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Former North Royalton Ward 3 Councilman Dan Langshaw and former Treasurer for the Northeast Ohio City Council Association returned back to Statehouse in Columbus, Ohio on June 3, 2021. This time building off the progress from his previous testimony before the Ohio House Finance Committee regarding Substitute House Bill 110, the State Operating Budget back on March 11, 2021. Langshaw provided testimony before the Ohio Senate Finance Committee in response to numerous changes by the Senate to the House version of the budget passed last month. He drew the Committee’s attention to three main areas of the budget that impact communities throughout Ohio including his home community of North Royalton.

Honorable Dan Langshaw Substitute House Bill 110 Testimony Ohio Senate Finance Committee June 3, 2021

Chairman Dolan, Vice Chair Gavarone, Ranking Member Sykes, and Senate Finance Committee members. My name is Dan Langshaw, I am a former North Royalton City Councilman and former Treasurer for the Northeast Ohio City Council Association. Thank you for the opportunity to testify on Sub. H.B. 110 the State Operating Budget for FY 2022 and FY 2023.

Since my testimony before the House Finance Committee back on March 11, 2021 on Sub. H.B. 110. (See attached March 11, 2021 House Testimony) The House has made many positive improvements to the overall biennium budget, however, I would like to draw the Committee’s attention to three main areas of the budget that warrant amending and or a second look due to the impact it will have on local governments and communities throughout Ohio including my community of North Royalton.

Additional Oversight of the Ohio Department of Health

The House removed Governor Mike DeWine’s original budget proposal for a $50 million ad campaign however the Governor is now wasting $5 million dollars through the Ohio Department of Health by using federal Coronavirus Relief Funds to have Vax-A-Million Drawings. Members of the General Assembly from both parties such as Representative Powell and Representative Sykes have spoken out against this. Using millions of dollars in relief funds in a drawing is a grave misuse of money that could be going to respond to this ongoing pandemic. I do hope people continue to get the vaccine if that is something they choose to do and help our state reach herd immunity but I believe we can achieve this same goal without this high priced incentive. If there is anything that can be done in this next biennium to provide additional oversight of the Ohio Department of Health, I urge you all to explore additional options so this does not happen again.

Interstate 71 Transportation Study

The House added to Sub. H.B. 110 a requirement for the Ohio Department of Transportation to perform a traffic study of highways and other roads in Brunswick, Strongsville, and North Royalton, three communities off of Interstate 71. (See attached Sub. H.B. 110 Amendment HC2079) This amendment was a good addition to the budget as traffic has increased over the last decade in this area that some of you on this committee represent. Such a study will help improve public safety, address infrastructure needs, and future economic development for all of these communities including my community of North Royalton. I respectfully ask for you to keep this in the budget.

Local Government Fund (LGF)

Since 2011, the state has made deep cuts to the Local Government Fund by slashing it in half from 3.68% to 1.66% today. Last biennium budget back in 2019 in which I testified, it was positive to see the General Assembly approve HB 166 with a slight increase to LGF. However, this biennium the Governor proposed $425 million in FY 2022 and $440 million in FY 2023 to the LGF. Disappointingly this is going backwards on the progress made by HB 166 by returning the Local Government Fund to the statuary level of 1.66%. (See attached LSC February 4, 2021 Revenue Forecast page 11)  As a result, my own city of North Royalton has experienced approximately over $7 million dollars in state local government funding cuts since 2011. (See attached is a chart of a breakdown of those cuts since 2011). On top of a 2021 city budget for my community factoring in the impacts of the pandemic with a -3% decrease in 2020 income taxes and additional decrease this year of -1.5% decrease or about $235,000 less is a big impact on any local government in Ohio. (See attached North Royalton City Budget 2021 Projected Revenues) I propose that this committee approve the amendments to the budget offered by Representative Skindell in the House that would restore the LGF back to 3.68% or at a minimum just keep the FY 2020 and FY 2021 LGF Levels in place for this biennium or higher than the 1.66%. Providing the proper support to Ohio’s local governments is key to our state’s overall COVID-19 economic recovery. (See attached H.B. 110 Amendment HC0789, Sub. H.B. 110 Amendment HC1646, and Sub. H.B. 110 Amendment HF2103)

In closing Senators, the decade of cuts in the local government fund and the negative economic impact of COVID-19 pandemic all highlights the importance that the General Assembly include as much COVID-19 relief in this budget so Ohio can successfully recover whether you are a small business, local government, or just an ordinary Ohioan.

