BY LISA DONOVAN
The Cincinnati Enquirer
The "Gang of Five" positioned to run Cincinnati City Council at the beginning of the year is faltering, at least when it comes to key legislation.
And whether it's a decision on football stadiums or giving corporate executives a tax break, Mayor Roxanne Qualls -- whose political wings were clipped when the majority coalition reorganized council late last year -- has been on the winning side of every major vote.
Examining the seven big votes in the first six months of council's new term alone is an indicator to Ms. Qualls and fellow Democratic Councilman Dwight Tillery, a member of the coalition, that the gang has dissolved.
"One just has to observe the key votes that have come before the five-member coalition that hung together so tightly has ceased to hang together," Ms. Qualls said.
While small factions were apparent in the seven votes, no clear "Gang of Five" emerged.
But Democratic Councilmen Tyrone Yates and Todd Portune, neither of whom is in the coalition, question whether the group is dead.
"I don't know whether it's gone or not," Mr. Portune said. "I didn't get the sense that they would be in agreement on all issues, so I can't say it's completely gone or not.
"But the votes certainly do suggest that council as a body has not operated with any one group in command of a majority of votes on all issues, which I think is how the coalition was announced."
Mr. Yates said that examining the voting record alone doesn't take into consideration the larger picture of city hall operations.
"It is a coalition of mutual souls and kindred spirits . . . where the opportunity for plausible denial is offered. I don't say this as a criticism of them, it's just some extremely subtle -- it's extremely subtle -- political sophistication," Mr. Yates said. "One has to be a student of the day-to-day city council politics to see how the coalition is kneaded together."
Political trends might suggest council has a rolling coalition -- where a majority of members tend to gel from issue to issue or on certain types of issues. In its simplest form, council members may be going with their heart, said Democratic Councilwoman Minette Cooper, who is or was a member of the majority coalition.
"The concept of a coalition was overstated from the beginning," Mrs. Cooper said. "We said we would come together on issues we agreed on, but we didn't have this kind of . . . "Boy Scout' blood trade," she said.
Mr. Tillery further explained that when the coalition decided to organize in December there was an understanding it would be for that purpose alone. That's because at least one coalition member -- Republican Jeanette Cissell -- had expressed the desire to break from the ranks. Mrs. Cissell could not be reached for comment.
In addition to Democrats Cooper and Tillery, Mrs. Cissell and fellow Republican council members Phil Heimlich and Charlie Winburn made up the coalition on the nine-member council.
The history of coalitions is well established in city government and well-documented at Cincinnati City Hall. However, there seems to be a pattern of the coalitions forming on budget issues and then dissolving.
But at least one council member believes a coalition should serve a larger purpose -- that they should be the architects for change in the city.
"I think coalitions are necessary when . . . you have (leadership) stagnation. Coalitions come together to map the direction, map the plan, map the victory," said Mr. Winburn.
Mr. Tillery said a coalition-free council is not necessarily a "good thing."
"I think it's important to have a working majority -- I think it's better to have an organized direction, a clearer direction for the city," Mr. Tillery said.
The coalition came together in December to reorganize council, but the same five had already organized themselves to push through a series of budget initiatives earlier in 1997.
After the November election, in which all nine members retained their seats, the coalition reorganized council.
They decided:
- The makeup of council's legislative committees.
- To abolish Ms. Qualls' Committee of the Whole, which, among other matters, handled the city's budget. Mr. Tillery, who remains finance chairman, will shepherd the budget.
- The clerk of council, rather than the mayor, will now decide what matters go to which committees.
- Appointments to city boards and commissions will be run through a new Committee on Mayoral Appointments. By city charter, the mayor makes appointments with the advice and consent of council. Typically, council has rubber-stamped appointments.
In addition, Mr. Heimlich replaced Ms. Qualls, who has long championed regionalism, as the city's representative to the Ohio-Kentucky-Indiana Regional Council of Governments. (Ms. Qualls was eventually tapped by the Cincinnati City Planning Commission to be that body's representative on OKI.)
The reorganization was the first test during a new council term of who holds the power. It was expected that the coalition would maintain its stronghold beyond the reorganization.
On two key votes, the five were joined with members not part of the coalition:
- An ordinance repealing the city's earnings income tax on stock options. Council voted 7-2 to exempt stock options from the 2.1 percent earnings tax levied on those who live or work in Cincinnati. Mr. Yates and former Councilwoman Bobbie Sterne voted against the measure.
- A deal with Hamilton County for a $400.3 million Bengals stadium. Council voted 8-0 on the deal to allow construction of the stadium to proceed, keep the team in town and provide a platform for a family entertainment district on the city's riverfront. The vote was unanimous, and while Mr. Heimlich was absent, it is said he would have voted for the agreement.
On many of the votes, small coalitions -- duets, really -- have emerged on the same side of various issues. Mr. Yates and Mrs. Sterne often lined up on the same side of issues, as do Mrs. Cooper and Mr. Tillery.
In addition to Ms. Qualls, Mrs. Cissell has also been on the winning side of the key votes thus far in the term.
And while Mrs. Cissell has been identified as a coalition defector, Mr. Heimlich departed more often and sat in the minority. On four of the seven votes, he was on the losing side of the issue, standing alone when he voted against giving $150,000 to Ujima Cinci-bration, as well as a minority set-aside program for the overhaul of Fort Washington Way. The city later scrapped the set-aside plan after a lawsuit was filed.
"I don't think the issue of quotas has to do with the coalition; that's an issue I stood apart from the entire council on," Mr. Heimlich said of the Fort Washington Way plan. "I just don't support quotas. I don't support discrimination of any kind."
He reiterated that the coalition never intended to vote together on issues across the board.
Several council members said a coalition allows its members to have an open-door policy. That means they can inevitably agree to disagree.
"You have an informal working relationship to communicate . . . and try to work together and persuade each other," Mr. Tillery said.
It's unclear whether the coalition will remain or another coalition will emerge.
"We came together to provide leadership on the (1997) budget -- that's why we came together before," Mr. Heimlich said. "As we approach the budget (this year), we'll see."
Council meets Wednesday and Mr. Winburn said he will be talking with the old gang about reorganizing itself.
