Cross References

Charter amendments - see Ohio Const., Art. XVIII, Sec. 9

Reports - see ADM. 121.03, 121.04

Loyalty oaths - see ADM. 161.06, 161.07

All persons holding office at the time this charter goes into effect shall continue in office and in the performance of their duties until provision shall have been otherwise made in accordance with this charter for the performance of the duties of any such office. When such provision shall have been made, the term of any such officer shall expire and the office be deemed abolished. The powers which are conferred and the duties which are imposed upon any officer, commission, board or department of the city under the laws of the state shall, if such office or department is abolished by this charter, be thereafter exercised and discharged by the officer, board or department upon whom are imposed corresponding functions, powers and duties hereunder.

All officers whose election is provided for herein shall be first elected at the regular municipal election in the year 1915; the terms of all elective officers shall begin on the first day of January next following their election. The term of office of all members of boards and commissions herein provided for shall commence on the first day of February of the year wherein the terms of the present members expire, and the terms of such present members shall be regarded for the purpose of this charter as expiring on such first day of February, regardless of the precise time of their original appointment. Officers shall hold their respective offices until their successors are chosen and qualified.

Every officer of the city shall, before entering upon the duties of office, take and subscribe to an oath or affirmation as required by general law, which oath or affirmation shall be filed and kept in the office of the city clerk.

(Ord. No. 2200-2022, 7-25-2022)

Unless otherwise provided by this charter or ordinance of council, general laws of the state pertaining to prohibited actions by public officials, as established in chapter 2921 of the Ohio Revised Code, or a successor thereto, shall apply to the officers and employees of the city. Such prohibited actions include, but are not limited to, unlawful interest in public contracts, theft in office, soliciting or accepting improper compensation, and bribery. Any violation of this section shall constitute malfeasance in office, and any such officer or employee shall thereby forfeit office or employment.

(Adopted 11-2-82; Amended 11-3-98; Ord. No. 1749-2014, 7-21-2014)

Editor's note— Ord. No. 1749-2014, adopted July 21, 2014, amended the title of § 227 to read as set out herein. Former § 227 was titled interest in contracts or supplies.

All contracts entered into by the city, for its benefit, prior to the taking effect of this charter, shall continue in full force and effect. All public work begun prior to the taking effect of this charter shall be continued and perfected hereunder. Public improvements for which legislative steps have been taken under law in force at the time this charter takes effect, may be carried to completion in accordance with the provisions of such laws.

All ordinances and resolutions in force at the time of the taking effect of this charter, not inconsistent with its provisions, shall continue in force until amended or repealed.

Except in case of extraordinary emergencies, not to exceed eight hours shall constitute a day's work, and not to exceed forty-eight hours a week's work, for workers engaged on any public work carried on or aided by the municipality, whether done by contract or otherwise. The council shall, by ordinance, provide for the enforcement of the provisions of this section.

(Amended 11-3-98.)

The various officers, boards and heads of departments shall annually report to council in comprehensive and systematized detail, the financial and other transactions of the departments or divisions thereof under their supervision or control. Such reports shall cover such period of time and be made in the manner and at the time that council shall by ordinance prescribe. The city clerk shall compile the reports as the annual report of the city and shall publish such annual report by the production of a permanent electronic record that is made available to the public pursuant to the general laws of the state governing public records.

(Ord. No. 1747-2014, 7-21-2014)

All general laws of the state applicable to municipal corporations, now or hereafter enacted, and which are not in conflict with the provisions of this charter, or with ordinances or resolutions hereafter enacted by the city council, shall be applicable to this city; provided, however, that nothing contained in this charter shall be construed as limiting the power of the city council to enact any ordinance or resolution not in conflict with the constitution of the state or with express provisions of this charter.

If any section or part of a section of this charter proves to be invalid or unconstitutional, the same shall not be held to invalidate or impair the validity, force or effect of any other section or part of a section of this charter unless it clearly appear that such other section or part of a section is wholly or necessarily dependent for its operation upon the section or part of a section so held unconstitutional or invalid.

Editor's note— Ord. No. 1748-2014, adopted July 21, 2014, repealed § 234 in its entirety. Former § 234 pertained to amendments and was derived from Original Charter, as amended 5-4-71.

For the purpose of nominating and electing officers and all purposes connected therewith, and for the purpose of exercising such legislative powers as are necessary to be exercised by the present council preliminary to the organization of departments, divisions and offices herein provided, this charter shall take effect on the first day of January, 1915. For the purpose of establishing departments, divisions and officers, and distributing the function thereof, and for all other purposes it shall take effect on the first day of January, 1916.

A charter review commission, composed of five qualified electors of the city, shall be appointed at the second regular meeting of council in the year 2022 and of each succeeding tenth year thereafter, and at any time council may, by vote of eight of its members, call for such a commission. The charter review commission shall consist of two members appointed by the council, two members appointed by the mayor, and one member jointly appointed by the president of council and the mayor, such member serving as chair of the commission. Members of the commission shall not hold any other office or employment in the government of the city, and shall serve without compensation. Vacancies shall be filled in the same manner as prescribed for the original appointment. The commission shall be considered a public body. Within six months after appointment, the commission shall report its findings and recommendations regarding the charter, if any, to council. Council may at its discretion submit, in whole or in part, any of the proposed amendments to a vote of the people in the manner provided for by this charter. Any such amendment shall be in a form as provided by council. Nothing in this section shall limit the authority of council to submit any proposed charter amendment to a vote of the people as otherwise provided for in this charter.

(Ord. No. 1747-2014, 7-21-2014; Ord. No. 0650-2018, § 2, 3-5-2018)

The council is granted the authority to, through ordinance adopted by unanimous vote of the entire council, incorporate technical changes to this charter. The ordinance providing for such technical changes shall not be passed as an emergency measure and shall be subject to the referendum as provided for in this charter. Technical changes shall not affect the intent or purpose of any part of the charter and shall be strictly limited to the following: correcting misspellings and obvious errors of grammar, punctuation, or sentence construction; standardizing similar terms, phrases, or references; and re-numbering, re-ordering, or re-sequencing any sentences, paragraphs, or sections of the charter to improve clarity, ease of reference, and grouping of sections related in subject matter.

(Ord. No. 1747-2014, 7-21-2014)

No officer, employee, or agent of the city shall deny equal access to city services, or equal opportunity in employment and promotion, or the benefits thereof, to any person on the basis of race, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, color, religion, ancestry, national origin, age, disability, family or military status, or any other status that is protected by federal, state, or local law or ordinance.

(Ord. No. 1747-2014, 7-21-2014)

The records of the city shall be made available to the public in accordance with general laws of the state.

(Ord. No. 1749-2014, 7-21-2014)

The public bodies of the city shall hold all meetings in accordance with the general laws of the state pertaining to open meetings except that council may, by ordinance, provide for the ability of public bodies to hold, attend, conduct, and keep minutes for virtual meetings and hearings by means of teleconference, video conference, or any other similar technology and council may provide for the circumstances under which such virtual meetings or hearings may be held. In addition to those entities defined as public bodies in the general laws of the state, an entity of the city shall be considered a public body for purposes of this section if its members are appointed to serve as a member of the public body by an officer of the city, and the entity has been established and its members appointed for the sole purpose of advising any officer or decision-making body of the city.

(Ord. No. 1749-2014, 7-21-2014; Ord. No. 2200-2022, 7-25-2022)