When the Nov. 4 general election votes are counted, the city of Kent will welcome a new mayor-elect and a host of new council members. All three of Kent’s at-large council seats are open as the incumbents say they’ve accomplished what they set out to do and that it’s time for new people to bring fresh ideas to the table.
Having won a coin toss that settled a tie vote in the November 2009 general election, Jerry Fiala has served as Kent’s mayor since Jan. 1, 2010. He has served in that largely ceremonial role ever since. The Portager was unable to reach him for comment.
Ward 2 Council Member Jack Amrhein, a Democrat, was the only candidate to file in the primary for the mayoral post. As Amrhein is, at least at this point, running unopposed, council would have to appoint a person to fill the Ward 2 council seat for the remainder of his term, which expires Dec. 31, 2027.
(Independent candidates don’t appear on the primary ballot; they have until May 5 to file for the Nov. 4, 2025 general election.)
“I’ve been on council for 17 years and I really feel that it’s time for younger people to be making decisions. I’ve been president pro-tem for 12 years, so I think it’s a natural progression for me,” Amrhein said.
Kent’s outgoing council members
Michael DeLeone
DeLeone said his decision to step down is purely financial. After a 40-year career with Kent State University and Franklin Township, he found himself unable to access his public retirement funds unless he severed all connection with public service.
He credits his family for supporting him, even though council obligations meant missing family time, and looks forward to enjoying his retirement years with his wife Carmella and son Victor.
First elected to council in 1998, DeLeone said his father and uncle spurred him to throw his hat in the ring.
“They always said, ‘Do something. Don’t sit back and let everything happen,’” he recalled. “And it’s always better to be on the inside looking out than on the outside looking in because you understand more.”
DeLeone said he soon learned that city government moves slowly. There are many stakeholders, many funding sources and many professionals who all must be aligned.
“Everybody thinks things should happen faster than they do. They just don’t happen right away, You got to go through the steps,” he said.
Even so, after almost 30 years on council, he points to Kent’s new city hall, police and fire stations and downtown redevelopment as major accomplishments.
“These are going to last 50 years. Like the Fairchild bridge, these are things that needed replaced,” he said.
In the last 15 years, council has doubled the amount of money steered toward streets and sidewalks and has increased funds for Kent’s water plants, as well, he said.
“I can’t say enough about the people we have working for us. They go after the money. Police, fire, engineering. A lot of these things don’t happen without those federal grants, state grants. You got to go after the money so you can do things,” he said.
Kent is a college town, but DeLeone said the lack of affordable housing, especially for senior citizens, bothers him. It’s tough for council to tackle because of “red tape,” he said. That leaves private developers who can realize greater returns on their investments with other projects.
“I guess there’s no money in it. They can go after federal grants to build affordable housing, but it all takes time,” he said.
Gwen Rosenberg
With four children who went through the Kent City Schools and having recently opened a business in downtown Kent, outgoing council member Rosenberg said she felt it was time to fulfill her civic duty.
Elected in November 2017, she joined council in the opening days of 2018.
“I wanted to be involved,” she said. “I felt like I had something to give back. I felt like my perspective as a business owner and as a parent would be beneficial in council. We need people to stand up and take that responsibility on for some time and do their part.”
Declining to take individual credit for any accomplishments, Rosenberg said council members and city officials work as a group.
“Our city manager, our department heads, these people love the city of Kent, and they work really hard every single day. They’re responsive and responsible. They do a great job. The city staff and city employees make being on City Council easy, and they make me look good. It was a fantastic experience, and I’m honored and truly feel privileged,” she said.
Rosenberg singled out the city’s response to the COVID pandemic, noting that council maintained city finances well and used funds that became available for much needed improvements.
Chickens, too: during her tenure, Rosenberg helped make it possible for Kent residents to finally keep cluckers in their backyards.
Acknowledging that “there’s always going to be things to improve and do and change in the city,” Rosenberg said she does not feel she left unfinished work on the table.
Never having intended to make a career out of being a council member, Rosenberg said serving a couple of terms was intentional.
“I believe that we need fresh voices and fresh faces on council. We need to have everybody’s perspective being seen and heard. I think it’s important that the energy for the position is there, and the ideas are fresh. I feel like I put it all out there. I gave everything I got,” she said.
Rosenberg offers this advice for residents thinking about joining council: “Do your homework. Learn as much as you can about our city government. You don’t need to come in with a firm agenda, what’s wrong and what you’re going to fix. We have an outstanding city government. These are professionals. They know what they’re doing. You should consider it an honor to be able to work with them, and work in concert with them to get things accomplished.”
She urges her successor to be humble and honest about what they know and don’t.
“There’s nothing wrong with saying, ‘Sure, I can look into that and find out.’ Listen to residents, but also be aware that sometimes what people want out of local government isn’t possible. Maybe it’s an overreach of what local government is for,” she said.
Above all, Rosenberg stresses basic decency.
“Just kind of be humble and be honest and be friendly and be nice. All those good things. Be thoughtful. The words and the emails we send to people, they matter. Be a good colleague to your other colleagues at Kent City Council,” she concluded.
Roger Sidoti
First appointed in January 2012 to fill a vacated council seat, Sidoti has served on council ever since. A high school government teacher, he said he had always encouraged his students to serve and could not see himself as a hypocrite.
He’d already served on multiple Kent boards and commissions, so when he fielded a call to apply for the council seat, he felt he had to say yes.
Now, having turned 75 in September, Sidoti took stock and decided it was time to make way for younger people. Acknowledging that he will miss working with Kent’s administration and council members, he maintained that people who are called to serve must know when to step away and let other people step up.
“If you’re not doing that, you’re not serving the community,” he said. “I don’t want to become one of those people that I look askance at, and say, ‘Step aside; let someone else lead.’ I started listening to myself, and I cringe.”
Sidoti applauded Kent’s administration and colleagues for repeatedly earning stellar audit scores and being sensitive to the grey areas in funding decisions.
“We changed the conversation from a political conversation to a problem-solving conversation, and I hope I contributed to that,” he said. “We try to ask questions. There’s a high degree of real conversation in City Council.”
Among the tough decisions were contracting with Republic Services instead of the county recycling center, but Sidoti said he, and all council members, focused on what they considered the “best possible price for the best possible service.”
Core to Sidoti’s service philosophy was the lack of a personal agenda.
“If a person comes in with an agenda other than how can he/she help, that’s a problem,” he said.
Even so, Kent’s streets and sidewalks can’t help but grab his attention.
“I wish we had more money. I’d repave every road and sidewalk in our town, but it doesn’t work that way. It’s astounding over the last 10 years how much it costs to pave one mile of road, even chip and seal. Our income has not been able to keep pace,” he said.
And the university’s decision to significantly cut staff dealt a blow to city coffers, Sidoti said.
“We are not a rich community. We appear to be an affluent community because of the university status, and that’s hard for a lot of people to wrap their heads around,” he said.
Never a politician, Sidoti said he saw, and sees, himself as a public servant. He said he will remain available to advise anyone who calls for help, simply because it is the right thing to do.
“Isn’t that what we should be doing? We’re called to serve. I thank God that he or she or whoever, on a daily basis, if someone calls, I can help,” he said.
Wendy DiAlesandro is a former Record Publishing Co. reporter and contributing writer for The Portager.