Thank you for the opportunity to advocate for these important issues that impact my community and others throughout Ohio. I am happy to answer any questions you may have for me at this time and am also available via email at danlangshawfornrward3@yahoo.com.

Greetings Residents,

It’s been a long year since the  COVID-19 pandemic first hit our country. Finally there are some new hopes that life is returning to normal. I would like to update you on some COVID-19 information, things going on in our local government that you should be aware of, and community events happening around our community. 

Today is Memorial Day. Harry S. Truman once said, “Our debt to the heroic men and valiant women in the service of our country can never be repaid. They have earned our undying gratitude. America will never forget their sacrifices.” On this Memorial Day let’s honor and remember all those who have paid the the ultimate price especially from our community so we all can live free as Americans. 

If I can be of any service to you or your family don’t hesitate to email me at danlangshawfornrward3@yahoo.com or call me at 440-785-4240.

May God Bless all the fallen and Gold Star Families on this Memorial Day.

Dan Langshaw
Former Councilman &
2021 Candidate for North Royalton Ward 3 City Council

COVID-19 Update

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

May 21, 2021

On May 18, 2021 the North Royalton City Council in a 5-2 vote approved Ordinance 21-81. This charter amendment would  be on November 2, 2021 General Election ballot and would change the way our Mayor and Council President are elected in North Royalton. The Council President and Ward 1 Councilwoman were correct in voting against this Ordinance. Sadly this is another move by the current majority on city council that wastes taxpayer dollars.

If this new charter amendment is approved, it would add a special May primary election with only the top two vote getters for Mayor and Council President moving on to the November ballot.

A primary election will waste at least $40,000 to $100,000 or more of our taxpayer dollars just to pay for a special election. Turnout for most municipal elections are typically low. How many residents want to, or will even show up to vote in an odd year primary? This is an unnecessary waste of our time.

The current Council President was quoted recently in a local newspaper saying, “Current system has worked previous times when multiple candidates ran for mayor and the current system gives plenty of time to evaluate candidates”. I concur too that the current process is not broken. In 2019, our current Mayor defeated four other candidates and obtained over 50% of the vote. Our current Council President ran unopposed.

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5) Provide excellent communication, service, experienced leadership, and COVID-19 aide to residents of Ward 3.

• Maintain open lines of communication to ensure prompt addressing of resident concerns.
• Keep constituents informed about what is going on in North Royalton and on city council through various forms of communication from my electronic newsletters, website, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Instagram.
• Continue to host monthly constituent coffees and periodic ward events to engage residents while providing them with an opportunity to share concerns and ask questions in a one-on-one setting.
• Work with community leaders and elected officials on all levels of government to address specific issues and concerns of residents in a diplomatic and professional manner.
• Ensure that no resident’s voice is left unheard in Ward 3 by utilizing my years of dedicated experience serving the community.
• Support regionalism and other collaborative efforts with other government entities as a way to help lower spending and improve government efficiency and services to residents.
• Fight to protect taxpayer dollars against further state funding cuts through direct advocacy with the Ohio General Assembly.
• Advocate for a freeze on automatic legislative and department salary increases and reallocate those dollars towards COVID-19 economic recovery efforts instead for residents and businesses in need.
• Continue to assist residents adversely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic with maintaining the Ward 3 COVID-19 website, North Royalton Buddy Program, #MaskUpNoRo Program, and other support resources as needed.
• Explore post pandemic policies and legislation that will provide greater flexibly to residents and businesses to adopt more health and safety measures to prevent future pandemics after COVID-19.
• Work with health professionals, local drug stores, and hospitals to ensure more residents have access to COVID-19 vaccine and other resources they need in the community.
• Focus on returning the city back to closely pre-COVID-19 normalcy while ensuring resident’s civil rights are protected and health of residents.

CLICK HERE to return back to Dan’s North Royalton Recovery Plan

4) Fight to better protect victims of crime, address growing safety needs, and keep our neighborhoods safe for all families.

