CLEVELAND — Editor's Note: The above video features a story about Mayor Bibb's West Side Market plan.
Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb’s first seven weeks in office were packed with one-on-one chats, group meetings and Zoom calls with staff members, elected officials, community leaders and reporters, his weekly calendars show.
Made public each week by City Hall, the calendars show he also attended social and business meetings in Washington and participated in high-profile events around the NBA All-Star Game.
While Bibb and his press office frequently announce his daily activities in social media posts and news releases, Bibb’s calendars collectively offer a window into how his time is spent and reflect his priorities pushed during last year’s campaign.
Typical of any mayor’s schedule, Bibb meets regularly with key department heads, including those from the safety forces. He also meets frequently with officials from the Cleveland Metropolitan School District – which the mayor oversees – and with council members. New members Rebecca Maurer and Richard Starr and longtime members Mike Polensek and Joe Jones were among the first to sit alone with Bibb, the calendars show.
While the mayor has not held an in-person press conference to field wide-ranging questions from a scrum of reporters, Bibb has given interviews to several local and national reporters, including 3News' Leon Bibb.
The calendars released are not detailed. They do not always include the topic of discussions or even full names of those meeting with Bibb. Below are his weekly calendars with a short summary of each week.
Week 1
Bibb was sworn in just days after Cleveland Police Officer Shane Bartek was shot and killed during a carjacking. The mayor met with Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Michael O’Malley and visited the city’s Fifth District police station, where Bartek worked. There, the mayor delivered the news the city ruled the off-duty slaying qualified as an in-the-line of duty death, which allowed Bartek’s family to receive additional benefits.
He also met with his staff to discuss how to set up his promised “Listening Tour,” during which he plans to visit city workers in various departments.
Week 2
His appointments included a meeting with firefighters at Station 1. The mayor also convened meetings with city officials to discuss its snow response. He also met with Cuyahoga County Council President Pernel Jones Jr. and Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost.
Bibb had a 30-minute call on Zoom with NBA Commissioner Adam Silver.
The week also included an in-person meeting with Cleveland Clinic CEO and President Tom Mihaljevic and a Zoom chat with Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott.
Week 3
This week was taken up by snow removal issues and by a trip to Washington to attend the U.S. Conference of Mayors. His calendar shows that while in D.C., he met with U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and with officials at American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees. He also caught up with Jim Clifton, CEO of Gallup, a consulting company. Bibb once worked for Clifton and considers him a friend and mentor.
Week 4
Bibb talked with Cleveland Clerk of Courts Earle Turner and had a Zoom call with clergy members. He participated in meetings related to the NBA All-Star Game and he met with EMS workers as part of his Listening Tour.
Week 5
This week included more events around the NBA All-Star Game, several media interviews, including one with Ideastream Public Media reporter Nick Castele to discuss the mayor’s 100-day priority list.
Bibb also taped a recorded city proclamation honoring local barber and community activist Waverly Willis. The proclamation aired during an episode of the Nick Cannon Show that featured Willis.
On Tuesday, February 1, the mayor had a Zoom meeting with Samaria Rice, whose son, Tamir, was shot and killed by police in 2014 outside a Cleveland recreation center. Their talk followed the U.S. Justice Department’s decision (the previous Friday) that it would not reopen a federal civil rights investigation into the shooting.
Bibb’s spokeswoman told 3News this week the call was to update Rice on the city’s progress of implementing Issue 24, the city charter amendment backed by voters in November that shifts oversight of the police department – including policy and discipline of officers - to a civilian-led board and commission.
Bibb also met that day with Hassan Aden, the monitor overseeing the Cleveland police department reforms.
Week Six
Bibb went to the Cleveland Metroparks headquarters for what is described in the calendar as a “promotional video” for the Irishtown Bend project. (Civic leaders have proposed 23-acre park on the west bank of the Cuyahoga River.)
He also met during the week with business leaders, homeless advocates and held another meeting about the West Side Market.
Week Seven
The mayor was busy with both internal meetings and events related to the NBA All-Star Game. Bibb participated in Friday's
Previous Reporting:
- Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb to propose legislation to drive growth at West Side Market
- Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb endorses Rep. Shontel Brown for reelection to Congress
- Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb defends decision to not to allow restaurants to serve alcohol late during NBA All-Star Weekend
- Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb releases transition report, provides goals for first 100 days
- 'It's winter in Cleveland, folks': Mayor Justin Bibb updates city on snow removal plan ahead of winter storm