BROADVIEW HEIGHTS, Ohio — A battle over the 2025 budget could create a government shutdown in a Cuyahoga County suburb.
Broadview Heights may be without critical services, including police, fire, human services and snow removal, for over two weeks starting Jan. 1.
What happened
The Broadview Heights City Council voted to pass the city's 2025 last week.
Four council members voted to pass the budget.
Three voted against it.
If at least one additional council member voted in favor of the budget, it would have taken effect immediately.
However, because the budget was only passed with a 4-3 vote, it won't take effect for 30 days or until Jan. 16.
What it means
Ward 2 Councilman Brian Wolf said residents should be "slightly concerned" about a shutdown.
Wolf said the city would be unable to pay for critical services, including police, fire, and snow removal, during that time.
"The city would not have the funds allocated to function," he said. "Nobody would be able to get paid. "
Who voted "no"
So why did three city council members vote against the city's 2025 budget?
News 5 reached out to each Broadview Heights city council member who voted against the budget.
News 5 was unable to reach Councilman Joe Price on Monday.
Councilman Glenn Goodwin said there were several items in the budget he was unhappy with, including road repairs.
Councilman Brian Dunlap told us he hoped his concern about the city's pay structure for top officials and safety workers would be addressed in the budget.
"Nobody wants to shut down city services," he said. "Nobody wants to shut it down for two minutes."
Dunlap said he is confident city council will resolve the budget issue before the year ends.
"Everybody's worried about nothing," he said.
What's next?
City officials have introduced a temporary budget as a stopgap that only requires a four to three vote to take effect, which would mean city services would not be halted.
Council will vote on that plan during a meeting at 7:30 p.m. on Monday.
