Promises Made, Promises Kept

PROMISES MADE, PROMISES KEPT

Transparency
Successfully advocated for the City’s Administration to publicly disclose the locations and purchase prices of the 34 parcels of property owned by the City of Richmond Heights;

Successfully advocated for the release of the organizational documents of the Greenwood Farm Historical, Cultural & Arts Association, Inc.; and,

Created a blog and email blast to keep residents apprised of the operations of the City.

Good Government/Financial Accountability/Reduction of Waste

• Wrote the City’s policy for vehicle and cellular phone usage in compliance with best practices as outlined by the Auditor of State, thereby saving the tax-payers of Richmond Heights tens of thousands of dollars in misuse;
• Spearheaded outsourcing of the City’s bank reconciliation to the Auditor of State and unearthing more than $300,000 in accounting errors;
• Urged the City’s Administration to fulfill the State and County requirements of filing timely and accurate annual financial statements.  In 2012, for the first time in 10 years, the City filed its financial statements on time.

Collaboration and Cooperation with the Richmond Heights Local School District

• Participate annually in the Booster’s Scholarship interviews for outstanding graduating seniors involved in public service and sports;
• Wrote and sponsored a $35,000 grant from the Cuyahoga County Department of Development in order to put rubber pavement on the playground of the School;
• Organized Right to Read Week with the Principal of the Elementary School in order to introduce the children to successful members of their community.

“No” Means “Yes” for the Richmond Heights Tax Payers

• Consistently voted “no” to additional acquisitions of residential property for the City;
• Consistently voted “no” to over-budget expenditures without supporting and explanatory documentation

Commitment to Broad Based Public Service

• Commissioner, Cuyahoga County Charter Review Commission
• Commissioner, Richmond Heights Charter Review Commission
• Board Member, Cuyahoga County Public Library Foundation
• Board Member, Hillcrest YMCA Board of Advisors
• Member, Women’s Committee of the Cleveland Museum of Art
• Member, International Cleveland Communities Advisory Committee of CMA

How much does Greenwood Farm annually cost the City?

Update as of 6/25/13:  At the request of Mayor Ursu, Council members Eloise Henry, David Roche, Mark Alexander, Marcia Morgan, and Don O’Toole voted to give Greenwood Farms an additional $21,000 in tax payer dollars on June 25, 2013.  See Legislation 38-2013 and the vote in City Council.

The total purchase price of Greenwood Farm and all associated properties was approximately $664,000.  The City of Richmond Heights purchased the parcels from over two years (2004 – 2006). 

The property is more or less located at the intersection of Richmond Road and Chardon Road. It consists of approximately 17 acres.  The current market value assessed by the Cuyahoga County Fiscal Office is $408,300 -- a decrease in value of 38.5%.

Even though the City of Richmond Heights is financially responsible for the routine maintenance of Greenwood Farm, the City does not control the property.  Greenwood Farm is controlled by a separate corporate entity, called Greenwood Farm Historical, Cultural & Arts Association, Inc. (GFHCAA).  It has a separate board of directors and this board is responsible for the property’s control of business affairs and funds.  There is no public access to the property.

For at least the past three years, the GFHCAA has never appeared before City Council to report on how it uses tax-payer funds, plans to be utilized for the public interest, and intends to achieve financial self sufficiency.

Annually, the City appropriates (or gives) thousands of dollars to Greenwood Farm.  GFHCAA also raises its own funding through multiple events, such as the upcoming Junk in the Trunk rummage sale.  Again, GFHCAA has not reported to the City in the past three years about how much money the organization raises or its intent to supplement tax-payer dollars.

Similar to the other properties owned by the City of Richmond Heights, the cost of maintenance of Greenwood Farm (labor and materials from the Service Department, interest in the Bond Retirement Fund, and assorted expenditures in other funds) is accounted for in the general bucket and cannot be easily or transparently itemized.

How Much Did Rhythm & Ribs Cost Richmond Heights?

How much did “Rhythm & Ribs” (the summertime rib cook-off and festival) cost the City?

For those of you who may not remember, the Recreation Department organized an event called Rhythm & Ribs over the summer. It was located in the back lot of the mall. It included rib vendors, carnival rides, and musical bands.

Income (vendors, exhibitors, rides, tickets, etc.)                                $46,385
Expenses                                                                                          - $80,908

LOSS                                                                                                  $34,523

The City of Richmond Heights Has Not Filed an Annual Financial Statement Since 2008.

Richmond Heights’ City Council needs accurate and timely financial statements in order to make wise spending decisions – funding pensions, repairing the Kiwanis Lodge, paying off debt, etc.

Under penalty of law, every city in Ohio is required to submit an annual, audited financial statement within 150 days of the close of the fiscal year end.  Generally speaking, the annual financial statement is a compilation of the monthly financial statements over 12 months.

City Council did not receive a copy of its 2008 annual, audited financial statement until October 2010.

And it was bad.  The report contained five “material deficiencies”. 

Here is the definition of a material deficiency in the language of the State Auditor: 

A material deficiency is “a significant deficiency, or combination of control deficiencies, that adversely affects the City’s ability to initiate, record, process, or report financial data reliably . . . such that there is more than a remote likelihood that the City’s internal control will not prevent or detect a more-than-inconsequential financial statement misstatement.”

The five material weaknesses go directly to the City’s shortcomings in financial control:

Finding Number 2008-002: Transfers and Advances

Finding Number 2008-003:  Annual Reporting

Finding Number 2008-008:  Financial Reporting

Finding Number 2008-009:  Bank Reconciliations

Finding Number 2008-010:  Capital Asset Records

The Management Letter written by the Auditor of State concerning Richmond Heights clearly explains the importance of filing accurate and timely financial statements: 

“Failing to file annual reports that are complete an accurate could be a symptom of an inadequate accounting system, inadequate training of personnel in understanding the accounting and reporting process, un-posted or un-reconciled records, or other significant issues affecting the control environment, or which may even pose fraud risks.”

When I asked the Senior Auditor in charge of the Richmond Heights audit review about how our financial preparation compared to other cities, he said, “It is the worst audit I have seen in 15 years.”

Until the deficiencies in financial reporting and financial controls are adequately addressed, should the City of Richmond Heights ask for a tax increase now without all the information it needs to be a good steward of public funds?

To see the complete 2008 audit report and Schedule of Findings:  http://www.auditor.state.oh.us/auditsearch/Reports/2010/City_of_Richmond_Heights_08_07-Cuyahoga.pdf.