Corbett vows stronger leadership

Mayoral candidate Ron Corbett says outgoing Mayor Kay Halloran made a mistake four years ago when he says she took office and immediately emphasized that she was just one of nine City Council members.

It is true, Corbett told The Gazette editorial board on Thursday, that the city's form of government, which was new in 2006, is considered a “weak” mayor form of council/manager government because the mayor has no veto power and the mayor's vote is one of nine.

But he said the mayor is still the “voice of the community,” and with that comes responsibilities. For five of his 13 years - 1987 through 1999 - in the Iowa Legislature, Corbett was speaker of the Iowa House of Representatives, and he noted that the speaker is never considered just one of 100 representatives. The same should be true, he said, of Cedar Rapids' mayor.

Corbett, who turns 49 on Oct. 12, said Halloran's approach to the role of her office created “a leadership void,” which he likened to a symphony without a conductor.

“When the conductor comes in and brings everybody together, then it becomes a symphony,” he said. “We don't have that right now.”

Corbett said as mayor he will create council committees, not unlike a legislature has committees, so council research and discussion can get done without all nine members having to be at every meeting.

The current setup, he said, features “nine people moving in herds. ... You're going to get worn out.”

Corbett said he understood that the mayor needs to work with other council members if a mayor is going to get anything done. “I'm not suggesting it's going to be me, me, me, with a rubber-stamp council,” he said.