• Reach out to non-profit organizations such as Cleveland Rape Crisis, Marsy’s Law Ohio, Ohio Domestic Violence Network, and Mothers Against Drunk Driving to find more ways to better assist victims of crime and their families in North Royalton.
• Continue to ensure the city jail remains open, fiscally transparent, increase revenues, and explore long-term solutions such as creating a Council of Governments with other communities.
• Advocate for a formal review of the city’s current agreement with the Southwest Emergency Dispatch Center and explore if there are better alternative options that will be more fiscally conservative and deliver better services to residents.
• Support working with the Chiefs to increase staffing for police and fire departments to meet the growing safety needs of North Royalton as calls for service continue to rise in the community for help.
• Seek creative solutions to reduce non-emergency EMS calls for service with the North Royalton Fire Department by exploring community paramedicine programs such REACH (Resource, Education, and Advocacy for Community Health) to assist seniors and other underserved residents through in home consultations and preventative care.
• Maintain our strong safety forces by ensuring they are transparent, have all modern equipment, continuous training, and resources they need to help keep us all safe 24/7.
• Host ward or neighborhood events to help promote public safety, community resources, and training for residents.
• Seek out better alternatives than lateral transfers to recruit highly qualified men and women for the city’s safety forces.
• Support working with the Chiefs to increase staffing for police and fire departments to meet the growing safety needs of North Royalton as calls for service continue to rise in the community for help on an annual basis.

CLICK HERE to return back to Dan’s North Royalton Recovery Plan

3) Make the city more business friendly to retain existing businesses, attract new ones, and lessen the tax burden on residents.

• Clean up the toxic anti-business policies the city has through legislative action to remove over-regulation, unnecessary moratoriums, and other obstacles to allow for more future economic development in the city.
• Continue Ward 3 Business group to allow for further direct dialogue with business community leaders on a quarterly basis and survey businesses who have left the community to discover ways we could improve in the future.
• Focus on aggressively filling our empty strip malls through legislative tools like a Vacant Property Registration Ordinances (VPRO), which will provide a strong financial incentive to vacant property owners to find businesses for their spaces while keeping residents safe. These are legal in Ohio and have worked throughout the state, notably in Cleveland Heights and South Euclid.
• Keep North Royalton focused on the future. Box stores and strip malls are projected to be less important in the long run than locally-owned small businesses. These should be encouraged both for their economic value and for their unique contribution they make on our community.
• Focus on implementing recommendations from business owners to improve the York Alpha Industrial Parkway to encourage more manufacturing and business that better fit the long-term future of the city.
• Review any economic development types of legislation before city council to make sure it helps foster a business friendly environment that will retain existing businesses, attract new ones, and encourage residents to buy local in North Royalton.
• Focus on ways as a city to promote good-paying jobs we can count on while preserving the jobs we still have.
• Encourage more historic preservation of the community’s historic sites, buildings, and heritage to help attract more tourism and commerce to the city.
• Support the city utilizing more economic development tools such as Tax Increment Financing (TIF) incentives to bring larger mix-use or redevelopment projects to fruition, creating more revitalization districts, Community Development Supplemental Grants (CDSG) from Cuyahoga County’s Casino Revenue Fund, and address issues with current zoning ordinances that do not align with the needs of residents and local businesses.
• Encouraging development and growth that creates a more sustainable tax base and removes the burden from residents; for example neighboring communities like Strongsville and Brecksville each pay less in taxes and receive better services because of their business revenues.
• Push for fiscal responsible solutions to address the fiscal challenges ahead for North Royalton that is fair and sustainable without burdening residents and business owners.

CLICK HERE to return back to Dan’s North Royalton Recovery Plan

2) Work to enhance city services for families, youth, seniors, and address urgent infrastructure issues.

