Commissioners map rival overhaul plans

Lucas County Commissioner Pete Gerken, at podium, presents his government reform plan with, from left, county Democratic Party Chairman Ron Rothenbuhler, Recorder Jeanine Perry, Treasurer Wade Kapszukiewicz, and Clerk of Courts Bernie Quilter. THE BLADE/JEREMY WADSWORTH Enlarge | Photo Reprints

With the idea of county government reform in the air, two Lucas County commissioners yesterday proposed rival ways of getting there: One calling for a study commission that could end up with no major changes, and the other proposing to let county residents vote to adopt a model similar to that in Cuyahoga County.

Pete Gerken, president of the board of Lucas County commissioners, said he will propose creation of a 15-member elected charter-study commission that would be required to propose a new county charter by the next general election, either in 2011 or 2012.

Commissioner Ben Konop said he will recommend putting a plan directly before the voters in November to abolish the county's three commission seats, most of the elected “row offices,” such as treasurer and recorder, and adopt a county executive and council plan.

Mr. Konop, who is often at odds with Mr. Gerken and fellow Commissioner Tina Skeldon Wozniak, described the Gerken plan as a “committee to save politician jobs.”

“Many elected officials are more concerned with their own jobs than what's good for the county,” he said.

“The need for change has been clear for years. The time for studying and committees has passed. The voters deserve the right to change county government and help our community change our economic course and create jobs,” Mr. Konop said.

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Mr. Gerken said his plan for a charter commission came together after conversations with his own staff and with some other elected officials. He said there were no meetings and no specific proposal was sketched out.

“Just my staff,” he said. “I informed the other officeholders.”

He noted that Cuyahoga County is in the middle of a conversion to a county executive form of government and Summit County went to a county executive government in 1979, but said that Lucas County is different from both Cuyahoga and Summit counties.

“We need to explore those differences, find out the way government can be the most efficient,” Mr. Gerken said.

“In these trying economic times, we owe it to our citizens to explore every way to save money and reduce expenses, including reforming county government. A charter county government may not be better than our current form, but we owe it to the community to find out,” he said.

Mr. Gerken was joined at his news conference by Lucas County Treasurer Wade Kapszukiewicz, Recorder Jeanine Perry, Clerk of Courts Bernie Quilter, and county Democratic Chairman Ron Rothenbuhler.

Several speakers said they favored the commission approach to reform to avoid rushing into a mistake.

“I'm looking forward to a slow and deliberate, but consistent progress and a committee that is going to result in Lucas County not only maintaining but in potentially improving an approach to keep our county the best in the state of Ohio,” Mr. Rothenbuhler said.

All current 11 countywide elected officials — three commissioners and eight row officers — are Democrats.

Mr. Gerken said he would put the issue on the commissioners' agenda for Tuesday, but that he would postpone a vote until after two public hearings have been held.

Ms Wozniak said yesterday that the county should have the University of Toledo Urban Affairs Center provide “a thorough analysis of our options” as it relates to the issue.

Mr. Quilter said the needed reform could be as minor as recommending that the city and county information services departments be combined.

Mr. Kapszukiewicz said the commission's work could take it beyond the issue of county government even to proposing combining school districts.

Mr. Kapszukiewicz said Mr. Gerken took the lead on the ballot initiative.

“This is something that people have been talking about the past month since The Blade started doing its stories,” Mr. Kapszukiewicz said.

The Blade recently ran a series of stories about how county governments are operated in Ohio and possible methods of reform.

Mr. Konop announced his plan 30 minutes after the Gerken plan was aired.

Mr. Konop said he would propose a charter government that closely follows the Cuyahoga County plan, which was known as Issue 6 and was endorsed overwhelmingly by voters in that county last November.

The defeated Issue 5, meanwhile, was promoted by two Democratic county commissioners and would have established a 15-person panel to review possible reforms, similar to what Mr. Gerken is proposing.

Because of a history of Commissioners Wozniak and Gerken supporting each other, Mr. Konop said it's more likely that Mr. Gerken's proposal will be approved by commissioners.

But Mr. Konop said he would back a citizen petition drive to put the question on the ballot and would try to have the commissioners pass a resolution of support. He said supporters would need to collect 14,289 valid signatures to get the question on the Nov. 2 ballot.

Mr. Konop said Lucas County is in competition for job creation with Cuyahoga and Summit counties because all three are in northern Ohio with similar industrial pasts and with large urban centers.

“We are already getting beat by these communities,” he said. “Our unemployment rate is worse and we can't afford to have another year having a committee study and rehash the arguments from the last 60 years to reform county government.''

Mr. Konop, who is near the end of his first term as a commissioner and who is not seeking re-election, said he would not run for the elected executive position he is promoting for Lucas County.

The Cuyahoga County model, if adopted in Lucas County, would abolish Mr. Konop's office after he leaves. But Mr. Konop said he has long wanted a change to county government and organized a comprehensive study of it in 2007.

In May, 2007, Mr. Konop assembled community leaders who months later compiled an 83-page committee report that encouraged a gradual move toward a metropolitan or regional form of government, often referred to as ‘‘unigov.'' But it did not address a county executive form of government that would abolish the three county commissioners' seats.

The report discussed attempts made at governmental collaboration in Cuyahoga County, where Cleveland is located, and Oakland County, Michigan.

Mr. Gerken said he would not vote to put Mr. Konop's plan on the ballot.

“We are not Cuyahoga County,” he said. “We are Lucas County; we are structurally different and I think that will have to be discussed with the residents of Lucas County.”

Mr. Gerken said Mr. Konop was not serving the county by doing a “cut and paste” of the charter that has not yet gone into effect in Cuyahoga County.

“The Cuyahoga County model has a county executive and with X number of councilmen, and even if we went to that tomorrow, it doesn't make government smaller,” he said. “You still have 11 school districts, you still have 11 fire chiefs.”

Mr. Gerken's plan calls for 15 people to be elected in a process that is certain to present a tall hurdle for anyone interested in the job. He said the state Constitution requires candidates for the 15 positions to submit petitions with signatures equal to 1 percent of the county electorate. With about 314,892 registered voters, that means collecting at least 3,149 valid signatures, plus a couple thousand more signatures as a precaution against signatures that turn out to be invalid.

Olivia Summons, current president of the University of Toledo board of trustees and past president of the now-defunct Corporation for Effective Government, said northwest Ohio is ready for change.

“The region is ripe for change, not necessarily just the county,” Ms. Summons said. “I just don't know what that change is yet.”

Ms. Summons said she would be in favor of a group of good-government-minded, qualified individuals collaborating to study reform, but was leery of an election to choose who is in that group. She wouldn't comment specifically on the plans set forth by Mr. Gerken or Mr. Konop.

Ms. Summons said models in Cuyahoga and Summit counties should be studied, as well as consolidated, unigov models in Indianapolis, Louisville, and elsewhere.

Toledo Mayor Mike Bell said Mr. Gerken told him about his proposed resolution several days ago.

“Because people are looking for greater efficiencies in government, the idea of looking at this isn't going to hurt,” he said.

“If people are serious about studies, then a study is not a bad way to go. Sometimes, and I don't believe this is Mr. Gerken's concept, you can actually bury an issue with a study because it takes so long.”

Projects/Investigations Editor Joe Vardon contributed to this report.

Contact Tom Troy at: tomtroy@theblade.comor 419-724-6058.