Cincinnati Enquirer reporters Carrie Blackmore Smith and James Pilcher explain how money is spent and flows through the Cincinnati Park Board and the Cincinnati Parks Foundation. Wochit
This week, a majority of Cincinnati City Council members approved a replacement for Cincinnati Park Board Chair Dianne Rosenberg.
But she's not going quietly. She filed a lawsuit against the city Friday morning.
Rosenberg asked a judge to bar the city from removing her from her seat until a court can settle matters between her and Mayor John Cranley.
The two have been going head-to-head over financial controls at the Cincinnati Parks Department for the better part of two years but discussions recently reached an impasse.
Cranley moved to replace her this month, saying her term was up. But Rosenberg and others have challenged Cranley's stance, calling the mayor’s action “retribution.”
On Friday, the head of one of Cincinnati's most influential institutions spoke up for Rosenberg, in a scathing opinion piece sent to The Enquirer.
“I do not wish to be a silent onlooker to this travesty,” wrote Tim Maloney, president and CEO of the Carol Ann and Ralph V. Haile, Jr. /U.S. Bank Foundation.
Maloney, whose organization has given millions of dollars to Cincinnati parks, said the argument between the two parties is “nothing more than a political shell game that ended with the purported ouster (of) one of our city's most passionate, philanthropic, bright and capable leaders.”
Cranley says he disagrees with Rosenberg and Maloney, who believe the park's endowment funds should be treated as private donations.
“The sooner we treat public money like public money, the better,” Cranley said, pointing out that the board has not won the city’s trust in using the endowment funds to pay for trips and meals for top employees.
“These are dollars that can and should be used on our park system,” Cranley said. “The public has the right to know how those decisions are made and why they are made.”
He likened the way the board has used the money to “a private country club account.”
As for Maloney’s letter, which stated the foundation would reevaluate future partnerships with the parks and city if it expelled “high-minded volunteers” in this way, Cranley said: “We will not be blackmailed by big money. We will be transparent.”
The Enquirer will update this story.