https://www.americancityandcounty.com/wp-content/themes/acc_child/assets/images/logo/footer-logo.png
  • Home
  • Co-op Solutions
  • Hybrid Work
  • Commentaries
  • News
  • In-Depth
  • Multimedia
    • Back
    • Podcast
    • Latest videos
    • Product Guides
  • Resources & Events
    • Back
    • Resources
    • Webinars
    • White Papers
    • IWCE 2022
    • How to Contribute
    • Municipal Cost Index – Archive
    • Equipment Watch Page
    • American City & County Awards
  • About Us
    • Back
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Cookie Policy
    • Privacy Statement
    • Terms of Service
American City and County
  • NEWSLETTER
  • Home
  • Co-op Solutions
  • Hybrid Work
  • Commentaries
  • News
  • In-Depth
  • Multimedia
    • Back
    • Podcasts
    • Latest videos
    • Product Guides
  • Resources/Events
    • Back
    • Webinars
    • White Papers/eBooks
    • IWCE 2022
    • How to Contribute
    • American City & County Awards
    • Municipal Cost Index
    • Equipment Watch Page
  • About Us
    • Back
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Cookie Policy
    • Privacy Stament
    • Terms of Service
  • newsletter
  • Administration
  • Economy & Finance
  • Procurement
  • Public Safety
  • Public Works & Utilities
  • Smart Cities & Technology
  • Magazine
acc.com

Administration


On the home front

On the home front

At a recent meeting, the mayor of Shaker Heights, Ohio, announced that the city would participate in a new county financing program that would pay the
  • Written by Robert Barkin
  • 1st July 2007

At a recent meeting, the mayor of Shaker Heights, Ohio, announced that the city would participate in a new county financing program that would pay the city a higher rate for its bonds than it could get in the private market. With the money, the city finally would have some leverage to fight back against the scourge of foreclosures and neglected houses that plague Shaker Heights and much of Cuyahoga County, and would double its ability to force absentee landlords to bring their properties up to code.

So when Mayor Judy Rawson explained the new financing arrangement behind the initiative, the attending group of bankers and community leaders was impressed. “That’s an astonishing innovation,” she recalls one banker saying. “Who came up with that?” Rawson was ready with the answer: Cuyahoga County Treasurer James Rokakis. “He’s been key,” Rawson says. “He’s a crucial partner for solving a critical problem in our communities.”

From every level of the campaign to preserve quality housing in the face of indifferent landlords and struggling homeowners, Jim Rokakis is lauded for his leadership and innovation, which has extended from Cuyahoga County across the state of Ohio. For his extraordinary effort in 2006 to battle the blight of neighborhood decline, American City & County has chosen Rokakis as its County Leader of the Year.

Rokakis has been involved in a number of issues in his career, but he has been most deeply involved in efforts to save neighborhoods. His focus on the issue dates from his initial entry into politics as a member of the Cleveland City Council while still a senior at Oberlin College in 1977 through his 20-year tenure on the council and, most recently, as county treasurer since 1997.

Pressuring the landlords

His interest in housing actually began at Oberlin, where he wrote his senior thesis on the nation’s housing courts, where judges could fine negligent absentee landlords and force them to fix their properties. He proposed such a court for Cleveland, and after becoming a city councilman, he pushed successfully to make the court a reality. “It’s become an emergency room for housing conditions,” says housing court Judge Raymond Pianka.

Rokakis, 52, was attracted to housing issues because of the long decline in population and quality housing stock in Cleveland. He watched as Cleveland, which at one time had more than 900,000 residents, became the home of barely more than 400,000, and the problems of the inner city seeped into neighboring communities. And, he watched as his childhood home was among those that fell to foreclosure. “He takes these things personally,” says Richard Cordray, state treasurer and former Franklin County, Ohio, treasurer.

Cuyahoga County has one of the highest foreclosure rates in the country. Initially the problems were created by absentee landlords who refused to keep their properties up to code. In addition, fire-damaged buildings remained vacant, creating eyesores that affected the property values. In the past year, the situation has been exacerbated by subprime mortgage lending. Cuyahoga County had 13,500 foreclosures in 2006 and estimates another 17,000 in 2007. “It’s completely destabilizing,” Rokakis says.

Last year, Rokakis tackled the problem with a blizzard of initiatives, including launching the “Don’t Borrow Trouble” Foreclosure Prevention Program, which offers educational information and individualized counseling about managing loans and credit. To date, there have been more than 4,000 calls to the program’s newly established information hotline, and more than 600 homes have been saved from foreclosure through one-on-one counseling.