• Residents pay high taxes for little return in city services compared to neighboring communities. Residents deserve more for what they are paying to live in North Royalton.
• Introduce legislation to create Home Maintenance Assistance Program (HMAP) to provide low income families with exterior home repair grants to help address issues of blight in ward 3 and citywide by exploring possible partnerships with non-profits and other governmental entities.
• Support the North Royalton City School District to possibly acquire some of the old elementary school properties for future public parks, recreation, and storm water mitigation opportunities once they are closed for good.
• Explore possible new partnerships with North Royalton City School District, Cuyahoga Valley Career Center, Cuyahoga Community College, and other surrounding schools to develop more opportunities for summer jobs, internships, and apprenticeships for the youth to attract and retain them after they graduate high school and college in the community.
• Encourage more collaboration with the YMCA and community groups to provide more recreational programs opportunities for our families and youth.
• Oppose further efforts by the current city administration to dismantle the City Office on Aging and Human Services and instead will advocate for greater resources for the department to meet the needs of residents including those with disabilities.
• Support enhancing senior services to address both the needs of our growing aging population and of the whole community in which many seniors want to remain active and involved members. While investing in more programs for them like creating an Are You OK? Program to help address safety and wellbeing needs of seniors in the community with regular automated safety check ins.
• Encourage the city to revisit discussions of instituting a city leaf collection program that could also address storm water mitigation issues.
• Support efforts to enhance our tree canopy that has declined -8.6% according to the 2019 Cuyahoga County Planning Commission’s Urban Tree Canopy Assessment as a tool to address storm water issues in the community.
• Change land development codes to be stricter to reduce storm water runoff, deforestation, and increase flood control measures to address the more frequent 100 year storms our city keeps experiencing.
• Encourage more community education programs for storm water management, creation of a city wide storm water awareness week, increase grant opportunities for residents and businesses to mitigate historic flooding, and addressing bureaucratic obstacles.
• Continue to support recommendations from the North Royalton Alternative Transportation Study for strategic placement of sidewalks, bike lanes, improved connectivity of the city, and explore creation of a city sidewalk fund to help pay for future sidewalk projects.
• Work with the administration to address street repairs and storm water issues for Ward 3.
• Discover ways to secure additional funding sources and grants necessary to fund infrastructure needs from the county, state, and federal levels of government.
• Continue to advocate for a more permanent resolution of the decade traffic congestion and safety issues with the intersection of York Road and Abbey Road.

CLICK HERE to return back to Dan’s North Royalton Recovery Plan

1) Reform city government to be better trained, transparent, less political, and return more power back to residents.

• Require diversity, sexual harassment, ethics, and alternative dispute resolution training for all city council members.
• Better utilize city membership in the Ohio Municipal League to allow for council members to do various professional development trainings, webinars and continue education as leaders. For example, the North Royalton Board of Education has been doing this for decades which has proven to be successful.
• Encourage city council to join more professional organizations and groups like the Northeast Ohio City Council Association (NOCCA).
• Reach out to non-profit organizations, colleges, service clubs, and faith base groups to develop ways to address issues of hate, racism, and decline of civil discourse to improve the overall community.
• Work to create an Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) program for city council and any city employees to resolve complaints, heated disputes, and workplace issues in a timely, cost efficient, and professional manner.
• Increase transparency in city government by requiring department heads who have outside employment to be required to publically disclose it and ensure they don’t misuse their positions and or taxpayer dollars for their personal gain.
• Work to cap city spending that has gotten long-time political bureaucrats rich at the expense of residents and services.
• Increase city financial transparency and planning by introducing legislation to require the city to have a 5 year financial forecast and be accessible to the residents on the city’s website.
• Introduce legislation for a city code of ethics ordinance to make city government more professional, less political, decrease the power of special interest financial power over elected officials, and restore confidence in our local government
• Support further review and oversight of city department’s use of taxpayer dollars, efficiency of staffing, and transparency to residents.
• Advocate for campaign finance reforms to prohibit the law director, employees of the Law Department, City Magistrate, and employees from contributing political donations to Mayor and city council races. This would end the culture of political influence and ensure these positions are apolitical in nature for the best interest of good government practices.
• Introduce a Charter Amendment legislation to change the City Law Director position from an appointed position by the Mayor to an elected position by a vote of the residents of North Royalton. This legislation would make the City Law Department more accountable to the residents, fiscally responsible, ensure better justices for victims of crime, and end the decades of political cronyism at City Hall.
• Provide additional checks and balances for the residents of North Royalton on the executive powers of the Mayor by introducing a Charter Amendment legislation to require a majority vote of city council for any proposed abolishment of any city division, department, corrections operations, and governmental facility owned by the city. This would help avoid another repeat of the 2020 jail closure crisis.
• Explore introducing responsible contractor legislation for city construction projects to provide greater protection to taxpayers and safety of the community when going out to bid on public projects.
• Work to amend city notification requirements for projects before the Planning Commission and Board of Zoning Appeals to allow for more residents to have greater input before these bodies make decisions.

CLICK HERE to return back to Dan’s North Royalton Recovery Plan