Shaker Heights City Council met in a Jan. 13 work session to review and update the citys strategic priorities for 2025, agreeing to finalize a revised priorities document and pursue a federal planning grant for traffic calming and safe streets.

Council members and staff discussed eight overarching goals that will guide departmental budgets and work plans, with the session focusing on transportation safety, recreation partnerships with the school district, environmental sustainability and housing-safety measures. Council indicated consensus to pursue the federal Safe Streets and Roads for All planning grant and directed staff to continue refining the priorities document for final circulation.

Why it matters: the priorities shape budget framing, grant-seeking and work plans for city departments and influence how the city targets resources for road safety, recreation, environmental initiatives and housing enforcement across Shaker Heights.

The council spent the bulk of the meeting reviewing individual priority items under each goal and marking which should be emphasized in 2025. On transportation, council and staff agreed the city will apply for a Safe Streets and Roads for All planning grant that would fund consultant work, community engagement and the production of a prioritized traffic-calming plan. Staff said the planning grant deadline is likely midyear (May or June) and that a reasonably sized planning request would exceed $100,000; the grant could fund a later construction award if federal funding remains available. Council members said the grant would help move the city from ad hoc responses to a data-driven prioritization of speeding and pedestrian-safety concerns.

Council discussed the Van Aken bicycle-path proposal at length. Staff said Ohio Department of Transportation asked the city to re-run corridor modeling in TransModeler to account for the Rapid Transit lane and divided roadway conditions; that analysis is underway. Staff also said they expect to keep on-street parking between Lee Road and Farnsley and to preserve one traffic lane plus a bike lane in that section, and that off-street parking adjacent to RTA tracks is available. The council did not vote on design changes and asked staff to return with additional community engagement after ODOT signs off on the modeling.

On parks and recreation, council members favored pursuing a shared youth-recreation position with the Shaker Heights City School District to improve user experiences at school and city facilities. Members noted the position was budgeted but not yet filled; they asked staff and administration to continue discussions with the district and to highlight the item in the final priorities document.

Under environmental sustainability, council members asked staff to include managed or native landscaping in the goals and to explore incentives for private-property tree planting. Staff said county grant funds exist for private tree planting but implementing those programs is staff intensive. The council suggested coordinating with existing committees and liaisons to increase participation.

Housing and tenant safety drew extended discussion. Councilmembers and staff described repeated boiler failures in some apartment buildings and said the city should explore more proactive inspections and policy options to reduce tenant exposure to heat outages in cold weather. The council described emergency nuisance abatement as the citys extraordinary tool for immediate health-and-safety threats (ranging from garbage removal on vacant lots to emergency repairs or vacatur of buildings without heat) and asked staff to prepare a work session or internal discussion on inspection options and pressure points for rental properties.

Other items: the Loamont/Lynnfield construction project is expected to begin in March or April, and staff plans one or more public meetings for neighbors prior to construction. Council also discussed consolidating some goals (notably combining green-space priorities with environmental sustainability) to streamline the goals list.

Formal action: near the end of the open meeting council voted, by roll call, to enter an executive session on purchase, sale or development of real property. The motion to move into executive session was made by Mr. Klaytor, seconded by Ms. Carmela Williams, and carried on a recorded roll call. Minutes show no action to be taken after the executive session.

The administration will revise and re-circulate the strategic-priorities document for final approval and publication on the city website before it is folded into department budget materials for 2025.