Rocky River City Council Inauguration

CITY OF ROCKY RIVER 2026 INAUGURATION January 5, 2026 The City of Rocky River 2026 Inauguration was called to order by Mr. Furry at 7:00 p.m. in the David J. Cook Council Chambers. Council Members Present: Mr. Hunt, Ms. Gallagher, Mr. Furry, Mrs. Morris, Ms. Havemann, Mr. Shipp, Mr. Moran Administration: Mayor Bobst, Mr. Lindow, Mr. Snyder Law Director: Mr. O’Shea Mr. Furry opened the meeting with the Pledge of Allegiance followed by an opening prayer delivered by Father Timothy Daw of St. Christopher Parish, Rocky River, Ohio. Mayor Bobst provided welcoming remarks. She thanked Father Daw for his leadership and spiritual guidance to so many in Rocky River and welcomed Cuyahoga County Executive Chris Ronayne expressing her gratitude for his being here this evening. She noted how pleased she was to see many friends, family members of the administration as well as community members to share in this special occasion. On behalf of City Council, and the Law Director, she extended her sincere and enthusiastic thanks to all of them and all they do to support us in the work that we do together to build and sustain our great community. She extended an additional special thank you to all the staff members that are in attendance. Day in and day out it is their efforts and countless unseen details and acts of service and kindness that truly make a difference. It is an honor and a privilege to serve the residents alongside such a tremendous team of dedicated individuals. Individuals dedicated to service, responsiveness and excellence tirelessly placing resident needs ahead of their own. In their daily achievements she hopes that they recognize the significance of their contributions and that they all enjoy the satisfaction of a job well done in addition to the confidence in knowing that they have made a difference. A difference that is deeply valued by our residents, adding that they are all leaders among leaders in this region. Their positive attitude is important in all that we do. Projects become easier to complete, changes are easier to implement and accomplish, and problems become so much easier to solve. She thanked them for their enthusiasm and initiative which are skills that can’t be taught. They bring new innovative ideas and solutions to some of our most challenging issues and when we exceed expectations it strengthens our relationship with those we serve. Together we serve a community that all residents, today as well in the future, will be proud to call Rocky River home. In 1903 Theodore Roosevelt said, ‘far and away the best prize life has to offer is the chance to work hard and at work that is worth doing’ and we are blessed to do that every day for the City of Rocky River. Mayor Bobst continued on to advise that she is excited about the upcoming term noting that they have been fortunate to have great stability and continuity in our city government. Each member brings a unique set of perspectives and expertise which is demonstrated in their commitment to community service, not just in elected office, but as members and as leaders of our thriving civic organizations. As your city government team, they will continue to be focused on several priorities which include maintaining a high level of city services, reinforcing and strengthening our safety and preparedness in the community, investing in infrastructure and sewers. She noted the upcoming new fire station which began with the demolition of the old building earlier in the day. She expressed her excitement for completion of the Senior Center expansion and improvements and the completion of the first two phases of Bradstreet Landing. The City is committed to supporting thriving and livable neighborhoods, ensuring economic stability, diversity and vitality, providing cultural and recreational opportunities and creating a beautiful and sustainable environment, advancing our City’s Master Plan, and leveraging local assets to secure outside Rocky River City Council 2026 Inauguration January 5, 2026 Page 1 of 4 funding for some of our most critical projects. Additionally, collaborating and cooperating with other communities and other levels of governments to increase efficiencies and enhance or expand services to our residents. She expressed a huge thank you to our County Executive for all that he has done to support regional cooperation and collaboration across his with 59 communities. She doesn’t know how he does it, but he has done an amazing job supporting some of the most important things that local communities must do. City Council, Administration, Law Director are all committed and an effective government team. They are committed to open and accountable transparency, responsible and collaborative governance. They understand the importance of honoring our history and traditions while utilizing best practices to focus on excellence in all things – truly putting excellence into action and excellence into results. Our team is strong because of individual commitment, a desire to achieve, an appreciation for one another’s efforts and expertise, and an understanding of our shared responsibility also a high level of responsiveness and in all things possessing a sense of humor and a positive attitude. Mayor Bobst noted that we are always mindful that the residents are our best partners and we are fortunate because residents actively share ideas and solutions for the challenges they face. It’s about the open and respectful exchange of ideas, it’s this type of insightful and thoughtful participation that translates into meaningful solutions for the issues that Rocky River faces. As Mayor, there are a few things that keep her up at night – sewers, snow plows, maintaining a high level of safety in the community for which she thanked Chief Lichman and Chief Lenart for all the important work that they do in the community, refuse and recycling and making that a sustainable process for the community, social media, mental health issues, state and federal cuts, and the political climate – all of that has an impact on our local government. But there are things that do help her sleep at night including a highly effective city governance team that she is so proud to serve with and a talented and dedicated staff. Our past practices have served us well. The engagement of their residents whether it be in volunteerism, in our stakeholder processes, in philanthropy or their individual investment whether it’s in their homes or their businesses – they’ve invested greatly in our city. There are many communities, like ours, that have found ways to retain their small-town values, historic character, scenic beauty and sense of community and yet sustain a prosperous local economy. These communities, like ours, capitalize on their distinctive assets – architecture and history and natural surroundings they are differentiated by lively neighborhoods and business districts filled with home grown businesses as well as cultural and recreational attractions. They have a great sense of place, and they respect and protect natural spaces. They have a deep pride in local character, just like us, and they’ve engaged community members in a collective vision for their future which is foundational to their success. Most importantly we are a City who knows what it truly means to be a community. Mayor Bobst advised that January 1st marked 30 years she’s served in elected office in this community with not quite 20 as Mayor and she’s been so proud to serve with so many City Council members and Law Directors. When she is asked, ‘why is our local governance so successful?’ what she focuses on is their shared servant leadership and the commitments that guide us in our service to residents, and they guide us in our service to one another, which is now more important than ever. It’s walking the talk of public service. A few things that guide us - we base our decisions on the next generation more than the next election committed to the ideal that our loyalty must be one to the entire community now and in the future. We focus on mission and vision and values as the benchmark of our decisions and recognize that our responsibility is the pursuit of the greatest good for our entire community. We make decisions based on fact-based evidence and not allow ourselves to be manipulated into bad decisions for the future based on the decibel level of critics. We listen to the unified voices. We value those who have the courage to tell us what they really think, and we will listen sincerely to those who disagree with us and try to truly understand their perspective recognizing that understanding their perspective makes us better leaders and more effective leaders. We embrace our responsibility to govern, rather than to manage, recognizing that if we are doing staff’s jobs, we are not doing our job while also understanding and embracing the appropriately exercised governance roll of holding others to the highest level of accountability and transparency. We place greater emphasis on solutions than on problems while not offering solutions before we understand the problem. We understand that mutual trust is the foundation for everything and if we refuse to trust others, they will be unable to trust us. We protect the integrity of the process more than the rightness of our positions. We fight hard for our issues and then we will unify when a decision is made even if we disagree with the outcome. We understand that our deeply held beliefs, values, and positions will be strengthened, not compromised, by courteous and respectful civil discourse. We will not treat Rocky River City Council 2026 Inauguration January 5, 2026 Page 2 of 4 someone as our enemy just because we disagree, we treat everyone with dignity and respect because of who we are as leaders not because of how they treat us. We are the role models for civility. We won’t always agree, but we will honor the process. We will never forget it’s not about us, it’s not about now, it’s about the future of our thriving community – together we share a proud history as we build our collective future. Please know that our goal in all things is to advance the quality of life for all residents. She thanked everyone once again for their attendance and continued support. Please know that we are proud and honored and grateful to serve this exceptional community and wish you and your families a meaningful new year filled with treasured memories. Mr. Furry thanked Mayor Bobst for her remarks and introduced Chris Ronayne the Cuyahoga County Executive who will administer the oaths of office. Mr. Ronayne thanked everyone in attendance and advised that it was an honor to be with them in Rocky River. He thanked the staff for the service that they do every day to keep local government growing and going noting that while the government may shut down at a federal level it never does at a local level. He greatly appreciates the work of the Mayor, Council, and their teams as well as the families of staff and council. He added that he gets a little emotional at these events and it’s one of his favorite times of the year because of the hope and aspirations that come with the new year and were just articulated about working together not for ourselves, but for something bigger than us. He feels that in Rocky River. He advised that he has a little history with Rocky River having his first job in this City and biking over from Bay Village. Additionally, his mother taught night classes at Rocky River High School, built her business here in Rocky River, and he spent countless hours at the Ice-Skating Rink. From a personal relationship since he was 16 years old, he is grateful for the work they do here, and while he does serve 59 communities, he has to say to the citizens of Rocky River that things work well here. He thinks it’s because they keep in perspective working together. He is glad to be here and it’s an honor to bring forth the oath of office. Mr. Ronayne invited Mayor Bobst to join him to administer her Oath. He congratulated Mayor Bobst as she was recently named, by Governor Mike DeWine, as a Kent State University Board of Trustee member. At a local level she serves us at the Cuyahoga County Planning Commission and Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency (NOACA) well as many other boards including the Community West Foundation, Fairview Hospital Community Advisory Board, and the Rocky River Chamber of Commerce. Following his introduction of Mayor Bobst, Mr. Ronayne administered the Municipal Oath of Office to Mayor Pamela E. Bobst. Mr. Ronayne invited the Law Director Michael J. O’Shea to join him for his Oath. Mr. O’Shea requested that his wife and his mentor Andy Bemer join him on the dais. Mr. Ronayne noted that beyond his role as Law Director Mr. O’Shea has been the Assistant Law Director, City Prosecutor, and through his tenure here has successfully litigated before the Ohio Supreme Court over 100 Jury Trials and has handled 14,000 prosecutions as a City Prosecutor. He’s past president of the Northeast Ohio Municipal Prosecutors Association and a frequent instructor of municipal law issues and has served on multiple professional boards and he is recognized as a preeminent Martindale-Hubbell Lawyer and listed as one of the top 100 trial lawyers in the state. Following his introduction, Mr. Ronayne administered the Municipal Oath of Office to Law Director Michael J. O’Shea. Mr. Ronayne invited the Four Ward Councilmembers to join him on the dais. Following a brief introduction of each Councilmember and their accomplishments the councilmembers acknowledged and thanked their friends and family in attendance. Mr. Ronayne proceeded to administer the Municipal Oaths of Office to Ward Councilmembers Tom J. Hunt, James W. Moran, Jeanne Gallagher, and Paul Shipp. Mr. Ronayne invited the Three At-Large Councilmembers to join him on the dais. The Councilmembers acknowledged and thanked their friends and family in attendance following which Mr. Ronayne proceeded to administer the Municipal Oaths of Office to At-Large Councilmembers David W. Furry, Lisa M. Havemann, and Christina Morris. Mr. Ronayne ended his remarks by thanking Council and their families for their sacrifices that they make for the City of Rocky River. He added that honorable people can agree to disagree on issues, but we can also realize there Rocky River City Council 2026 Inauguration January 5, 2026 Page 3 of 4