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Ravenna Mayor Joseph Bica files for City Council president's race





RAVENNA MAYOR JOSEPH BICA FILES FOR CITY COUNCIL PRESIDENT'S RACE

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Diane Smith | Staff Writer  |  Record-Courier


Ravenna Mayor Joseph Bica said Monday that he will not seek another term in his
current office, instead choosing to go head-to-head against Francis Ricciardi,
the president of City Council.



Bica, who spent eight years as a councilman at large before becoming mayor in
2010, said his "current personal and professional obligations have made a
full-time position challenging on my family and personal life."

However, he said, he still wants to serve his city and have a positive impact.

Ricciardi, the incumbent, serves as chief assistant Portage County prosecutor.
He has been president of council since he took office in 2008, winning the 2007
election. Previously he served on city council as a ward representative and
at-large city councilman, first taking office in 1978 as Ward 2 representative
before he was appointed councilman-at-large a year later. He left that position
in 1981.

Bica was elected councilman-at-large in 2001. In 2009, at the same election
where Bica was elected to his second term, his predecessor, Kevin Poland, was
elected as a municipal court judge. Bica was appointed mayor, and ran
successfully for a full term in 2011.




Ricciardi said his goal still remains "to serve people in the community in the
best manner possible." Bica also said his commitment to the city and its
residents is "steadfast," saying, "That's the most compelling reason for seeking
this office."

But both took shots at each other, expressing disappointment in the way each
person is handling his current job.

"I believe the current council leadership has blurred the legislative and
administrative responsibilities," Bica said. "I want to re-establish those
branches of government for the residents of Ravenna ... We are one government
for the residents of the city. We need to start working as one government."



Ricciardi, meanwhile, took issue with Bica, saying that he hasn't kept council
in the loop and saying he hopes to "re-establish the relationship between
council and the administration" and be "a little more open and transparent in
our dealings."



"The general atmosphere with the administration is that council is not made
aware of what is going on," Ricciardi said. "I hope that whoever becomes mayor
can work more effectively with council in that relationship."

There will be no primary in the race because Bica and Ricciardi were the only
ones to submit their petitions by Monday's filing deadline for city offices. Nor
will there be a primary in the mayor's race, where Councilman Frank Seman and
Roger Boltz of the Ravenna Board of Education are seeking that post. There also
will not be a primary in the council-at-large race between Bruce Ribelin and
Kemberly Cipriano, in Ward 4 council, where incumbent Scott Rainone is being
challenged by Brandon Fedor, or in the race for law and finance director, where
incumbents Frank Cimino and Kimble Cecora are running unopposed.

In fact, the only primary in Ravenna appears to be in Ward 3 city council, where
incumbent Charles "Jack" Ferguson is being challenged by Matt Harper, a courier
for the Ravenna School District, and Sonny Jones, who works as a corrections
officer at the Portage County jail. The top two candidates in the May 5 primary
will advance to the November general election.

Harper lives in Ravenna with his wife, Toni, and their twin sons, Sean and
Dillon. He said he has been thinking about running for office for a long time.




"I just want to be able to help in the community, and have a voice in what is
going on," he said.

Jones and his wife, Janene, have four children -- Sonny, 14 and Zakaya, 11, and
adult children Desmond Patterson and Taylor Patterson. He has been employed at
the sheriff's office for more than 20 years and is a basketball coach at Brown
Middle School. He is a 1988 graduate of Ravenna High School, where he was known
as a football player.

He said he thought about running for office before, but wanted to wait until his
younger children were older. Now, he said, he's disappointed about the lack of
activities for the city's youth.

"I'd like to see Ravenna prosper," he said. "It just feels like we've been stuck
for a while."



Ferguson, in addition to serving on council, is executive director of the
Ravenna Area Chamber of Commerce and also is active on the committee for the
Ravenna Balloon A-Fair. He could not be reached for comment.

Contact this reporter at 330-298-1139 or dsmith@recordpub.com

Facebook: Diane Smith, Record-Courier

Twitter: @DianeSmith_RC

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