CINCINNATI — A new mayor and City Council were sworn into office Tuesday morning in an unusual ceremony held outdoors at a park due to the recent surge in COVID-19 cases.

After taking his oath, Mayor Aftab Pureval presided over a brief meeting to take a few procedural votes to get organized, but officials didn't hold their first full meeting until the following day.

On Wednesday, the group of five men and four women had their first formal discussion and vote as an elected body. The main topic was the severance package for outgoing City Manager Paula Boggs Muething and the terms of the deal for incoming interim City Manager John Curp.

There were some moments of contentiousness, but the final vote ended up 9-0 in favor of the two deals.

The latest City Council includes six first-time members and two others who were appointed during the middle of last term. With the lack of hands-on experience at City Hall, the group has spent the last few weeks learning the nuts and bolts about how municipal government works.

Democrat Meeka Owens is one of the first-timers. She started moving into her new office Tuesday afternoon.

“(We) want to hit the ground running, because this is such a moment for Cincinnati with so many new people being elected to council,” Owens said. “I want to get everything in place as much as possible leading up to Day One.”

There wasn’t much pomp or circumstance when Jan-Michele Lemon Kearney was first sworn-in as a member of Cincinnati City Council in March 2020.

The COVID-19 pandemic had just exploded nationwide and Lemon Kearney was quickly tapped to replace a council member who resigned after being indicted on federal bribery and extortion charges.

Joined by her family, Lemon Kearney held up her right hand, took the oath of office and delivered a few, brief remarks. After that, it was straight to work the next day.

“Basically, it was like, ‘Here's your key to your office. Good luck,’” recalled Lemon Kearney, an attorney with a background in publishing. “It's just that City Hall had closed down and everybody had gone home. We just sort of figured it out as we went along.”

Lemon Kearney knew some of the ins and outs of politics. Her husband, Eric, is a former Ohio state senator. But being an elected official involves getting to know the nuances of the job and numerous procedural aspects needed to be effective.

“You eventually pick it up, but it takes time and that can slow things down a bit,” Lemon Kearney said.

That’s why when Lemon Kearney was elected in November, she pushed for a more extensive orientation process for all council members. Her leadership is part of the reason she was named vice mayor for this term.

Lemon Kearney was the top vote-getters among the nine City Council members. She’s one of three returning City Council members, including Liz Keating, a Republican appointee, and Democrat Greg Landsman, the only member previously elected. This will be his second term. 

The new council attended a multi-day orientation that included sessions on ethics, public records and open meetings. Their staff members attended as well.

“As much information that I can absorb before walking into the office makes me feel really good,” Owens said.

Owens credits Lemon Kearney and Landsman with showing her the ropes. She described them as having "been there before.”

The City Hall elder statesmen offered tips and insights into everything from working with the city departments to how to file a motion. Another topic was some of the tools council members have at their disposal. For instance, there’s a portal the city uses to monitor the status of service requests filed by residents.

Owens said these early lessons will make her a “more efficient and effective legislator” from the start.

“Their experience is valuable because they’re able to say, ‘Here’s what I didn’t know and here’s how I learned to overcome it,’ she said. “I just appreciate the experience that they bring and knowing that I can ask them anything and they'll be able to help.”

The renewed commitment to good government and transparency is needed to restore public trust, said Ioanna Paraskevopulous, executive director and co-founder of Action Tank, a Cincinnati-based political consulting firm.

During the last council term, three members were indicted in what prosecutors allege is a pay-to-play scheme exchanging votes for cash or campaign contributions. One of those members, Tamaya Dennard, is now serving a sentence at a federal prison in West Virginia; the other two members, P.G. Sittenfeld and Jeff Pastor, are fighting the charges.

"Public corruption cases, police violence and the lackluster response to COVID-19 have severely damaged the public’s confidence in Cincinnati’s local elected officials at a time when local government is needed to provide steady, resident-focused leadership to set policy addressing economic insecurity, affordable housing scarcity, food insecurity, public safety and public health,” Paraskevopulous said.

A former chief of staff for former Councilmember David Mann, Paraskevopulous and her partners at Action Tank offer free training for residents who want to run for office, or who want to be better advocates for their neighborhoods at City Hall. 

Keating took part in the course before she was appointed to City Council in December 2020.

“Recent events have also demonstrated how critical it is to increase the number of residents who are trained in local government norms and best practices who can hold local officials accountable to prevent further violation of the public trust," Paraskevopulous said.

Landsman, who has been on council for four years, said setting the proper tone at City Hall is important for establishing what is allowed.

“Culture is everything,” Landsman said.

“To me, if you have a healthy culture and people are working together, you get things done," he added. "And when you have an unhealthy culture and people are arguing all the time, and they're very engaged in these fights, it makes it very difficult, if not impossible, to get things done.”