Tag: election

Below are the bios for candidates running for CTM Trustee at the upcoming elections on Monday, December 7 from 6-7pm.  Elections will be held at the Clifton Recreation Center on the 2nd floor in the large meeting room.  The Rec Center is universally accessible to all.  Take the elevator or the stairs to the 2nd floor.

Adam Balz

Adam Balz is a native Cincinnatian and a Clifton resident since 2006. He lives on Woolper Avenue with his wife, Michelle, and two children, Benjamin and Emily. Adam has been an active volunteer with CTM—planting flowers, installing holiday decorations, and coordinating the Memorial Day grill out since moving to Clifton. Adam has been a trustee of Clifton Town Meeting since 2013. He has a bachelor’s degree in Environmental Science and a Master’s of Public Administration and is a partial owner of the environmental consulting firm Pegasus Technical Services.

Peter Block

I have been living in Clifton for about 12 years, married to Cathy Kramer, a long time resident. For most of my career I was an independent organizational consultant. In the last ten years I’ve worked with governments and communities on creating more citizen engagement. Author of nine books, two focused on building positive community and more connected neighborhoods.

I’m on the Board of Elementz, an Urban Arts Center, and served on Cincinnati Public Radio Board. I helped begin the Economics of Compassion Initiative which is supporting an alternative economy in the city. CTM matters and I would like to support it as trustee. All the issues of safety, zoning, events, the social fabric are important to me. My strongest interest is in the business district. Eleven empty storefronts are too many. We need to understand more fully why this is occurring and how we can co-operatively do something about this.

Ashley Fritz

I have lived in Clifton, on Middleton Avenue, for the past six years with my husband and our two sons. Clifton is a wonderful neighborhood for my family, and I really enjoy the walkability and friendliness of Clifton. However, I have the same concerns as many residents with regards to safety, education, and the continued revitalization of our business district. As a CTM trustee for the past three years, I have helped manage and edit the Clifton Chronicle and have helped organize numerous CTM sponsored events. For this year’s Clifton House Tour, I was the lead volunteer coordinator. I would like to continue my efforts with the Clifton Chronicle and CTM events, as well as collaborating with others in finding new ways to keep Clifton the best neighborhood in Cincinnati.

Erin Hinson

Erin Hinson is a young professional who has resided in Clifton since 2013. In that time, Clifton has become home to her and the place she desires to establish her roots. Erin Hinson is a proud alumni of Xavier University. She is passionate about soccer which has led her to a role as the St. Lawrence youth soccer coach in her spare time and the captain of an intramural soccer team.

When she’s not coaching or playing soccer, Erin has started several successful companies, including one where she works with small and local businesses to increase their online audience and brand. She also co-founded #UnlockCincinnati, a weekly blog for WCPO.com and a tourism-based marketing company centered around bringing awareness and traffic to the abundant local businesses in all of Cincinnati.

Malcolm Montgomery

What sets me apart from the other candidates? Passion and experience!

I would bring to CTM my passion for protecting and enhancing Clifton, my track record of accomplishments, and a seasoned perspective that will complement a Board that has many relatively new trustees.

I am one of a handful of Lifetime CTM Members. I care enough about protecting and enhancing Clifton as the best neighborhood in Cincinnati to have volunteered over a thousand hours for CTM activities. I served as a CTM Trustee twice, with one term starting in 1990 and a second in 2009. I’m proud of the many things I’ve accomplished in the last 25 years collaborating with others to deliver results for Clifton including the following:

– for our younger residents: completed soccer fields at Mount Storm
for beautification: funded landscaping for the recreation center
– for public safety: served as police liaison; funded hidden cameras to catch drug dealers on our side streets; collaborated on excessive traffic on side streets and enforcement of speed limits
– improving CTM meetings: provided and maintained audio visual system enabling the audience to hear speakers and see handouts and computer presentations
– Quality of life and enhancement of property values – chaired CTM housing and zoning committee, testified before zoning commission and city council for a more effective chronic nuisance law, for better zoning laws, for fairness in the enforcement of zoning regulations, and for neighborhood improvements

I have time to get things done. I am retired from UC and perform only occasional pro bono work in my educational technology consulting business.

Sean Mullaney

I am a lifelong Cincinnatian with brief stays in Chicago and Paris. My wife and I have lived in Clifton for 20 years and we have 2 children. My experience in design, business and real estate gives me a broad background to understand the big picture of our neighborhood. We are fortunate to have amazing parks, stunning architecture and a unique business district in Clifton. I would work to utilize and improve these assets to bring more people to live, work and play in Clifton Gaslight.

Cindy Oakenfull

I have been a Clifton resident for over ten years. My wife, Gillian, and I moved here when we were about to start our family. We chose Clifton as we wanted to raise our family in an open-minded dynamic urban environment that also provided the charm of an historic neighborhood. We now have three sons, Jack 9, Ben 6, and Danny 3. I love everything that Clifton has brought to our lives. My family feels connected to the community – its schools, its businesses, its parks, and its people.

