Westlake Voters’ Guide: Mayor, Director of Law and President of Council Candidates

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Non-partisan information provided by the League of Women Voters - Cuyahoga Area, Westlake/North Olmsted chapter

Absentee Voting Begins: Oct. 1
Voter Registration Deadline: Oct. 7
Election Day: Nov. 5
LWV Candidates Night: Oct. 1, 6:45 p.m., Westlake Porter Public Library

Questions for Westlake Mayor, Director of Law and President of Council candidates:
1. What do you see as the two most important issues facing the city of Westlake in the coming four years?
2. What is your viewpoint regarding regionalization and collaboration arrangements with adjoining cities?
3. What is your vision of what Westlake will be like in ten years?
4. What is your management style and how will you work with City Council?
5. What city services do you believe could be contracted out in order to reduce expenses?
6. How will declining revenues affect Westlake’s recreational facilities?

Westlake Mayor, Uncontested
Term: 4 years
Salary: $143,000

DENNIS M. CLOUGH
Age: 59
mayorclough@aol.com
440-835-5866
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
MBA in Systems Management – Baldwin Wallace University; CPA – State of Ohio; BBA in Accounting – St. Edward University; Completing 28th year as Mayor of the City of Westlake; Served as Westlake Councilman - 1982-1983; Served on Westlake Board of Education - 1984-1985; Completed program for Senior Executives in State and Local government at Harvard University; Graduate of CSU Leadership Academy, Leadership Ohio, Leadership Cleveland.
RESPONSES TO QUESTIONS
1. Most important issues: Managing the American Greetings project and the related growth and traffic impact on the Crocker Road area.
Determining the future supplier of water for the City of Westlake.
2. Regionalization: I fully support all regional and collaborative efforts among our adjoining cities that will improve the efficiency, effectiveness and quality of services to all our residents; i.e. central dispatch, WEB unit, mutual aid, hazmat team, bomb unit, swat team, CERT, composting of leaves and branches.
3. Ten-year vision: I envision a very desirable, well planned, residential community with great services and a high quality of life with favorable tax rates, quality schools, diverse economic base and a stable financial outlook. A great place to live, work, recreate and raise a family.
4. Management style: I subscribe to a management by objectives style and encourage all department heads to use their individual expertise to manage staff and fulfill their job related responsibilities in a cooperative and collaborative manner with our administrative team. I will continue to work cooperatively with City Council as I have for nearly 28 years to meet the demands and challenges of providing quality service to the residents of our great community.
5. Service contracting: Over the years, the city has outsourced rubbish pick-up, grass mowing, catch basin repairs, some technology services, sidewalk repairs, EMS billing and other services as necessary. We will continue to evaluate other services to determine the cost/benefit of contracting out to reduce expenses while improving the delivery of those services.
6. Recreational facilities: At this point, we are not experiencing a decline in recreational revenues but will adjust fees and programs as needed should a prolonged decrease in revenues occur.

Westlake Director of Law, Uncontested
Term: 4 years
Salary: $87,500

John D. Wheeler
The candidate did not prepare a response.

President of Westlake City Council, Uncontested
Term: 4 years
Salary: $21,300

MICHAEL F. KILLEEN
The candidate did not prepare a response.

This Voters’ Guide was assembled by members of the League of Women Voters - Cuyahoga Area, Westlake/North Olmsted Chapter, who selected the questions and placed word limits on the responses. Candidates’ responses are printed verbatim, up to the word limit. Truncated responses are denoted by the [...] symbol. Candidates are presented in alphabetical order for each position. The League of Women Voters does not endorse any candidate for any office. We neither endorse nor reject any views quoted in this Voters’ Guide. Published as a service to the voters of Westlake by the League of Women Voters - Cuyahoga Area, Westlake/North Olmsted Chapter in partnership with the Westlake | Bay Village Observer. The League of Women Voters is a nonpartisan political membership organization. We encourage informed and active participation in government, work to increase understanding of major public policy issues and influence public policy through education and advocacy. www.LWVCuyahogaArea.org

Read Westlake City Council Candidates' Responses     

Read Westlake Board of Education Candidates' Responses

Read More on Westlake
Volume 5, Issue 20, Posted 9:10 AM, 10.01.2013