The Cost Of Office In North Olmsted

The city of North Olmsted has been very instrumental in the growth of my company Kee On Sports Media Group.  So much so, that Kee On Sports has grown into the premier source for all High School football and basketball information to the parents, fans, and student athletes.  I owe a bit of that growth to the support from my fellow North Olmsted residents.

With that knowledge, I started looking at ways to become even more involved in the North Olmsted community.  One idea that was brought to my intention was becoming more active in our local government.  Something, that I will admit, I had ZERO interest in until recently when a close friend of mine suggested I look into it.

Being a member of City Council is all about doing what is right for the city and citizens you take residence in.  No one does it for the money, but rather the importance and the civil duty to look after their fellow man.

I decided to research my own ward for city council, which is Ward 2. The current candidates for 2021 are Mike Held and incumbent Chris Glassburn, so I reached out to both for comments, and you will see those shortly.

It was with that knowledge that I took investigation into finding out what it would cost and what comes with running for office here in my home city of North Olmsted in Ward 2. I reached out to a current board member who asked to remain anonymous, but was rather helpful with providing several documents and bits of information that I found to be quite eye opening.  The difference of what each candidate is spending is glaring.

The average campaign cost is about $3,000 out of pocket for signs and basic promotional needs.  This is not including what may come in from fundraising events as well. If you do hold a seat on council, it is $14,500 per year per term.  Again, no one is doing this strictly for the money.

With things being the way they are, you would think there would be a cap on spending per candidate, that way the best man or women wins, not the one with the deepest pockets.  Upon digging in to what it would cost, and who is spending what, I was floored with what I found.  I may just need to save those pennies a bit longer before I run for anything.

Let’s start with the challenger in Ward 2 for City Council, Mike Held as he looks to unseat Glassburn in what should be a heated and close race. Held has stuck to the normal / average amount of spending when it comes to his campaign, at right around the $2,500 mark for a first-time runner. A very modest but very common amount.

When reached for comment on his campaign, Held has this to say, ““I’m happy to share my campaign finance report with you. I believe it is typical for a Council Candidate. Those of us on Mayor Kennedy’s team are all running our own campaigns and raising our own money to do so. I too am disturbed and confused by what my opponent is doing”

As for his opponent, City Council Candidate Chris Glassburn, he is very passionate about what he wants for our city and money has not been an issue.  When asked, Glassburn let us know what he spent in 2017 when he ran for office the first time, it was a whopping $12,500 to defeat Daniel Rahm.  That is a lot of money to run for city council, but he admitted his campaigns have been the exception because of the pressure and money from the opponent’s side as well. Glassburn states the opposition outspent him 4 x 1 in 2017, yet, he still won.

(editors note- I spoke with Daniel Rahm today, and this claim was revealed to be false per Daniel)

He is just not passionate about his campaign, but has donated to several others as well. From the records sent to me through a source who contacted the board of Elections, he has donated $950 to the campaign of Mary Gilchrist, $1,200 to the campaign of Lou Brossard and $1,400 to the campaign of Mary Ellen Hemann.

Perhaps the most glaring commitment Glassburn has made, is his dedication and financial commitment to changing the office of the mayor from Kevin Kennedy to Nicole Dailey Jones.  As mentioned, he has a vision for our great city and thinks candidate Nicole Dailey Jones has the integrity and skillset to get the job done. He has donated $13,800 to the campaign of mayoral hopeful Jones.

That’s a lot of money coming from a position that pays $14,500 a year.  If that doesn’t say financial commitment to change, I’m not sure what does.

(as for the documents, they are all available by request.  I did not want to post them here because of addresses and names being on them.)

As I sat here and looked everything over, I couldn’t get past someone spending that much money not only on their own campaign, but to fund others. His wife, Megan Murphy is on the school board and I’m sure that wasn’t a cheap campaign by any stretch.  This is a huge commitment that one family is making for a better North Olmsted in their vision.

I knew I needed to reach out to my councilman and get his reasoning for why.  Like Chris, I have young children myself, and care about what becomes of this city.  Glassburn had this to share about his large donations to other campaigns and the overall financial commitment it takes to run for office and his reasons as to why the large spending.

Glassburn said, “I’ve lived in North Olmsted for 25 years and I want it to be successful. I want the city to be in good enough shape that my family wants to stay for my lifetime and while I raise my daughter. We’re going to need to be much more aggressive in making our future better. Our homes and retail are aging as we compete with further out communities that have open land and lower taxes.

Unlike much older communities like Lakewood, most of the homes built in our city were not intended to last over a hundred years with good maintenance. Solving these issues are some of the biggest challenges not just for North Olmsted, but for suburbs across the country.

I believe the Council and Mayor’s position are among the most impactful factors on whether the city succeeds into the future. I do what I can to support causes I believe in. My business has been successful, so I am fortunate that I can give more than others.

In the past 18 months my wife and I donated over $10,000 towards making face shields for safety workers and have donated over $10,000 more to other charitable efforts in North Olmsted. Bringing our community together to achieve things that matter is what motivates us.

The leadership we choose in this election will go a long way toward determining if North Olmsted renews itself or gradually and painfully goes into decline. Candidates, donors and volunteers for local campaigns generally put in a lot more effort than you would expect. Over the last four years I’ve knocked the doors of our Ward three times. To do the job right for residents, you’ve got to put the time in.”

As we sit here just one week away from the election with a lot still to be decided all over the city, such as  School Board and city council, a lot of big decisions are still to be made. However, one decision has already been made, will I ever run for public office?  The answer is no!

The next time I come up with $12,500, I’m finally taking my family to Disney World.  Heck, we may even buy one of those fancy meal cards they sell you.  You know the ones, where $100 gets you a bottled water, chicken sandwich and a Little Debbie.

Good luck to both candidates.

(Editors note:  Listen, candidates, why are you dropping thousands of dollars on mailers in the first place?  Our website gets over 84,000 clicks  a month with well over 20,000 of them coming from North Olmsted.  The next time you really want to get the word out, advertise with us.)