110425...R McDOWELL...Youngstown...11-04-25...Derrick McDowell with supporters Election Night...by R. Michael Semple

YOUNGSTOWN — Mayor-elect Derrick McDowell said one of his top priorities is surrounding himself with the right people in his cabinet who will help him lead the city.

McDowell, an independent who won Tuesday’s election, said: “I first need to do a deep dive, a thorough investigation. I need to get into city hall and begin to listen much more deeply. I’ve had conversations with a lot of folks. I’m not new to the community so I’ve had relationships with city council members. I have had relationships with department heads. I have relationships with city employees. You begin there by saying, ‘Hey, we need to make sure that the people that we have in city hall are prepared to continue to serve the people of Youngstown.'”

He added: “We can’t get ahead of ourselves. We have to make sure that we do a thorough investigation of the people that we currently have, the employees in city hall, and make sure they are the right fit and continue to be the right fit for the vision that we have for the city. We don’t have to wait to take office in January to begin having deep discussions and conversations that lead us forward, building the relationships, investigating who is right for the positions to lead this city forward.”

Running for elected office for the first time, McDowell got 55.1% of the vote, beating incumbent Democrat Jamael Tito Brown, who received 44.6%, based on unofficial results. The remaining 0.3% of the vote went to write-ins though the two actual write-in candidates received a combined two votes, both for Frank Bellamy. Cecil Monroe didn’t receive a single vote — apparently not even bothering to vote for himself.

Among McDowell’s major hires will be law director and all of the city’s attorneys, chief of staff (should he choose to have one), finance director, fire chief and police chief.

All of the attorneys in the law department, including Law Director Lori Shells Simmons are at-will employees, meaning McDowell can choose to retain or fire any or all of them.

Nikki Fields, who Brown hired as his chief of staff and community development and economic development department director in September 2019, is also an at-will employee.

McDowell could choose to replace Finance Director Kyle Miasek. But Miasek has civil service protection, which would move him back to deputy finance director if McDowell chooses not to retain him. Deputy Finance Director Richard Harvey also has civil service protection and would return to being fiscal officer for the city’s community development agency, a responsibility he still maintains.

The chiefs of the police and fire departments usually come from within the ranks, which is what occurred with Brown’s decisions to promote Barry Finley to fire chief and Carl Davis to police chief. When a chief is replaced, they typically return to their old titles.

But both Finley and Davis retired and were rehired by Brown so if McDowell chooses to replace either of them, they would no longer work for the city.

Other at-will employees hired by Brown include Kevin Flinn, buildings and grounds commissioner; Michael Durkin, code enforcement and blight remediation superintendent; Clemate Franklin, parks and recreation director; Melanie Clarke-Penella, downtown events and citywide special projects coordinator; as well as numerous secretaries for various department heads.

If Water Commissioner Harry L. Johnson III is replaced, he has civil service protection and would return to his previous position as the water department’s office manager.

Charles Shasho, the deputy director of public works for the past four mayors, also has civil service protection and would return to his old job as assistant commissioner of engineering if McDowell chose to replace him. The deputy director runs the public works department with the mayor considered the department’s director under the city charter.

The city also has several contracts for different responsibilities, including Andy Resnick as its spokesman, Guy Burney as executive director of the Community Initiative to Reduce Violence, and Brian Clinksdale as human relations commission director. Those contracts expire at different times in 2026.

Back in August, McDowell, who owns the Youngstown Flea on East Federal Street, said the first 90 days in office would be critical.

He said: “This immediate effort is meant to be a more prompt response and a guiding framework for the larger challenge of properly shaping a comprehensive future for the city of Youngstown that desperately needs it now.”

WORK WITH COUNCIL

McDowell said he expects to work well with city council.

“I put down ego,” he said. “I put down anything that would cause me to be adverse to anyone that wants to do work within the city of Youngstown. Anyone that lives here and works here and wants to love the city of Youngstown, I’ve got to take the position that says I’m absolutely willing to work with those folks and the city council members, we’ve already been having conversations. We’ve had a number of conversations with each and every one of them. They have indicated to me that they stand ready to support an administration that sees Derrick McDowell as their mayor, to say that we want to see an agenda that is well laid out and strategic and moves the city forward.”

He added: “I believe if we can keep that at the center of the work that we have to do then of course we butt heads in instances, but that’s what the branches of government are for. If we’re all working towards the same Youngstown that I believe we all want to see then that work is made easy when you drop egos and titles and get to work.”

Councilman Julius Oliver, D-1st Ward, said he is ready to work with McDowell, but is concerned about his political inexperience impacting the city.

“We’ll have to take a pause for the learning curve,” Oliver said. “It’s one thing to come from inside government to be mayor compared to someone coming from outside government. I don’t want to stop the progress the city is having and we could lose that with Derrick as mayor because it’s going to take city council to essentially train him to make sure the city doesn’t go backwards.”

Oliver also questioned how McDowell can keep his campaign promises to hire more police officers and be more effective with downtown business owners.

“He made a lot of promises,” Oliver said. “I didn’t see Mr. McDowell put a plan of what he wanted to do. It was a lot of hope and prayer. It’s a lot of the outside looking in. It’s like when I got on council I was like, oh, damn, it’s not that easy. I want to avoid putting the city in a holding pattern when we have a lot going for us.”

Councilman Mike Ray, D-4th Ward, said he also will do all he can to help McDowell.

“There’s a learning curve for anyone who takes a new position,” Ray said. “I’ll work and support our new mayor. I drive toward a general consensus to move the city forward. I care about the city more than a person’s politics. We’ll work with him to move the city forward.”

Asked if McDowell will be ready to be mayor Jan. 1, Ray said, “We’ll see how it goes. It’s what the people in the city want. The voters wanted a change and they wanted someone fresh. I’ll work with the new mayor to keep the city moving.”

Brown, who was seeking his third four-year term, said he did everything he could to convince voters that he was the best choice in Tuesday’s election.

Asked what went wrong with the election, Brown said, “I can’t tell you. We had so many things going in the right direction.”

Ohio Democratic Party Chairwoman Kathleen Clyde said of Brown’s defeat, “My understanding is that a third term is a pretty unprecedented occurrence in Youngstown and it was also a left-leaning independent with a track record of voting Democratic. So to me, that’s not about a Republican taking over our city. It’s a sign that voters want change and they support Democratic policies and our agenda. That’s my takeaway on that race.”