GAY PEOPLE'S CHRONICLE

Registry

Continued from page 1

Trinity Cathedral's openly lesbian dean, said it was not about marriage.

"This legislation before you is not a religious issue, simply put," Lind said. “It does not have anything to do with marriage."

"Frankly, as a member of the clergy licensed by the state to officiate at weddings, I believe, and I think a number of my colleagues do, that marriage is another matter."

"However, what this legislation does is something very, very important for the rebuilding of our city," Lind continued. It says "that this city respects, welcomes and wants everyone."

"We bring time, talent and treasure, including our tax dollars, usually without putting additional strain on social services and public education," Lind said of LGBT citizens.

December 5, 2008

www.GayPeoplesChronicle.com

Lind presented members with a letter of support for the registry from the interfaith clergy organization We Believe Ohio. The message also called for adding "gender identity" to the equal rights ordinances and backed the Equal Housing and Employment Act currently in the Ohio legislature. The letter was signed by ten religious leaders, including Lind, Rev. Allen Harris of Franklin Circle Church and Rabbi Stephen Weiss of B'nai Jeshurun Congregation, who also testified.

An asset for the city

Cleveland Heights Mayor Ed Kelley said his city's registry is an asset that fosters diversity. He added that it is an economic engine because people choose to live in welcoming cities, and support their busi-

nesses.

"Many of the people who have signed up for the registry are our family members, our friends and our neighbors," Kelley said.

"Implementing a domestic partner regis-

try tells people all over the world that the city of Cleveland is a progressive, forwardthinking city," Kelley said.

"That's why I think we need domestic partner registration in Cleveland," said Harris, "to make relationships as solid as possible so that doesn't have to happen to anyone else."

Equality Ohio director Lynne Bowman told the panel that Cleveland's registry would be the 77th in the nation. "Including, ironically enough, Salt Lake Qualifying partners for benefits City," she added.

Michael "Buck" Harris, a long-time gay activist and resident of the Ohio City neighborhood, said he and his current partner have been in their house 20 years and pay more than $5,000 in taxes.

"It's not my current relationship, however, that I want to focus on," said Harris. "It's the relationship prior."

Harris told the committee of his 11 years with a man who died in 1986. The house they lived in was in his partner's name for tax purposes.

"When he died, his family came in and took over the house," Harris said. "I lost all of our savings and received no benefits at all from his insurance policies."

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David Caldwell, one of the community leaders who campaigned for the Cleveland Heights registry, said it removes barriers for small businesses that might want to adopt a more comprehensive family policy."

"Small institutions might not want to open the can of worms of trying to figure out who qualifies as a family member," said Caldwell. "So the city putting its stamp on a family relationship is an easy way for a smaller institution not to have to bother who qualifies as a domestic partner."

Cleveland Heights councilor Phyllis Evans assured her Cleveland colleagues that being supportive of the registry is good politics.

Evans was the only council member to endorse the registry when it was her city's ballot in 2003. She was also among three councilors seeking re-election that year, and was the top vote-getter in the city.

"It was the right thing to do," Evans said, adding that Cleveland Heights currently has 192 registered couples, including 53 opposite-sex ones. Some of the couples live outside the city, and there have also been five partnership terminations.

Registry helped build a tree house

Keli Zehnder of Cleveland Heights testified that with two young children she and her partner “have to prove our relationship a lot."

Though their home is in her partner's name, all Zehnder needed to do to get a zoning variance to build a tree house was to call the city and say that she was a registered domestic partner of the homeowner.

"The inspector came out and made our children very happy," Zehnder said, "which saved me from calling my council member and complaining."

Tami Brown of Positively Cleveland, the convention and visitors bureau, told the committee the registry would help generate tourism to the city and new jobs.

Kevin Schmotzer of the city's department of development noted that Cleveland is "aggressively going after the Gay Games in 2014."

Schmotzer expects the Games could bring 100,000 people and $80-85 million to Cleveland during the ten-day event.

"Part of the decision is the acceptance of the cities," Schmotzer said.

Case Western Reserve history professor Lisa Hazirjan talked about how creating the registry could help relieve poverty by creating a "one-stop shop" and a single document for people who don't have the ability to take off work or spend lots of money to draw up legal documents to benefit their families.

Attorney Tim Downing, a partner at Ulmer and Berne, said domestic partner benefits help his firm attract new talent, and said the registry can do the same for the city.

Attorney Leslye Huff said the registry is "the minimum we can do to respect families in Cleveland." Continued on page 4

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