Making an In-Person Public Comment at An Upcoming Council Meeting

Council welcomes public comments at each regularly scheduled Monday evening Council meeting. 

If you are interested in speaking at a Cleveland City Council, please read the revised rules and procedures for public comments and fill out the online form below. 

Submitting a Registration to Speak

Anyone who is interested in addressing Cleveland City Council at a public meeting must register with City Council prior to that meeting.

Registrations may be submitted:

  • By using the online form below
  • In person at Cleveland City Hall, Room 220, 601 Lakeside Avenue NE. Paper forms are available to register.
  • By downloading this form, filling it out, and emailing it to publiccomment@clevelandcitycouncil.gov or dropping it off at Council offices.

Registration Periods

Registrations will ONLY be accepted between Noon on Wednesday and 2:00 pm on the same day as a regularly scheduled Monday evening Council Meeting.

Council allows no more than 10 people to comment at its regularly scheduled Monday night meetings. Registration will close as soon as the first 10 people sign up. Each registrant will be allotted 3 minutes to speak.

Registrations will only be accepted for making comments at the next regular meeting; registrations for any future meeting will not be accepted until the Wednesday before the meeting. Early, incomplete, or false registrations will be rejected.

Notice of Registration

If your registration is successful, you will be notified by email or phone.

Accommodations

If you need assistance due to a language barrier or disability, please let us know at least three (3) days in advance by going here to make a request.

Attending Council Meetings

Cleveland City Council meetings are held in the Council Chamber on the second floor of Cleveland City Hall, 601 Lakeside Avenue, East.

Visitors may park for free at the upper lot behind City Hall after 5:00 pm on days when Council is meeting.

Public Record

Please remember that all registration information and public comments are public records and can be subject to public record requests.

Decorum

Cleveland City Council must maintain orderly, efficient, and productive meetings to ensure the important business of city government is completed. Council has developed a set of rules and procedures that allow the public to be heard in a fair and orderly manner. These rules and procedures apply to all speakers, and Council does not discriminate based on the speaker's identity or viewpoint or the content of the speech. Please read Council's revised rules and procedures for public comments before you register and before you appear before City Council.

Please note: Anyone attending a Cleveland City Council meeting is prohibited from engaging in any action or behavior that substantially interrupts, delays, or disturbs the due conduct of the proceedings of the Council; such conduct includes but is not limited to: handclapping, stomping of feet, whistling, making other loud noises, yelling, or similar demonstrations.  Any person who violates any of the above may be immediately removed from the Council Chamber.

Rules for Speakers
  • Speakers may not yield their time to other speakers.
  • Speakers shall only address the topic they registered to speak about.
  • Speakers' comments shall not be frivolous or repetitive.
  • Speakers shall not use language that is obscene or likely to produce imminent unlawful action. 
  • Speakers shall address all comments to the presiding officer.
Prohibited Items
  • Signs, posters, banners, placards, or similar items
  • Food and drink

 

To sign up to comment in person or online, please scroll down.

Make a Comment In Person at a Council Meeting

To sign up to speak during the registration period (Noon Wednesday through 2:00 pm Monday before Council Meetings) click this button.

You will be notified by email or phone if you are one of the ten people who will speak.


Make a Comment Online

If you would rather submit your comments in writing, please fill out the form below. 

Written public comments will be published on this page and delivered to all Councilmembers before the next full Council Meeting after they have been submitted.


