Big doings in Cleveland Heights this morning as Donald Trump visits

Local black Democrats to demand apology from GOP candidate for leading Birther movement while Trump holds Town Hall meeting at New Spirit Revival Center

CLEVELAND HEIGHTS OH — Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump will be at New Spirit Revival Center today for what is billed as a “town hall meeting to discuss issues confronting urban America”.

Fox News Channel is convening the meeting, which will be taped live and Special Guest will be the GOP Nominee for President, Donald Trump.

The event will be taped live beginning around 9:30am and is scheduled for broadcast tonight at 10pm. About 40 people who signed up are expected to be a part of the campaign event.

  

While Trump is inside, a counter event will be held directly across the street from the church, which is located at 3130 Mayfield Road, just east of Lee Road.

Several African American elected officials are expected to hold a 10:30am press conference to ask Trump to apologize for leading the birther movement, widely condemned as an attempt to delegitimize the first black President of the United States. State Senator Sandra Williams, State Rep. Janine Boyd, and Cuyahoga County Councilman Anthony Hairston are expected to speak.

New Spirit Church is led by Pastor Darrell Scott, who delivered a fiery six-minute talk at the Republican National Convention, held in Cleveland in July.

Kelley to step down in December after 16 years as Cleveland Heights mayor

Cleveland Heights Mayor Ed Kelley announced last night at city council’s meeting that he will not run for reelection this November. Kelley has been mayor since 1997 and a member of council since 1993.

Voters in Cleveland Heights do not vote directly for mayor. Council selects the mayor from among its members.

Kelley’s announcement means that come January 1, 2014 nearly half of the seven member Council will have turned over since the last council election, a highly unusual circumstance for a body whose membership has seen little relatively change over the past decade. Bonnie Caplan announced earlier this summer that she would be retiring after twenty years on council. And Phyllis Evans resigned in June of last year in the midst of declining health. Evans died last week.

Filing Status

Six candidates have pulled petitions to date to run for Council, including Jeff Coryell, who grabbed petitions this morning following Kelley’s announcement. He joins council hopefuls Fran Mentch and Melissa Yasinow and incumbents Cheryl L. Stephens and Jason S. Stein who are known contenders for the four full term seats on the ballot in November. Janine Boyd, who was appointed to Council last October after Evans’ resignation, has pulled petitions to run for the two remaining years of Evans’ term.

The filing deadline for Cleveland Heights council candidates is September 6. Candidates must submit a minimum of 310 valid signatures of registered voters to be certified for the November ballot. All candidates run city-wide.

Eric Brewer launches online newspaper

Former East Cleveland mayor Eric Brewer has just announced the debut of his online newspaper, The Cleveland Challenger.

Brewer, who is both editor and publisher, said in an email circulated today, that the first issue carries an assortment of fifteen pieces, including articles dealing with the Cleveland police chase that resulted in the homicides of Timothy Russell and Malissa Williams last November; alleged bias on the part of Cleveland Heights officials in targeting a nightclub that catered to black patrons in the tony Cedar-Fairmount area; and assorted other pieces. 

An initial perusal of the paper's website left the impression that almost all of the stories contain reports or allegations of wrongdoing by the high and mighty, including Cuyahoga County Executive Ed FitzGerald, the Cleveland Clinic, and the Mandel Jewish Community Center.

The Challenger carries with it a price of $10 for a monthly subscription. Weekly updates are promised.

Brewer served one term as East Cleveland mayor from 2006-2009. He was soundly defeated in his re-election bid.