© 2024 Ideastream Public Media

1375 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland, Ohio 44115
(216) 916-6100 | (877) 399-3307

WKSU is a public media service licensed to Kent State University and operated by Ideastream Public Media.
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations
News
To contact us with news tips, story ideas or other related information, e-mail newsstaff@ideastream.org.

Cuyahoga County Councilman Julian Rogers Prepares to Leave Office at End of Month

County Councilman Julian Rogers (photo: Cuyahoga County Council)
County Councilman Julian Rogers (photo: Cuyahoga County Council)

Julian Rogers won election to council in 2010. He represents parts of Cleveland's east side, as well as Cleveland Heights, University Heights, East Cleveland and Bratenahl.

He says this new government has successfully distanced itself from the corruption scandal that led voters to scrap the three-commissioner structure in favor of a single executive and county council.

But one area where he would have liked to see more reform is in campaign finance.

"When you talk about contributions to elected officials, there can be an assumption from people that every time you're getting a contribution that somehow you have -- that person who gave the contribution has some undue influence over you," Rogers said.

Rogers backed a charter amendment that would have put limits on campaign contributions. But the majority of council declined to put it on the ballot.

Rogers says council should be an active body with as much say in county affairs as the executive. He's chair of the education committee, and says so far council has played a minor role in the region's schools.

"We've worked with College Now, and we're providing scholarships to Cuyahoga County students that are graduating high school and attending colleges or universities within Cuyahoga County," he said.

Rodgers has supported executive Ed FitzGerald's plan to build a county-owned hotel next to the new convention center. He rejects suggestions that the project was a distraction from unemployment and poverty in the region. He says council has to focus on social problems and economic development, and that Cleveland needs a successful convention center.

"Once you have a strong downtown where people feel safe, there's a lot of vibrancy, people gain more interest in wanting to be close to that center," he said. "So I think that it builds out downtown to the rest of the county."

Rogers is a Democrat, and the responsibility for naming an interim replacement lies with his district's precinct committee members from the county Democratic Party. The party hasn't yet announced whom it will choose.

Nick Castele was a senior reporter covering politics and government for Ideastream Public Media. He worked as a reporter for Ideastream from 2012-2022.