Professionally, I’ve served in various management roles for Paramount Parks, Fifth Third Bank, and GE Capital. Each position provided me the opportunity to build distinct corporate business units within Operations, Sales and Marketing. After 16 rewarding years, I left corporate industry for academia, joining the faculty at Miami University’s Farmer School of Business, where Gillian is a marketing professor. In my short time at Miami, I have found a passion for preparing today’s students for the challenges of tomorrow’s workforce.

We care deeply about the future of this community as it stands at the core of my family’s experience. Recently, we have recognized our duty to participate in service roles within the community. Gillian has focused on education by serving on the Local School Decision Making Committee (LSDMC) at Fairview German Language School. In turn, I would like to devote my energy and expertise to the development and stewardship of our neighborhood by serving on Clifton Town Meeting Board.

Eric Urbas

CTM Trustee since Jan 2013
CTM President and Website Committee Chair
I have been a Clifton resident for over 8 years. My wife Michelle grew up in Clifton and has been a resident for most of her life. We have two children who know Clifton as their first and only home. We love living here because of the walk-ability, friendly people, and historic character of the neighborhood. It is a privilege working with and now leading this organization. I hope you will consider voting for me to a second term as Trustee. I will continue to focus on things that are positive for Clifton. I enjoy working with our community partners, business district, and the residents. I will also continue to improve the visibility of CTM and the community through the website and social media. Thank you for your consideration.

Seth Walsh

Seth T. Walsh moved to Clifton after graduating from Xavier University in 2013. He has since fallen in love with the walkable neighborhood and business district, and the friendly and welcoming community. This inspired him to co-found #UnlockCincinnati, a weekly blog for WCPO and a tourism-based marketing company to promote small business in Cincinnati, but also to start his career in community development, bringing the lively energy evident in Clifton to other neighborhoods.

Seth is the Executive Director of the Sedamsville Community Development Corporation, a tiny neighborhood just west of downtown, and is the Project Director/Associate Director for the Community Development Corporations Association of Greater Cincinnati (CDC Association). He proudly serves on the WCPO editorial board, the WCPO Community Advisory Board, is a board member for UpSpring, and is a founding member of the local Global Shapers chapter. In his spare time, Seth is working on completing a goal of reading one book on every U.S. President.

CTM Trustee elections were held on Dec. 1, 2014. Michael Moran, Rama Kasturi, Shaun McCance, and Nicholas Hollan were elected to 3-year Trustee positions beginning Jan 1, 2015. As there were 5 Trustee positions coming available in 2015, the Board voted to approve Mike Schur filling the vacancy for one year as per the By-laws. The CTM Board thanks all candidates who ran in this election and all members who voted.

CTM Trustee elections will be held on Dec 1, 2014 from 6-7pm prior to the monthly CTM meeting in the same day.  Elections will be held at the Clifton Cultural Arts Center (CCAC) on the 2nd floor.  Current membership is required to vote, and memberships can be paid current on election day prior to voting.  There are five 3-year Trustee positions open for election for terms beginning in 2014.  There are five candidates vying for these positions.  Candidate bios are noted below.  Election results will be announced at the CTM meeting on Dec 1.

Clifton Town Meeting Trustee Candidates for 2014 Election

Nicholas Hollan
Community service has always been a priority for Nicholas Hollan. It was here in Clifton where Nicholas lived when he graduated from UC, volunteered with the American Red Cross following Hurricane Katrina and accepted a position as the Disaster Response Supervisor for our local Red Cross.

Nicholas is a graduate of the United Way’s Board Orientation & Leadership Development program and used that training to serve on the boards of United Cerebral Palsy, The Westwood Civic Association and Invest in Neighborhoods.

Nicholas was a candidate for Cincinnati City Council in 2009 and 2011 where he was endorsed by many organizations including the Cincinnati Enquirer and City Beat. In 2010 Nicholas was recognized in the annual “Best of” edition by City Beat as “The Best sign of intelligent life on the West Side”.

In 2010, Nicholas took out an SBA Loan and opened his own business in Roselawn. The Valley Dental Management Service employs 13 healthcare professionals and works closely with local Doctors and Surgeons to provide quality dental care to low income patients.

After the premature birth of his son in 2011, Nicholas chaired the Family Team committee for the March of Dimes in 2013 and 2014.  Nicholas, Meghan and Preston were delighted to have purchased the Charles B. Russell House in 2012 and look forward to calling the Gaslight home for many more years.

John Juech
John Juech is a Clifton resident and home owner, raising his family in the neighborhood, who hopes to live in Clifton and help the community prosper for many years to come. Professionally, John currently serves as Chief of Staff to the Vice Mayor of Cincinnati, David Mann, also a Clifton resident for many decades. John has extensive experience in local, national and international politics, from advising Members of Congress and large corporations to running campaigns – such as the David Mann for Council campaign – to helping to set up democratic elections for the UN in in 2005 in Liberia, West Africa after a protracted Civil War. He has worked for the United Nations, the US Congress (don’t hold that against him), and in the private and non-profit sectors as well. Immediately prior to his current job, John was Vice President at Garten Rothkopf, an international consulting advisory firm based in Washington DC for four years. Prior to that, he served as a senior legislative assistant to US Congressman Bill Delahunt, a senior member of the US House Foreign Affairs Committee. He holds a masters in International Relations from the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS).

