MOUNT VERNON – There's an old saying, "If you can't beat 'em, join 'em," and that's exactly what 2nd Ward Councilmember John Francis did.
Before he was elected, Francis didn't even know who his representative was. After he approached then-member Nancy Vail about an issue he had with city policy, she told him the seat in his district was open and he should run.
“I thought, ‘Man, she just told me that if I didn't like it, do something about it,’” he told the Mount Vernon News.
First lessons
So, he ran and won the seat. Early on, he learned how the council works for the people.
“I don't work for the administration,” Francis said. “I don't work for the city of Mount Vernon, although I am an employee of the city of Mount Vernon, voted and duly elected by the citizens – who are the ones who will hire me back or fire me.”
People first, party second
To Francis, whether the council is all one party or a mix of Democrats and Republicans doesn’t matter.
Council President Bruce Hawkins sets the tone as he introduces new council members, Francis said. He tells them to always remember one thing: when they enter council chambers, there are no D’s and there are no R’s by their names. They work for the people no matter their party.
“If I screw up, I'm getting voted out,” he said. “So I listen to my constituents, I listen to what's going on. That's how I make my decisions.”
He tries to tell his fellow councilmembers after every meeting that they had another successful meeting because they’ve done the business of the city for its residents.
How the process works
The city administration sets the council agenda. Councilmembers oversee the administration. They will push through resolutions, appointments and financial transactions brought to them through their committees.
While not all items gain quick passage, all are prioritized. An item may go through several readings and meetings “so the rest of us have a better understanding or so the public can get a better understanding of what this all entails,” he said.
The city has infrastructure problems, so it has to work through the Ohio Department of Natural Resources and the Environmental Protection Agency to get things done, following many regulations.
A Community Development Block Grant made three years ago is a good example of how things work.
“By the time all the permits went through, all the stuff was finalized and grants went through, it took two and a half years,” he said. “So, it's not to say stalling. It's just all the bureaucracy you have to go through.”
A fresh start, bright future
For 20 years, the voters had elected the same mayor, but now the council is working with a new administration that’s growing with its own momentum, he said.
“It's just a sense of knowing that they're going to continually improve just as council will continually improve,” Francis said. “Because we're doing that for the sake of the people who live here or call this home.”
The city is not in financial trouble, and its workforce shows up every day.
The midterm elections have a part to play in how things will go with the federal government. What happens at the federal level will affect Mount Vernon.
Choices made at the ballot box may cut inflation short as well as affect the country’s energy independence, Francis said. Getting back to being more energy independent could open avenues for businesses and help them with economic challenges.
“If seats change in the Senate, in Congress, the way things are being done now will change itself,” he said. “We could see an economic comeback.”
