Council Meeting Highlights 7-15-2026
Jul 15, 2026
Today, July 15, 2026, Cleveland City Council held its second meeting during its summer recess. Council President Blaine Griffin convened a meeting of Council’s Committee of the Whole at roughly 9:00 a.m. The meeting adjourned at 7:15 p.m. The full Council Meeting convened at 7:40 p.m. and adjourned at 8:36 p.m.
The next meeting of the Cleveland City Council—its last meeting during summer recess—will be held on Wednesday, August 19, 2026. It will immediately follow Council’s Committee of the Whole meeting, which is scheduled to begin at 9:00 a.m. the same day.
Welcome to the mid-summer meeting of Cleveland City Council!
I hope everyone was able to stay cool! It was still 89 degrees when the full meeting adjourned at 8:36 p.m., so staying cool may not have been that easy!
Today was a long day at Cleveland City Council—almost 12 hours! By my estimate, they heard around 45 pieces of legislation. At least the committee room was air-conditioned!
Agendas for both of today’s meetings are available at: Committee of the Whole and full Council Meeting.
Here are a few of the highlights from today’s full Council Meeting:
Flock Cameras: Ordinance 683-2026. The Bibb administration asked Council to renew the City’s $250,000 contract for Flock Safety Automated License Plate Readers for one year. Councilmembers were divided on the issue, as were those who made public comments. Council amended the ordinance to contract with Flock for six months ($125,000) while the City prepared a Request for Proposals to find a different vendor for Automated License Plate Readers (ALPRs). The ordinance was also amended to increase penalties if anyone other than the Cleveland Police Department accesses or uses data collected by its ALPR vendor. City Council approved this ordinance by a vote of 9 to 6.
Settlement Agreement for the I-X Center: Ordinance 664-2026. The Bibb administration introduced this ordinance as an emergency measure to end a decades-long agreement with Brook Park involving land and tax revenue. City Council approved this ordinance by a vote of 12 to 3.
10022 Madison Avenue Property: Ordinance 457-2026. Council approved, by a vote of 14 to 1, an ordinance declaring the City’s intent to begin the process of purchasing, through eminent domain, the former CVS property located at the corner of Madison Avenue and W. 100th Street for the purpose of building a new Firehouse Number 23. This property was the topic of controversy last year when a gas station was proposed for the site.
Data Center Moratorium: Ordinance 556-2026. Council approved, by a vote of 14 to 1, an ordinance declaring a three-month moratorium on data centers in the City of Cleveland, while a Data Center working group develops recommendations on how the City should approach the issue.
Playhouse Square Designated Outdoor Refreshment Area (DORA): Ordinance 557-2026. Council unanimously approved Playhouse Square's request to create a DORA around its arts district. The purchase and consumption of alcohol in special cups will be allowed within the DORA. The Playhouse Square DORA will be the second approved in the City of Cleveland.
City Hall Accessibility: Ordinance 666-2026. Council approved by a vote of 14 to 1 the Bibb administration’s request to fund improvements to City Hall that would create an accessible entrance on the west side of the building.
That’s it for today. Full recordings of today’s meetings are available on City Council’s YouTube Channel.
Enjoy the second half of summer! Talk with you in August!
Mike
One last thing:
Happy Birthday to City Councilwoman Deborah Gray and her twin sister, Delores Gray!!
Hi, everyone! Thanks for reading this far. I'm Mike Thomas, Cleveland City Council's Interim Director of Communications. I'm still new at doing these meeting highlights, so please bear with me. Any mistakes are mine alone.
Also, I’d like to remind everyone that these highlights are NOT an official record of what occurred at any Cleveland City Council meeting. The only official record of the meetings and actions of Cleveland City Council is the Cleveland City Record, which can be found on City Council's website.
--Mike Thomas, Interim Director of Communications