for Cleveland City Council
During his time on Council, Kerry has fought to protect the health of our families and children by passing sweeping legislation that takes on infant mortality and protects our children from lead paint poisoning. As a member of the AIDS Funding Collaborative, Kerry has also worked to bring resources to those impacted by HIV and AIDS. As the chair of the Health and Human Services Committee, Kerry launched weekly hearings to provide the community with regular updates on the COVID-19 pandemic in our community and efforts to protect and vaccinate our citizens.
Kerry believes that every Clevelander deserves quality affordable housing. On Cleveland City Council, Kerry has advanced housing policy to promote quality housing for people of all income levels and he has successfully ushered in housing investments for all.
On a citywide level, Kerry championed housing justice by passing “Right to Counsel” legislation that provides tenants facing eviction with legal representation. In addition, Kerry voted to allocate millions of dollars to rental assistance during the COVID-19 pandemic. As a member of the Cuyahoga County Office of Homeless Services Advisory Board, Kerry has advocated for community members experiencing homelessness and has fought to bring more permanent supportive housing for chronically unhoused community members to Ward 3.
Kerry also recognized a need for more affordable housing and took action. He worked with Ohio City Incorporated and Tremont West Development Organization to launch the Near West Land Trust, which creates permanently affordable quality housing options for families on the Near West Side. For existing residents, Kerry has worked tirelessly to help seniors gain access to home repair dollars and has voted to add millions of dollars to senior home improvement programs for the City of Cleveland.
Moving forward, Kerry will continue to support and fight for transit oriented development, affordable housing, permanent supportive housing and housing options for people of all income levels. In addition, Kerry believes that we need a more intentional approach to fight back against historic and modern day redlining through new and innovative financial tools that support increased investment and wealth building in areas of Cleveland that have been intentionally left out. Finally, Kerry is working with a statewide coalition to allow for property tax caps so that our community members never get priced out of their homes.
During his time on Council, Kerry has helped secure tens of millions of dollars for new & renovated parks, roads, and world-class outdoor trails in Ward 3. Highlighting these investments are the new world-class trails such as the Tremont Towpath, Redline Greenway and Wendy Park Lakefront connector bridge. In addition, Kerry has ushered in significant investments for our parks, like a $2.5 million new Clark Field Park in Tremont, renovated Greenwood Park in Ohio City and upgrades to Roberto Clemente Park in Clark/Fulton. Millions of dollars have also been invested in our roads and sidewalks around Ward 3.
Moving forward, Kerry will continue to fight for investment in parks and public spaces in Ward 3. Specifically, the new Irishtown Bend Park will bring a 23 acre world-class park to the riverfront along West 25th St. In addition, Kerry is working to bring new pocket parks to our neighborhoods and increased investment and upgrades in our existing parks.
Like many, Kerry believes that our planet is in crisis fueled by climate change. We need to take concrete action to protect our environment. During his time on Cleveland City Council, Kerry has prioritized the environment by action, not just words.
Kerry wrote a new complete and green streets policy to support multimodal transportation options in Cleveland and has been an advocate for better public transportation options and funding. He also championed protecting and expanding our tree canopy by writing a new Cleveland Tree Commission policy, budgeted an additional $1 million a year for tree planting and organized the community to identify locations for new trees, which yielded over 200 new trees in the last year alone. In addition, Kerry has been a leading advocate for change at Cleveland Public Power. He believes that we need to provide our residents with cheaper, more reliable and environmentally sustainable energy by dramatically changing the way we source our power.
Kerry knows that without civil rights and equal protections, our City will never thrive. That is why he has been a leading voice on promoting civil rights and facing racism head on. One of Kerry’s first votes was to provide full non discrimination protections for the LGBTQ+ community. Following that, he worked with the Human Rights Campaign to achieve a 100% rating for the City of Cleveland on the Municipal Equality Index, which has now been achieved 3 years in a row.
Kerry has also been very outspoken about taking on systemic racism. As one of the original 3 co-sponsors of the Declaration of Racism as a Public Health Crisis in March of 2020, Kerry believes that we need to speak the truth about how racism affects our city and country and take bold action to address it. After co-sponsoring the declaration, Kerry has also maintained a leadership role in the Racism as a Public Health Crisis Taskforce, which is working to implement anti-racist policies.
Ward 3 is home to a thriving small business community. Kerry has worked tirelessly with local entrepreneurs and businesses to keep their doors open during the pandemic and to connect them with resources and support to grow and open new businesses. With a focus on local and minority owned businesses, Ward 3 continues to grow it’s business community in a sustainable and organic manner.
As a homeowner in Ward 3, Kerry knows how important it is to maintain a safe and vibrant community. Kerry worked with neighborhood residents, community development organizations and the department of public safety to fight crime, create proactive community safety programs and to organize neighbors for a safer Ward. This work also included bringing extra eyes on the street through a partnership with the special improvement districts. He also believes that we need to get much more creative with how we approach public safety. Kerry has advanced for a nuanced approach to emergency response that includes crisis interventionists embedded into dispatch.
Paid for by Friends of Kerry McCormack, Josh Harrell, Treasurer