Cincinnati Mayor Charlie Luken asked City Council on Wednesday to let him negotiate with the city of Blue Ash over the sale of the Blue Ash Airport.

        Mr. Luken's request would allow him to circumvent the city manager, and is another display of his “stronger mayor” powers under a charter change that went into effect last December.

Luken

        Mr. Luken hopes that sale of the airport — possibly worth more than $20 million — could help fund the kinds of neighborhood investments that he promised during his campaign.

        The mayor also proposed using a $50 million “windfall” of Anthem Inc. stock for the same purpose. But Acting City Manager Tim Riordan said some or all of that money may be legally obligated to the city's insurance fund.

        The mayor's proposals come as City Council tries to find new ways to fund neighborhood development, even as the city faces a projected $27 million budget deficit in 2003. And they highlight differences between elected officials and the city administration over how the city handles some of its most expensive assets.

        “I don't think the administration ever wanted to sell the Blue Ash Airport,” Mr. Luken said, pointing to years of wrangling over the fair market value of the 226-acre facility.

        “But I may be proven wrong,” the mayor said. “I'd just like to find out for myself.”

        Mr. Luken said he sees the authority to negotiate with other governments one of the more important new powers given to him under the “strong mayor” system approved by voters in 1999.

        Already, City Council members can't wait to get their hands on the Anthem and Blue Ash Airport money.

        Councilman Jim Tarbell wants the money to go for distressed neighborhood business districts — like Peebles Corner in East Walnut Hills, the corner of Hamilton and North Bend in College Hill, and the corner of Harrison and Montana in Westwood.

        Councilman John Cranley likes that idea, but also wants to fund sidewalk repairs and other improvements on residential streets.

        Councilwoman Alicia Reece said since the Anthem money comes from health insurance funds, it should be used for health clinics in low-income neighborhoods.

        Anthem Inc. converted from a policyholder-owned nonprofit to a stockholder-owned for-profit health care company last year. That process, called “demutualization,” ended up with the city holding 870,021 shares of Anthem.

        At Wednesday's $55.55 closing price, those shares are worth $48.3 million. And because state law prohibits the city from owning stock, Cincinnati must slowly begin selling off its stake in the company.

        Because the money came from city contributions to health insurance for current and retired city employees, the city administration wants the money returned to the insurance fund to offset big increases in health care premiums.

        A report on those complicated legal issues should come within the next two weeks, Mr. Riordan said.

        Mr. Riordan also reported Wednesday that the city would receive $2.1 million from the U.S. Postal Service to reimburse the city for the failed attempt to move the Main Post Office from the West End to Bond Hill.

        That money has already been earmarked for a $1 million capital arts fund and a neighborhood development fund.

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