Tips for Improving Communication Between Cleveland Residents and City Government

By Gennifer Harding-Gosnell

Good communication is at the center of any healthy relationship, and with a new mayor, administration and council, what better time to look at ways to improve how city government and Cleveland residents talk to one another.

Effective communication increases the chance that legislators are willing and able to hear your thoughts and opinions, and the likelihood of getting action.

The Cleveland Observer reached out to individual members of the City Council to get their thoughts and ideas on things the community can do to help improve communications with local legislators:

Get organized

Find support from other members of your community. “I always encourage residents to engage others in any project, initiative, or cause,” says Ward 15 Councilwoman Jenny Spencer. “I hope that residents will choose to organize their community rather than feeling they have to shoulder something alone.”

Running a well-structured campaign can give your cause good momentum, similar to the way lobbyists work. “It can help to know that there is a citizen movement and/or a coordinated group of residents behind any resident outreach,” says Spencer.

Online Users: This easy-to-read toolkit is only 6 pages and provides community organizing for beginners’ explanations. This article goes deeper into the concepts behind community organizing. For an example of a fully structured campaign, see the Clevelanders For Public Comment organization.

Ask for something specific 

Vague or broad comments and requests about issues are harder to address and don’t provide legislators clear directions on exactly what you want them to do. You can ask for them to introduce, back, or oppose the legislation, attend community events, and write letters of support on your behalf. Focus on the problem you want to solve and be specific with your request – legislators can’t govern just on emotional pleas.

Online Users: This article explains these and other effective communication concepts more in-depth.

Utilize public comment 

Public comments to City Council can be made in-person at regular Council meetings or can be submitted as written comments online. Ward 12 Councilwoman Rebecca Maurer says there should be more: “[We need to] get a public comment at committee meetings, not just council meetings. This will allow the public to engage in the nitty-gritty on substantive issues.”

Online Users: Here is the public comment information and registration page directly from Cleveland City Council. The Cleveland Documenters’ Guide To Public Comment tells you everything you need to know about the process, including a handy one-page guide to walk you through the basics.

Actively support systemic changes both residents and council members are advocating that make civic engagement easier 

Encourage your legislators to educate residents on the how and why of their decision-making. This is transparency. Support and participate in efforts to educate and engage other residents, like sharing educational resources on social media, or inviting a conversation at your local park.

On Council’s end, Maurer believes they should make council meetings easier for the public to understand and follow. “Right now they are very fast-paced,” she says, “and if you don’t know how the council works, they can be hard to follow.”

“How do we expect the public to know first reading vs. second reading vs. journal, etc. Even the voting structure can be hard to understand if you aren’t used to it. Council members don’t [speak up if they] vote ‘yes’, [only] if they want to vote ‘no’. We need to slow it down and explain what we are doing.”

To make it easier for residents to attend, Maurer also suggested, “When it is COVID-safe, [why not] take council meetings to the public by holding them at parks and rec centers.”

Online Users: This one-page guide by Cleveland Documenters explains the legislative process in a nutshell, the basics of what you’ll need to understand how Cleveland City Council works.

Become a resource

Make sure you are working with as much knowledge and information on your issue as is available to you before communicating about it with legislators. Know your topic or the re-telling of your experience inside and out. Leave information for your legislators (cards, pamphlets, etc.) so they have something tangible that they can use to look into your concern and follow up with you later. Ward 17 Councilman Charles Slife says, “I appreciate when commenters offer specific resources that members can use to learn more about the topic.”

Follow up

Set a reasonable timeline for responses and actions, and be ready to follow up with legislators when those deadlines hit. Ask for your current status or if they need more information about your concerns. Address communication shortcomings with them. “Residents should hold their individual member of Council to a high standard,” says Slife, “and if necessary, explain that their communications strategy is failing to get information out to residents expeditiously.”

Meet your legislator’s half-way

Communication is a two-way street. It requires a messenger and a receiver, and both must be engaged for communication to occur. “My position has always been, if you care about your community then you need to participate in it on some level,” says Ward 8 Councilman Mike Polensek.

Don’t have the time or energy to organize a campaign or attend Council meetings? “I know there are many single moms and dads trying to raise their families and working at the same time, thereby making it difficult to participate in neighborhood evening meetings,” says Polensek. “That is why I encourage people to get ahold of me by [phone, email], whatever means they feel comfortable with.”

“Believe it or not, I still get handwritten or typed letters in the mail…I did today,” he says.

Make direct contact with your Council member, don’t rely on social media as a gauge for what is or is not known. Charles Slife points out “the importance of reaching out and making contact and not assuming that someone else has.”

“We live in an age of instant information,” he says, “but the day-to-day demands of the job don’t always let members of Council keep up in real-time.  I tell residents never to assume that their Council member is up-to-speed on breaking news.  Often information makes it to social media before we receive any sort of call or e-mail. There have been many instances where people are talking about an issue on Facebook, even criticizing me, and I was wholly unaware of the issue up to that point.”

Online Users: Here is the contact information for all members of Council and other city agencies.

This article was written with information obtained from Documenters.org, a news service providing coverage of local government meetings.