On June 9, 2010, the Cleveland Clinic Foundation sent the following letter to then Mayor Edward FitzGerald, then Council President Kevin Butler, and the remaining members of City Council, which included Ward 3 Councilperson Mike Summers:
Butler then caused the following special meeting announcement to be issued for June 10, 2010:
SPECIAL COUNCIL MEETING
PLEASE POST
In accordance with Article III Section 4 of the Second Amended Charter oft he City of
Lakewood you are hereby notified that I am calling and there will be a Special
Meeting of Council Thursday June 10 2010 at 7 PM in the Jury Room of Lakewood
City Hall to discuss the following item:
Introducing a resolution supporting the Cleveland Clinic Foundation and Lakewood
Hospital Association Vision for Tomorrow plan and its focus on Centers of
Excellence at Lakewood Hospital.
Kevin Butler
PRESIDENT OF COUNCIL
http://lakewoodalive.blogspot.com/2010_06_01_archive.html
Butler then leads City Council to adopt the following resolution regarding "Lakewood Hospital Vision for Tomorrow:"
Council Resolution: Lakewood Hospital Vision for Tomorrow
Adopted by Lakewood City Council at a special meeting held on Thursday, June 10, 2010
A RESOLUTION supporting the Cleveland Clinic Foundation and Lakewood Hospital Association’s Vision for Tomorrow plan and its focus on Centers of Excellence at Lakewood Hospital.
WHEREAS, the City of Lakewood entered into a partnership with the Lakewood Hospital Association, whose sole member is the Cleveland Clinic Foundation, in 1996 through a definitive agreement and lease; and
WHEREAS, the City and Cleveland Clinic both aspire and commit to provide appropriate services suitable for the Lakewood community and to maintain the near- and long-term viability of Lakewood Hospital; and
WHEREAS, the marketplace, regulatory and financial trends and forces regarding health care delivery services, including hospital services, are in an extraordinarily dynamic and uncertain state, as evidenced by the fact that 50 percent of the hospitals in the United States reported operating losses in 2009; and
WHEREAS, as described in the April 6, 2010, letter to the City, the Cleveland Clinic and Lakewood Hospital Association have asked for approval for their Vision For Tomorrow strategy at Lakewood Hospital, with emphasis on four Centers of Excellence, as a means of addressing the marketplace trends and forces; and
WHEREAS, the City has worked diligently to understand these trends, the proposed strategy, and the roles and responsibilities of all parties to the lease agreement as evidenced by numerous public forums as well as the May 24, 2010, questions-and-answers letter, the June 1 letter, and the most recent letter, received on or about June 9, from the Cleveland Clinic leadership; and
WHEREAS, as a result of these communications, the citizens of Lakewood, through their elected officials, have been assured continued, active participation in key decisions impacting the Vision for Tomorrow plan and related Centers of Excellence for the duration of the lease term; and
WHEREAS, Lakewood City Council and the mayor of Lakewood appoint 10 of the 23 seats on the Board of Trustees of the Lakewood Hospital Association; and
WHEREAS, the Lakewood Hospital Association Board of Trustees has the responsibility and authority to oversee the performance and service strategy of Lakewood Hospital; and
WHEREAS, the Lakewood Hospital Association Board of Trustees has unanimously voted to support the Vision for Tomorrow strategy at Lakewood Hospital; and
WHEREAS, it is thus fitting and proper that the City join the Lakewood Hospital Association Board of Trustees in giving public cognizance and support to the Lakewood Hospital Vision for Tomorrow plan including its Centers of Excellence emphasis; now, therefore:
BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY OF LAKEWOOD, STATE OF OHIO:
Section 1. This Council and the Mayor affirm their support for the Vision for Tomorrow plan at Lakewood Hospital, with its focus on the Centers of Excellence, as described in the April 6, 2010, letter from Cleveland Clinic leadership to the City.
Section 2. This Council and the Mayor affirm their duties and responsibilities as defined by the lease agreement entered into by the City and Lakewood Hospital Association in 1996, as well as their duties and responsibilities arising from any ancillary or related documents, including, principally, their recognition and need to work with and through the Lakewood Hospital Association Board of Trustees on matters pertaining to service and performance.
Section 3. It is found and determined that all formal actions of this Council concerning and relating to the passage of this resolution were adopted in an open meeting of this Council, and that all such deliberations of this Council and of any of its committees that resulted in such formal action were in meetings open to the public in compliance with all legal requirements.
Just the facts.