 2019 and also represent Council on the City’s Site Development Fund, which aims to prepare land in Cleveland for job-creating investment.

Immediately prior to joining Council, I worked as an economic development/location consultant at The Austin Company.  Among other clients and projects, I managed the day-to-day operations of the State of Tennessee’s industrial development program.

I worked in City Hall for five years, first as an intern in the Department of Economic Development followed by a four-year stint in the Office of Mayor Frank Jackson, where I supported the chief of regional development and managed major projects.  Prior to City Hall, I worked for two years in the publishing industry in Washington, D.C.

My community involvement includes:

– A member of the Ward 17 Democratic Club and the Executive Committee of the Cuyahoga County Democratic Party

– A Board member and treasurer of Kamm’s Corners Development Corporation now knowns as West Park Kamm’s Neighborhood Development

– A mentor through Minds Matter Cleveland

Candidate answers were edited for clarity. We took out responses that were off topic or included comments about opponents.

What are the three most important issues facing the ward you want to represent?

Public safety: While it is easy to default to data when discussing safety, it is important to acknowledge that one’s perception of safety is based largely on experience, perception and emotions.  Even as data demonstrate that Ward 15 has a lower crime rate than citywide averages, it is important to me that residents and other stakeholders 1) genuinely feel safe in their neighborhood and 2) feel confident that safety issues will be addressed in a timely manner.  The former happens through a combination of resident engagement, community building through events and activities, and strategic investment (e.g. youth programming, traffic calming measures, technology, etc.) alongside efforts by law enforcement.  The latter requires an appropriately funded Division of Police and the availability of Police resources in all corners of the city.

City investment & services: For many, it is perceived that 1) the City relies on Ward 15 for votes and tax receipts, yet has not always been enthusiastic about investing in the neighborhood, and 2) Cleveland’s fiscal constraints and population loss result in city services that are less robust than what is offered in surrounding suburbs.  Residents anticipate that their member of Council will be the lead advocate for increased public investment while pushing for improvements to city service delivery.

Vacant/underutilized properties: While there has been substantial private sector investment across the city, and the West Side in particular, in recent years, those investments have been largely concentrated and have not occurred in Ward 15.  Residents frequently juxtapose the neighborhood’s strong real estate market and vacant/underutilized commercial properties along the ward’s main corridors. Supporting our main corridors and spurring private investment is important to residents and a partial inspiration for the City’s middle neighborhoods legislation, which I cosponsored.

Council members have money set aside money from casino taxes and other sources to spend on neighborhood projects. How would you spend your share?

As demonstrated by Signal, the lion’s share of discretionary dollars in Ward 17 have been spent on public improvements such as park projects and street resurfacing.  A much lower amount is spent on things like Cleveland Public Theater’s summer camp in Riverside Park or the Puerto Rican parade and exposition.  This is how I would continue to use discretionary dollars.

As a council member, how would you gather input and feedback from residents you represent?

My office hears from residents daily via phone calls, e-mails, social media messages, etc.  I was also a lead proponent of establishing Council’s public comment period at meetings.

Importantly, I also believe that gathering input and feedback requires a physical presence that allows residents to engage with Council informally.  To that end, I do my best to knock on doors, host community events, work remotely at the library, eat at local restaurants, visit parks, etc. all so that residents can see me in the community and engage with me interpersonally.

Affordable housing is a critical issue for Clevelanders. How do you define affordable? And what specific plans or ideas do you have to create more housing that working class Clevelanders can afford to rent or buy?

While I do not have my own personal definition of affordability, I adamantly oppose HUD’s formula that pegs housing as being “affordable” if housing costs are as high as 30% of gross income. That percentage is exceedingly unaffordable given other household costs.

I believe that the solution to affordability is increasing supply.  To my frustration we have many communities that agree in theory with the need to increase housing supply yet in practice oppose projects and seek to restrict supply.

To increase the supply of new and affordable housing units, we must continue to utilize tools like state tax credits and city subsidy.  Absent these programs, housing will not be affordable given high construction costs.  At the same time, we need to continue to invest in Cleveland’s existing housing stock so that we have higher quality, older homes.  Too often, “affordable” in Cleveland means substandard, which is not an acceptable trade off.

Clevelanders list public safety among their top concerns. The city has taken many approaches to prevent and respond to violence and make neighborhoods safer. How would you tackle this issue? Where should Cleveland City Council push for more investment?

I believe in an appropriately funded Division of Police that is able to cover zone patrols, staff the Detective Bureau, engage with residents, etc. without having to mandate overtime.  While mandatory overtime does get the job done, it also burns out officers and exacerbates retention challenges.

In complement, I also support efforts that are known to decrease crime (e.g. youth programming) as well as programs, infrastructure and technology that supplement police work, thereby allowing officers to focus their attention on basic policing.  These include:

– Introducing legislation to create a robust, non-police response option for mental health calls for service

– Speed tables and other infrastructure that compels traffic to slow down, reducing our reliance solely on traffic enforcement

– Cameras, drones and other technology that allows officers to identify trends and issues (though I remain very skeptical of the efficacy of ShotSpotter)

​​Should there be term limits for Cleveland City Council members?

No.

Council members act as resident service representatives, legislators and guardians of city spending. Which of these roles matter to you most and why?

The primary role of a member of Council is to legislate, which includes the budgetary process.  For Cleveland to move forward and succeed, members of Council must commit to this aspect of the job, despite it being time consuming and frequently less compelling to residents.

At the same time, I believe that Cleveland’s civic culture includes Council members acting as service representatives.  To deny this or try to deflect from this aspect of the role is to question or cast doubt on Cleveland residents’ expectations of government.

Terell Bell (write-in, general election)

Filed to run as a write-in after the primary deadline and has not yet been sent the questionnaire. Will add information when provided.

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Elections

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