BY LUCY MAY
The Cincinnati Enquirer
All indications are that Hamilton County voters this November will be able to cast ballots in the long-running baseball stadium debate.
As of Saturday night, Broadway Commons supporters expected to present about 40,000 petition signatures to Hamilton County officials today. To get a measure on the ballot for a stadium on the Broadway site, backers need the valid signatures of 26,800 voters. But uncertainty remains about what the measure could mean for Hamilton County government -- and, more immediately, what the debate could mean to the county and Reds, who finally forged a tentative deal for a riverfront stadium after two years of negotiations. County commissioners say the county will move ahead to find an architect and construction manager.
"Does the fact that there's an ongoing petition drive add a potential question mark? Yes," said County Commission President Tom Neyer Jr. "But there are a lot of potential question marks, and we're not going to let any of them stop our progress."
Even Commissioner John Dowlin, the lone Broadway supporter among the commissioners, said he thinks the county should continue working to meet the requirements for planning a riverfront ballpark. The tentative deal with the Reds requires the county to build a ballpark just west of the Crown at a site known as Baseball on Main, or the Wedge.
Mr. Dowlin expects county officials will know next week whether Broadway backers have enough signatures to put the measure on the ballot. If some of the group's signatures are invalidated, organizers believe, state law gives them an extra 40 days to collect more.
The petition drive creates an awkward political climate for Commissioner Bob Bedinghaus and Mr. Neyer, who support the riverfront deal.
It could be especially awkward for Mr. Neyer, who is running for election in November against Marilyn Hyland, a Democrat who reminds voters that she backs Broadway.
Mr. Neyer said he doesn't think the issue will have much impact on his campaign.
But voters who signed the petitions could get angry if either commissioner aggressively challenges the petition process or the technicalities of the group's work, said Cincinnati City Councilman Jim Tarbell, one of the leaders of the effort.
"Being a bully at this point in time is, I think, a very, very rude thing to do," Mr. Tarbell said. "I think the reaction to that would be very strong."
Saturday he said Broadway Commons supporters had collected about 40,000 signatures. While in past weeks, Mr. Tarbell has said he wanted 50,000 signatures, he feels 40,000 will give backers enough cushion.
The day after the group turns in its petitions, Mr. Tarbell said, the campaign to get the measure passed will begin. He already has a slogan in mind: "They call it the Wedge for a reason."
But if the measure makes it to the ballot, Mr. Bedinghaus has said, the focus of the debate will shift quickly from the ballpark site to whether the measure would, in fact, change county government. He worries that the measure could give commissioners broader powers, even unintentionally.
The ballot item would create a county charter. Article I of the charter says nothing in county government would change except for Article II. Article II requires that any new Major League Baseball stadium be built at Broadway and Reading Road.
Mr. Dowlin says that clearly shows nothing else would change. "But the people who will oppose this will try to frighten the voters with that," he said.
Mr. Bedinghaus has admitted he is trying to scare voters -- away from adopting a charter form of government, which he thinks is unwise.
"My concern is that even the legal advisers the group was using questioned whether this was a valid use of the charter," he said. Indeed, two Akron lawyers who helped get a county charter adopted there have said they don't know whether the proposal would change county government.
As recently as Friday, Frances McGovern still wasn't convinced that the charter would do what the Broadway group intends.
"Since they're using it for such an odd purpose, the whole thing is up in the air," said Miss McGovern, a retired lawyer and former state representative who has advised the Broadway group.
Reds representatives are watching and waiting to see what unfolds, said a source close to the team.
Broadway Commons is not the Reds' preferred location, the source said, and that won't change because of the petition drive.
"I don't think the team is going to be in a situation where they feel like they're forced anywhere," the source said. "I think the county's going to do everything they can to retain what we've got going right now."
