Councilman Mike Polensek on September 11, 2001: "I’ve never been prouder to be a Clevelander than I was that day."

Sep 10, 2026

In advance of tomorrow’s commemoration of the 25^th anniversary of the September 11, 2001 attacks, Councilman Mike Polensek, who was Cleveland City Council President at the time, issued the following statement:

 

“People forget that for a while on September 11, Cleveland was considered a likely target for attack. What was happening in New York was terrible, and the thought of it happening here was terrifying. At the same time, it drew out the best from Clevelanders and showed what we’re really made of.

 

That morning, I was asked to attend Hannah Gibbons Elementary School for the opening of a new playground with its students. We knew what was happening in New York, but not much else then. The kids were urging me to play with them, and just as I got ready to go down the slide, I got word from Henry Guzman, who, at the time, was the city’s Safety Director, that another hijacked plane—which turned out to be United Flight 93—had turned around in Northeast Ohio’s airspace and looked like it was heading for downtown Cleveland. No one other than Mayor Mike White and a few others knew that another plane, Delta Flight 1989, was being ordered to land at Hopkins. 

 

As I reached the top of the slide, I looked up and saw a massive airplane that looked like it was hovering just above the horizon, and I wondered out loud, “Is this plane headed for downtown?”

 

Thankfully, that plane wasn’t hijacked and landed safely at Hopkins, but the threat was still real. We had to evacuate downtown’s high-rises and get tens of thousands of people out of downtown as quickly as possible.

 

I often think about what happened next, because I had never seen anything like it before or since. Everyone—the Mayor, City Council, the administration, police, fire, and EMS—pulled together. Anyone with a role to play played it, no questions asked. Amid all that chaos and panic, people across the city did what was needed to keep everyone safe and move them out of downtown. It was a remarkable thing to see.

 

In the aftermath of the attacks, we didn’t have a lot of time to think about what we’d done. Everyone was mourning, angry, or both. Maybe now, twenty-five years afterward, we can also remember and take pride in the kind of city Cleveland proved itself to be. I plan to. 

 

I want to thank everyone who rose to the occasion to keep our city safe. I’ve never been prouder to be a Clevelander than I was that day. I also want to thank my former colleague and friend, former Mayor Mike White, his staff, all members of City Council, and the people of Cleveland for what they did not just then, but in the weeks that followed. 

 

For a brief moment, we were united as a country. During this time of division, September 11 can be more than a reminder of death and destruction. It can also remind us that unity is still a possibility.

 

God Bless America.”