Public Comments

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WCSB
WCSB is a one of Cleveland's greatest treasures. Our local musical culture is one of the richest aspects of our city and it's history. We have an incredible legacy of record shops run by deep heads where you can find things you can't find anywhere else in the world, local radio stations that have been on the cutting edge of music culture since at least the '50s, and being a bellweather region determining the future of music in ways few people realize for decades during the most crucial period in the development of popular music in America. No one wants an elevator jazz station in this city, particularly one whose birth comes via the cruel wresting of an iconic and critical local media organization from the community it truly belongs to. Everything about this is unacceptable and wrong.
Erin Margaret Day
WCSB hostile takeover
I’m very disheartened, angered at the behind the scenes dubious dealings and heartbroken at the loss of the REAL WCSB to the community. I’ve been listening to that station for DECADES and it was one of Cleveland’s true gems to be proud of, with its diversity and wide range of music and culture offerings.
It needs to be returned to those who enjoyed it and poured their hearts into it since 1976!
Mary Walsh
Ideastrem takeover of WCSB
WCSB has been a valuable asset to northeast Ohio for nearly 50 years. Besides giving students the opportunity to learn all aspects of radio operations, it has been important for community-building.
The creativity of programming and music rarely heard elsewhere is a hallmark of college radio. It creates connections between people who may not have otherwise met. It is a frequency to tune into to discover that others share non-mainstream artistry and ideas.
That the closure of WCSB was done with no transparency or prior notice to the staff and volunteers was a shock. I expect integrity from public radio and feel that Ideastream has not lived up to this.
Those who give their time, hearts, and money to WCSB deserve better. Our community deserves better.
I encourage you to stand with this important asset to Cleveland and help this organization (now XCSB) find a way to continue and thrive.
Thank you.
Stacy Newman
CSU AND WCSB
The uncalculable loss the community is experiencing these past weeks with CSUs hijack of WCSB to Ideastream reflects a deep issue. Not only are we grieving the silencing of countless beloved multi cultural voices throughout half a century of community broadcasting, but we are faced with an extremely toxic trust issue when our freedom of expression is abruptly silenced by corporations. This is the dictionary definition of fascism, and has completely undermined local support of both Ideastream and CSU administration.
Nathan Bocchicchio
WCSB
I am very disheartened by the recent takeover of the WCSB radio station. As a graduate of the Communications program at Cleveland State University this disturbs me. The station served a broad audience and I ask that it be returned to its past programming format.
Mark Timm
WCSB
WCSB was stolen from the airwaves. It is an institution and has been replaced by bad music that nobody asked for. Ideastream and CSU need to reexamine their deal.
Amie Sell
Save WCSB!!!
WCSB means a lot to the community. WCSB is eclectic. They play student-run shows and many different genres (punk, metal, world music, niche talk), as well as frequent local programming. It's my understanding that current students, alumni, DJs and listeners were given very short notice (less than 24 hours?!) before CSU police reportedly escorted students out of the studio.... So Ideastream could take over and subject us to 24/7 corporate jazz? Be honest... You know that nobody wants that. As someone who values local, diverse, and community-driven media, I’m deeply disappointed by Cleveland State University’s decision to hand over WCSB to Ideastream with little warning or input from students and community volunteers. WCSB isn't just a radio station. It's one of the few remaining independent platforms in Cleveland where students could learn hands-on broadcasting, underrepresented voices could be heard, and experimental and multicultural programming could be enjoyed. Replacing decades of creative freedom with corporate jazz, no matter how polished, is a huge loss for Cleveland’s cultural landscape and for public access to authentic, grassroots radio. I urge CSU and Ideastream to honor WCSB’s legacy by restoring student and community involvement and preserving the free-form spirit that made 89.3 FM special.
Colleen Sizemore
WCSB
WSCB has been a part of the broad fabric of the Cleveland and greater Cleveland community. It speaks for those with no voice. It is a glue for many ethnic and minority communities, not only providing information of importance and events, but also playing their music and provide news of importance not found elsewhere.

As a listener since 1978, and a donor, I urge city council to use whatever means at its disposal to return this valuable community service back to the terrestrial airwaves.
Mark Kohoot
WCSB Radio
My name is Christopher Hendryx and I am an alumnus of Cleveland State University and a long time listener of WCSB and supporter of CSU. I am shocked that this transfer of the frequency to Ideasteam happened in secrecy with no opportunity for public comment and oversight. WCSB is a bulwark of the Cleveland music and arts scene that we have spent decades building up as a core growth area of our city. This a a major blow to the artists, venues , and community members who listen to WCSB daily for its diverse community based programs. Please help reverse this very negative decision. Thank you.
Christopher Hendryx
Ideastream takeover of WCSB
I am very disappointed by the takeover of WCSB by Ideastream/JazzNEO, especially the way it was handled. The students and listeners deserved to weigh in on the discussion before the station was so unceremoniously taken off the air. I hope this issue will be discussed further. Thank you.
Carrie Lee Handelman