A city that works for all

What does it mean to be a “progressive” in a city like Cleveland? What policies might one support to create a city that works better for all? Here are some ideas.

Affordable city

Affordable housing, public transportation, and public utilities — Measured by a relative decline in household expenses.

  • Public investments for us — streets not special interests

  • Focus residential tax abatement on affordable housing

  • Support tenant rights and tenant unions

  • Encourage community land trusts

  • Develop ways to limit out-of-state LLCs from purchasing rental properties and enforce building codes on such owners

  • Develop programs to help seniors to stay in their homes

  • Experiment with innovative, low-cost home construction methods

  • Change zoning to encourage higher density, affordable housing along transit corridors

  • Move towards free and expanded public transit

  • Reform, revitalize and expand Cleveland Public Power so all city residents and businesses can obtain affordable, reliable, locally-controlled electricity, with increasing amounts of locally-generated green power.

Opportunity city

Education, jobs, and living wages — Measured by a lower poverty rate and improved state school report card.

  • Continue Say Yes to Cleveland free college program

  • Expand training and apprenticeship programs for jobs in the trades

  • Guarantee living wages for jobs in the city

  • Develop subsidies tied to job development for city residents at prevailing wages

  • Support union organizing

  • Welcome immigrants to our city

Safe and healthy city

Healthy homes, safe neighborhoods, and healthy food — Measured by decrease in health disparities, falling crime rates.

  • Make all housing lead safe

  • Make safety a public health issue through investments in violence prevention, mental health services, youth programs, alternative policing programs

  • Eliminate food deserts

  • Expand community gardens

  • Make parks and playgrounds centers for active living

  • Build streets and public spaces to encourage walking and biking

  • Create an aggressive anti-smoking campaign

Responsive city

Excellent public services and government by the people — Measured by voter turnout in elections.

  • Continue to improve the responsiveness of the city’s 311 system for reporting problems with city services

  • Initiate a participatory budgeting process

  • Establish a new system for creating fair ward maps

  • Develop a campaign to increase voter turnout

  • Reform municipal campaign financing by making it possible for more people to donate small amounts to campaigns (e.g., with public matching or voucher programs) and by curbing the impact of large donations (e.g., by lowering contributions limits, establishing spending limits, and increasing penalties for and enforcement of campaign finance violations)