Councilwoman Rebecca Yardley addresses the town hall meeting

(Cleveland)- Several citizens of Cleveland turned out Tuesday night for a town hall meeting to discuss what was on their minds about city government and the city in general. Ward 2 Councilwoman Rebecca Yardley arranged the meeting at, Cleveland Community Center/Police Department Building, to provide an open dialog to hear from citizens and answer any questions they had.

The biggest concern expressed by most of those attending was the decision made recently by the City Council to explore the possibility of selling the old Talon property that the city purchased several years ago as a site to build a city complex for city hall, public safety, and other offices.

Former city councilman Rush Mauney said the development of that property “ could have the biggest impact on the city for years to come.”  He said it’s in the center of town and is the perfect place for what he called “ our front yard.”

Suggestions were made to look for ways to re-engineer the plans to help cut costs and possibly develop the site in stages over time.

Councilwoman Nan Bowen, who voted against the possible sale of the property said, “We can work to find funds needed.”

Former City Council member Annie Sutton shares her comments during the town hall meeting

Former council members Annie Sutton and Bradley Green were among the citizens attending the meeting who expressed their views and gave insight on decisions made by other council boards.

Other issues discussed included the State of the City, preservation of historic areas, growth problems, drainage and erosion issues, and sewer and water services.

Councilwoman Yardley felt positive about the event, “ I think it was a great discussion that was had, there was lots of laughter and there was lots of sharing about things we can do to improve our community about concerns that people have and I look forward to taking that information sharing with my fellow council members to make our community a better place to live,” commented Yardley.

Yardley told the crowd that this is the first of many such meetings to hear from the public.