2023 Annual Conference – Ohio City & County Management Association

Location:
Renaissance Columbus – Downtown 50 North Third Street
Columbus, OH, 43215

Date:
April 5 – 7, 2023

Registration Rates
Lodging
Conference Program
Speaker Bios
Sponsors
Materials

Student Volunteer: $0
Lifetime Member: $0
Conference Presenter: $0
Full/Affiliate Member: $250
Consulting Member: $300
Nonmember: $350
1st Time Attendee: $265 ($175 registration plus 2023 OCMA Membership)

Registration has closed.

Hotel reservations can be made online at the Renaissance Columbus Downtown Hotel (50 N. 3rd Street, Columbus, OH 43215) at the link below. If you prefer to make your reservation over the phone, you can call 614-228-5050 and ask for the OCMA 2023 Conference Room Block group rate.

Please Note:

A limited number of rooms are available at the OCMA block room rate of $159 + tax, so register soon! Once the room block is full, room reservations will be made at the hotel’s then current available rate.
Valet parking is available for $37.00 overnight or $23.00 daily. All valet parking is based on availability.
Hotel Check in time is 4 PM. Due to high occupancy, early checks are not permitted. If you require an early check-in, we suggest you book your room the day prior so you are guaranteed early check-in.

Please make your hotel reservation by March 7, 2023 to guarantee access to the discounted room rate.

Reserve Room

Wednesday, April 5

1:00 – 5:00 PM

Conference Registration Open

2:00 – 5:00 PM

Pre-Conference Mobile Workshop
Intel’s Landmark Investment and Impacts on Ohio Communities

Jennifer Chrysler, Director of Community Development, City of New Albany
Ted Geer, Program Manager One Columbus
Emily Smith, Ohio Public Affairs Director, Global Public Affairs & Sustainability, Intel Corporation

Meet in the Pre-Function West space (up the escalators).
Buses will depart the Renaissance and return attendees to the same location at 5:00 PM.

Thursday, April 6

7:30 – 5:00 PM	Conference Registration Open
8:00 AM	Breakfast
8:30 AM	Sponsor Welcome Robert Fowler OCMA President, Assistant City Manager, City of Mentor Keith Valiquette Account Executive, Energy Systems Group, Exclusive Tech City Sponsor
8:45 – 10:00 AM	Keynote Address “Leadership Lessons from a Life in Public Service” Chief Justice Maureen O’Connor, retired Cheryl Hilvert, Moderator, Retired City Manager
10:00 -11:00 AM	Breakout Session #1 Yes In Our Back Yard: Encouraging Infill Redevelopment and Supporting Growth Zach Woodruff, City Administrator, Whitehall Megan Meyer, Deputy Director of Public Affairs, Whitehall Local Government Tailored Incentives Available Under the IRA John Flis, Associate; Austin Musser, Partner; and Joe Riley, Staff Attorney Bricker & Eckler Innovative Program Development Via the Hack-a-Thon Liz Keating, Councilmember, City of Cincinnati Eric Jamison, Director, Office of Performance and Data Analytics, City of Cincinnati
11:00 – 11:15 AM	Vendor Networking/Break
11:15 -12:15 PM	Breakout Session #2 Drinking from the Fire Hose No More: Public Works Front Line Employees Make Onboarding and Training Easy Ben Ankeney, Operations Manager, Public Works Sarah Ballard, Operations Coordinator, Public Works Director, Public Works and Engineering City of Centerville Electric Vehicles – What are the Costs and Where Does This Make Sense in My Agency? Jeremy Baldwin, Senior Account Executive Carl Cultrona, Account Executive Enterprise Fleet Management Lean Management in Local Government Tracy Owens, 3 Point Consulting
12:15 -1:45 PM	Luncheon Address “The Chamber of Commerce Blueprint for Ohio” Steve Stivers, President and CEO, Ohio Chamber of Commerce Sponsor Introduction Darnita Bradley, Senior Manager Local Government Affairs & External Engagement JobsOhio
1:45 – 2:45 PM	Breakout Session #3 Solving Crime in Ohio Rick Lombardo and Myron Maret Flock Safety Institutionalizing DEIA in Your Organization Tracy Henao, Assistant City Manager, City of Montgomery Brian Riblet, City Manager, City of Montgomery Damika Withers, Chief Economic Equity and Inclusion Officer, Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Franklin County Board of Commissioners Kenneth Wilson, Moderator, County Administrator, Franklin County Financing Your Water & Sewer Infrastructure Projects Misty Tolzda, RCAP State Manager Pam Ewing, Sr. Rural Development Specialist Great Lakes Rural Community Assistance Partnership
2:45 – 3:00 PM	Vendor Networking/Break
3:00 – 4:00 PM	Breakout Session #4 Main Street Redevelopment Doug Lewis, City Manager, Painesville The Brain Project: Optimizing Brain Health. Maximizing Potential. Charlotte Colley, Former County Administrator, Miami County Dr. Joel Robertson, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Robertson Research Institute (RRI) Asset Management Best Practices in Lancaster, OH Scott F. Snider, GIS Manager Quint Pertzsch, Solutions Engineer OpenGov
4:00 – 4:15 PM	Vendor Networking/Break
4:15 – 5:00 PM	General Session “A Tale of Two States: Ohio’s Demographic Trends“ Alison Goebel, Executive Director, Greater Ohio Policy Center Bryan Heck, Moderator, City Manager, City of Springfield
5:00 – 7:00 PM	The Jefferson Health Plan Reception/Annual Awards