He will bring to Clifton Town Meeting a wealth of ideas married to practical experience with campaigns, public communication, fundraising, social media, and community development that can benefit the Clifton community. He also brings to CTM an understanding and relationships with key city of Cincinnati leaders at City Hall, in the City Administration, and throughout Cincinnati’s 52 neighborhoods from his work running the Vice Mayor’s office. Among his prior involvement with CTM and the Clifton Community is helping to organize the 2014 CTM golf outing, which raised a significant amount of money for the CCAC and working on a number of issues at City Hall of interest to CTM, such as the Woolper bike lane project, the Probasco Fountain, and the work on the future of Ludlow.

John has had the great privilege to travel to more than 60 countries and 46 US states. He lives on Belsaw Place with his wife Kate, a senior executive with the Clinton Foundation, and his daughter Josephine.  Their family is expanding in early 2015 and plan to put down roots in the neighborhood, raise their kids, and be there for years to come.

Rama Kasturi
Dear CTM Members,

My name is Rama Kasturi and I am seeking your support in my bid to serve as a Trustee of the Clifton Town Meeting. Many of you know me from walking in and around Clifton and Burnet Woods with my dogs for the last eighteen years, being a parent at Fairview-Clifton German Language School, or working at the University of Cincinnati.

My husband, Erik Nelson, and I have lived in Clifton with our twin children for the past 15 years when we moved from our condo on Jefferson Avenue just on the other side of Clifton! We love the historic gaslight district and its astounding diversity and neighborly atmosphere. The proximity to several beautiful urban parks, a charming movie theatre, ethnic restaurants, diverse  businesses, and a walkable grocery store all made Clifton the hands-down choice for my own home away from home.

A Biophysical Chemist by training, I have worked at P&G and at the University of Cincinnati, College of Medicine, where I taught Medical Pharmacology until last August. I am currently retired from professional life and I am actively engaged in doing as much good as I can.

With this in mind, I have decided to follow through on my desire to give back in some way to the community that my family and I so enjoy by seeking election as a Trustee of CTM.

I am specifically interested in the following:

1. Helping make the Clifton Cooperative Market a reality-every neighborhood needs a grocery store! I am an advisor to the board of the Clifton Market and serve on the Capital Campaign Committee.

2. Helping to making our business district and neighborhood more “green”: I have already been designated “Recycler-In-Chief” for CliftonFest 2015 (!). I will work to ensure that our businesses  are greener and have volunteered to create community recycling opportunities at the Clifton Cooperative Market.

3. Ensure that the diversity of Clifton is showcased and celebrated: e.g., I would like to see flags on Ludlow representing the numerous countries whose citizens now call Clifton home! Where else in Cincinnati can you live and experience the diversity of Clifton?

If elected, I will do my best to do as much good as possible for Clifton over the next three years.

Shaun McCance
I moved to Clifton because I wanted to live in a friendly, walkable neighborhood with a vibrant business district. I continue to be impressed at how the people of Clifton come together to shape their neighborhood, and I’m proud to be able to play a small part in that.

I work as a programmer, technical writer, and community liaison for a major open source software company. I served two terms on the board of directors for a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to open source and digital freedoms. I spend my days working with volunteer communities to foster open source, promote open data, and protect people’s freedoms and privacy online.

For the last year, I’ve been involved with Clifton Market, the community-owned effort to bring a grocery store back to our neighborhood. I serve as the treasurer and general records keeper, and I handle much of the technology and design work. It’s been a rewarding experience that has given me the opportunity to get to know a lot of my neighbors.

I’m a firm believer in the power of open communities. I’ve seen time and time again what people can accomplish when they’re informed and engaged. As a CTM trustee, I’d like to explore ways to continue to increase community engagement, encourage open discussion among neighbors, and better promote Clifton online.

Michael Moran
Michael Moran is a native Cincinnatian who lived in Western Hills, Mount Adams and Oakley before moving to Oxford Terrace in Clifton almost nine years ago. He studied finance and accounting at the University of Kentucky and works as a commercial real estate broker for CBRE. He’s married to Abby Moran, and they have two children, Will (8) and Maisie (6). Mike has served one term as a Trustee on Clifton Town Meeting and currently holds the Treasurer’s position. Mike also sits on the Board of Tender Mercies, Inc, an organization that provides permanent and supportive housing to the homeless and mentally ill. Mike loves living in Clifton is currently involved in rehabbing a new home in the area for his family.

CTM Trustee elections were held on Dec. 2, 2013. Joyce Rich, Ben Pantoja, Kevin Marsh, and Adam Hyland were elected to 3-year Trustee positions beginning Jan 1, 2014. The CTM Board thanks all candidates who ran in this election and all members who voted.