He also called for expanding the Housing Enhancement Loan Program (HELP). Through the initiative, which has been operating on a small scale since 1999, the county treasurer, local communities and area banks join to reduce the interest rate on home improvement loans. HELP is a linked deposit program where lenders make home improvement loans directly to homeowners at 3 percent below the available rate. The treasurer’s office then devotes approximately 10 percent of its core investment portfolio to purchasing a matching amount of certificates of deposit, accepting a return 3 percent less than the market rate. Since the program began, it has assisted more than 6,000 residents and has been responsible for more than $75 million in home improvement loans.

Last year, the Cuyahoga County Board of Revision held hearings for the first time as part of the Expedited Vacant and Neglected Property Foreclosure Program, created through authority granted from Rokakis-initiated legislation. The hearings expedite the transfer of vacant and neglected properties off the docket of overburdened county courts and puts them in the hands of the county’s Board of Revision. Cases that previously took up to 30 months to be adjudicated now can be heard in 2 ½ months.

More recently, Rokakis has tackled the problems of foreclosure of the homes of poor elderly residents who cannot keep up on their property taxes and maintenance. In December 2006, the state adopted a Rokakis proposal to provide tax relief to senior citizens who are often under stress to pay their taxes. The new law permits counties to help tax-delinquent seniors avoid foreclosure through “tax-only” low-interest loan programs. The discounted loans can leverage home equity to cover loan payments and interest, similar to reverse mortgages. Before applying, seniors will receive counseling and can only borrow what they need to cover their tax bills.

The treasurer’s office plans to make the program available to Cuyahoga County senior homeowners in mid-2007, and other cities and counties in Ohio plan to adopt it, Cordray says. “Jim has a knack of driving to success [and overcoming] obstacles, bureaucratic and otherwise,” he says

Meanwhile, Rokakis chaired a review of the Ohio Housing Finance Agency and is a member of Ohio’s Foreclosure Prevention Task Force, which was appointed by Gov. Ted Strickland to find solutions for victims of predatory lenders who are unable to make their mortgage payments and are likely to lose their homes. A frequent speaker against predatory lending practices, Rokakis also has met with federal and state authorities to press them to criminally indict people who have used fraud and deception to play the housing market, increasing foreclosures for their financial gain.

Rawson, the mayor of Shaker Heights, calls Rokakis “a leader, innovator, coalition builder, a man of action and a public servant.” She admires how Rokakis attacks the most challenging problems, rather than settling for other issues that are easily solved. “He is absolutely front and center on some of the toughest housing and financial issues confronting communities in Ohio and Cuyahoga County,” she says.

Driven by experience

Rokakis looks to his own upbringing as the wellspring for his passion to use the tools of government to help people in distress. “I grew up very poor,” he says. “At a young age, I developed an affinity for people who had less.” After 30 years in public office, he remains optimistic despite what he sometimes feels are overwhelming problems. “I believe that government can make a difference, if you are patient and persistent.”

His persistence has not always endeared him to all community leaders. He has tangled with school officials about their investment practices, which he says cost taxpayers valuable returns on their tax payments, and with smokers who thought his no-smoking initiatives as a councilman were infringing on their rights. “There have to be voices who speak out on the issues,” he says.

A number of those who know him say Rokakis has transformed an elected position, the primary responsibility of which is to collect the county’s property taxes and invest the receipts, into a bully pulpit for underdogs in the county’s and state’s housing crisis. Rokakis acknowledges that he has adopted what some might call an expansive view of his office, but he says government has an essential role in improving people’s lives. “I could go by the job description or try to expand it to get the job done,” he says. “There has to be someone speaking out on the issues. And if I’m not doing it, who would it be?”

Robert Barkin is a Bethesda, Md.-based freelance writer.