Friday, April 7

8:00 AM	Breakfast
8:30 – 9:15 AM	OCMA Business Meeting
9:15 – 9:30 AM	Vendor Networking/Break
9:30 – 10:30 AM	Breakout Session #5 Accessing Census Data to Improve Your Community Eric Coyle, U.S. Census Bureau Strategic Planning: How to respond to the rapidly changing economy Dennis Maher, Marketing Development Executive, ClearGov Lessons in Public Private Partnerships Brian Riblet, City Manager, City of Montgomery Tracy Henao, Assistant City Manager, Montgomery
10:30-10:45 AM	Break
10:45 -12:00 PM	General Session Legislative Update Kent Scarrett, Executive Director, Ohio Municipal League Cheryl Subler, Executive Director, County Commissioners of Ohio Heidi Fought, Executive Director, Ohio Township Association
12:00 – 1:00 PM	Lunch

Keynote Address

Chief Justice Maureen O’Connor was the tenth Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Ohio and the first woman to lead the state judicial branch of government. She was the first chief justice to retire from the office and upon her retirement was the longest-serving statewide elected woman in Ohio history.

During her tenure, she improved access to justice by advocating for constitutional bail practices and ability to pay assessments for court fines and fees. She convened a task force to study grand jury proceedings in Ohio, created a committee to examine the administration of the death penalty and led efforts of an eight-state initiative to combat the nation’s opioid epidemic and its impact on families and courts. Her time on the court ended during Ohio’s contentious and historic battle over gerrymandered electoral districts and a looming flight over how voters can approve amendments to the state’s constitution.

Chief Justice O’Connor (retired) will speak at the 2023 OCMA Annual Conference on her long service to Ohio and what the future of leadership looks like in Ohio.

Luncheon Address

Steve Stivers is the President and CEO of the Ohio Chamber of Commerce, the state’s leading business organization whose mission it is to aggressively champion free enterprise, economic competitiveness and growth for the benefit of all Ohioans.

Prior to joining the Ohio Chamber, Stivers represented Ohio’s 15th Congressional District from 2011 until 2021. He served on the Financial Services Committee and was the Ranking Member on the Subcommittee on Housing, Community Development, and Insurance. He served on the Ohio Senate from 2004 until 2008.

Throughout his career, Steve Stivers has supported programs and initiatives to encourage job creation, and promote economic development. Stivers also served over 30 years in the Ohio Army National Guard and holds the rank of Major General. He served the United States overseas during Operation Iraqi Freedom, receiving the Bronze Star for his leadership throughout the deployment.

Stivers received his bachelor’s degree and his MBA from The Ohio State University and a master’s degree in strategic studies from the Army War College. He resides in Upper Arlington with his wife, Karen, and children, Sarah and Sam.

General Session (Thursday)

A Tale of Two States: Ohio’s Demographic Trends

Alison Goebel is Executive Director of the Greater Ohio Policy Center (GOPC). She has been with GOPC since 2010 and has held a number of positions within the organization during that time. Today, Goebel is responsible for charting GOPC’s strategic direction, directing the research, advocacy, and outreach teams, and securing resources for this work. She is the author of a number of research reports and policy briefs related to the revitalization of weak-market, legacy cities, transportation funding, and local governance structures in Ohio.

From 2005 to 2009, Goebel periodically lived in Mansfield, Ohio where she conducted long-term qualitative research on social relationships in a small city setting. Goebel is a graduate and board member of Leadership Ohio and was elected by her class for the 2014 “Leader Among Leaders” award. She holds a Ph.D. and M.A. in anthropology from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign and received her B.A. from Miami University (Oxford, Ohio).

Legislative Update (Friday)

Cheryl Subler is a respected government affairs professional who has more than twenty years of experience representing local government officials. She is the Executive Director for the County Commissioners Association of Ohio, where she is responsible for strategic planning and management of CCAO operations and coordinating the CCAO legislative program. Prior to that, she worked for the Ohio Township Association. A former House legislative aide and a Senate page, Subler learned about Ohio’s state government from the bottom up. She earned a bachelor’s in philosophy from Miami University, where she majored in interdisciplinary studies with a focus in politics and law and minored in political science.

Heidi Fought first joined the OTA in 2000 as the Director of Governmental Affairs, was promoted to Assistant Executive Director in 2019 and became Executive Director in January 2020. In her current role, Ms. Fought is responsible for managing all aspects of the organization and reports to the OTA Board of Directors. Fought graduated from Muskingum College in 1998 with a B.A. in Political Science. Prior to joining the OTA, she served as a Legislative Aide to a member of the Ohio General Assembly. Fought also served 5 years as a member of the Jefferson Township (Franklin Co.) Park Board and 2 years as Chair before moving to Bennington Township (Licking Co.), where she currently resides with her husband and two dogs.

Kent Scarrett is the Executive Director of the Ohio Municipal League, which serves as the primary connection point between municipal and state government in Ohio. Scarrett focuses on advocating on behalf of the League’s nearly 740 members on issues related to state and local tax policy, local control and economic development strategies. Before being appointed Executive Director in March 2016, Scarrett served as the League’s Director of Communication for six years. He began his career at the Ohio Statehouse in 1990 as a page in the Ohio Senate, later becoming Constituent Aide and then Legislative Aide first for state Senator Steven O. Williams, then for Majority Whip Senator Nancy Chiles-Dix. Kent left the Ohio Senate in 1996 to serve as a Legislative Liaison for Governor Voinovich before joining the OML in 1997. He is a graduate of The Ohio State University.