Brecksville Commission Eyes Eight Changes to Charter

A group of Brecksville residents are continuing their work of re-examining city’s charter.

In more than 50 years, there have only been 15 amendments to the city’s charter.

According to the Brecksville Sun News, the city’s Charter Review Commission has narrowed the list of changes down to eight.

If approved, the amendments could be placed before voters in the November election.

The idea behind the Charter Review Commission is to decide whether certain aspects of the city's governing document that need some updating. The new commission began its review earlier this year, and hosted another meeting on Wednesday.

Among the topics covered so far include city council wards (an idea that hasn't gained much traction), changes to qualifications for the finance director post and others to the zoning code.

According to the Sun News, the eight changes are:

• Article IV Section 10, which states ordinances and resolutions should be read by title only unless otherwise suggested by council.
• Article V Section 2(a), which gives council the right to appoint finance department assistants.
• Article V Section 3(a), which states police, fire and building department personnel should be appointed by the mayor and council, or by the director of public safety and council.
• Article V Section 3(c), which establishes the appointment process for a vacant director of public safety position.
• Article V Section 4(d), which states the mayor must approve the appointments of all public safety department assistants.
• Article V Section 5, which establishes the duties of the law director.
• Article V Section 8(c), in conjunction with Article IV Section 12, which establishes the mandatory referral process for classifications of commercial zoning between the Planning Commission and council.
• Article XI, which establishes the rules of membership to the Charter Review Commission and the dates of appointment

Two more meetings are scheduled to wrap up the process on June 11 and June 20.