Council members Nancy Byrge, Mark Campbell, and Donn Webb sit on the commission, along with current Interim City Manager John Russell and City Manager Rick Dzik.
Dzik has not been active on the commission since his May OVI arrest. He remains on paid administrative leave pending an internal investigation by the city.
Members of the Charter Commission addressed city council during a Tuesday work session, sharing the recommended charter amendments, which were compiled over a series of commission meetings, according to Chairman Matt Shomper said.
Changes have been suggested for council and mayor eligibility, the rights of a sitting mayor, quorum and majority votes, ordinance adoption notices, qualifications for city managers, and removal of an official or board/commission member.
Council will discuss the recommended changes again during the next work session scheduled for July 16, followed by a vote during the July 22 regular council meeting.
Under the suggested changes, to be eligible as a candidate for council or mayor, an individual must not be holding the office of a council member or mayor at the time of petition filing unless the petitioner is in the last year of their then-current term.
“When a person chooses to run against another person on the dais, the ability to work together ends,” Shomper said of “running from a safe seat.”
Shomper referred to the 2021 campaign to illustrate this point. In the November 2021 election, incumbent Mayor Jeff Gore ran against, and beat, then-Councilman Glenn Otto. The two had vied for the nomination against then-current Councilman Ed Lyons during that year’s March primary.
That election also saw then-current councilman Richard Shaw face off unsuccessfully against councilwoman Byrge.
“The race for mayor and the at-large council position that year put five people from the dais in the election against each other. The campaign was not pretty and the relationships on the dais were not pretty,” Shomper said Tuesday. “The incumbents won the election, the three that lost were still on council due to their safe seats for the next two years, and we all know those years were interesting, to say the least.”
The years of 2022 and 2023 were tumultuous for the Huber Heights City Council, as disagreements and differences in opinion amongst members resulted in deadlocked decision-making, accusations of bias, political ploys, and a significant delay in selecting a new city manager.
The charter committee further recommended that the mayor have a right to vote as a member of council, but without veto power. Currently, the mayor can only vote on issues in cases where the remaining members are deadlocked.
“With the mayor having a vote, ties are less likely unless a council member is absent,” said Charter Commission member Thomas Dillingham. “Allowing the mayor to vote while eliminating the veto power enables the mayor to fully participate in council decisions without holding disproportionate authority.”
Other recommendations include adding unexcused absences from any three council meetings to the reasons for potential removal of members; changing the residency requirement for city manager candidates at the time of appointment to be in accordance with state law and as negotiated by council; and requiring clerk of council to post ordinance adoption or codification notices on the city’s website and three additional places within the city at least 10 days prior to a vote.
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