Tags: Administration Economy

Most Recent


  • NYC wants to convert unused offices into housing units through relaxed regulations, incentivization
    Since the start of the pandemic, cities across the United States have seen a dramatic increase in residents working from home, and in correlation, more unused offices. While local governments are still grappling with the best way to overcome this challenge, converting vacated commercial space into residential dwellings is a clear solution, as it simultaneously […]
  • podcasts
    Tuning into your community: Top reasons why your agency needs a podcast
    Podcasts are more popular than ever. In fact, in the United States, podcasts attract more than 100 million monthly listeners (according to demandsage.com). Are you tapping into the power of the pod to deliver important news on your city or county’s programs, projects, initiatives and community partnerships? If not, you may miss out on a […]
  • 25 of the best city flags flying over American metros and towns
    When it comes to city flags, “form follows function.” A simple, well-designed city flag creates community cohesion, fosters civic pride, and support’s the commuinity’s branding. It also costs less and more residents are apt to use it, according to a survey ranking the best city flags in the United States from the North American Vexillological […]
  • sustainability
    Residents ask government leaders to show measurable sustainability results and triumphs
    There’s a growing urgency for cities and counties to go green, says Sol Salinas, executive vice president, sustainability lead at Capgemini Americas, a service-based company that provides consulting, digital transformation and outsourcing services to many organizations, including government agencies. It partners with organizations to transform and manage their operations by harnessing the power of technology. […]

Leave a comment Cancel reply

-or-

Log in with your American City and County account

Alternatively, post a comment by completing the form below:

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Related Content

  • Lessons from your friendly neighborhood public service employees
  • Harris County deploys next-generation security in 150 public buildings
  • How local governments can get ahead of the infrastructure wave: Strategies to mitigate risk
  • Prioritizing rapid restore leads to stronger ransomware attack recovery

White papers


Modernizing government services for today’s resident expectations

24th January 2023

Preparing Your Community Now for the Next Generation of Older Adults

18th October 2022

Helping Government Fleets Achieve Their Goals

30th September 2022
view all

Webinars


Future-proof Your State and Local Government Finance: 5 Key Trends for 2023

6th February 2023

How To: Evaluate Digital Government Service Delivery Technologies

23rd January 2023

Using Technology to Enhance Communications

29th November 2022
view all

PODCAST


Young Leaders Episode 4 – Cyril Jefferson – City Councilman, High Point, North Carolina

13th October 2020

Young Leaders Episode 3 – Shannon Hardin – City Council President, Columbus, Ohio

27th July 2020

Young Leaders Episode 2 – Christian Williams – Development Services Planner, Goodyear, Ariz.

1st July 2020
view all

GALLERIES


25 of the best city flags flying over American metros and towns

7th February 2023

These 10 American cities are well prepared for a tech-based future

1st February 2023

Report: While remote work is causing offices to empty out, walkable cities are still in high demand

26th January 2023
view all

Twitter


AmerCityCounty

NYC wants to convert unused offices into housing units through relaxed regulations, incentivization dlvr.it/Sj7ls5

8th February 2023
AmerCityCounty

Tuning into your community: Top reasons why your agency needs a podcast dlvr.it/Sj7578

8th February 2023
AmerCityCounty

25 of the best city flags flying over American metros and towns dlvr.it/Sj2RyK

7th February 2023
AmerCityCounty

Residents ask government leaders to show measurable sustainability results and triumphs dlvr.it/Sj1znw

6th February 2023
AmerCityCounty

Future-proof Your State and Local Government Finance: 5 Key Trends for 2023 dlvr.it/Sj1KxB

6th February 2023
AmerCityCounty

Amid spike, federal transportation department launches initiative to curb traffic-related deaths dlvr.it/Shvs31

3rd February 2023
AmerCityCounty

Engaging businesses to strengthen your community dlvr.it/ShvZn0

3rd February 2023
AmerCityCounty

Report: Some public employees face financial hardship; comprehensive pay packages proved ‘a pathway toward economic… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

2nd February 2023

Newsletters

Sign up for American City & County’s newsletters to receive regular news and information updates about local governments.

Resale Insights Dashboard

The Resale Insights Dashboard provides model-level data for the entire used equipment market to help you save time and money.

Municipal Cost Index

Updated monthly since 1978, our exclusive Municipal Cost Index shows the effects of inflation on the cost of providing municipal services

Media Kit and Advertising

Want to reach our digital audience? Learn more here.

DISCOVER MORE FROM INFORMA TECH

  • IWCE’s Urgent Communications
  • IWCE Expo

WORKING WITH US

  • About Us
  • Contact Us

FOLLOW American City and County ON SOCIAL

  • Privacy
  • CCPA: “Do Not Sell My Data”
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms
Copyright © 2023 Informa PLC. Informa PLC is registered in England and Wales with company number 8860726 whose registered and Head office is 5 Howick Place, London, SW1P 1WG.