ELYRIA — Mayor Bill Grace will be getting some help in the fight to keep his job in the face of a possible recall.

State Rep. Matt Lundy, D- Elyria, and former Republican City Councilman Jack Baird are stepping forward to serve as co-chairmen of a bi-partisan committee called Yes Elyria that was started to keep Grace in office.

From opposite ends of the political spectrum, Lundy and Baird are coming together with the shared belief the recall effort is an embarrassment to Elyria, and Grace should keep his job until it is time to elect the city’s next mayor.

“We are concerned people may take this recall lightly and believe this is just a vocal group that can’t pull it off,” Lundy said. “But this should be taken very seriously.”

While it is not official that a recall election will be held, Grace said he is moving forward under the assumption it will happen in less than 45 days.

“I am very pleased and proud they are making themselves available to defend what I believe is an inappropriate action,” Grace said. “Hopefully, the community will see that as well and if they don’t, they will hear a lot about it in the coming weeks.”

Stand Up Elyria is trying to oust Grace from office mid-term for several reasons.

Residents Kim Ach, a nurse, and Craig Bevan, a retired firefighter and EMT, are co-founders of the group and both have said Grace has failed to ensure the public safety through his management of the Fire Department and has failed to rein in excessive and unnecessary administrative costs in a troubled financial time.

“This is not a personal attack on the mayor. This is an attack on his performance as mayor,” Bevan said in an e-mailed statement earlier this month. He did not respond to requests for comment Wednesday.

Bevan and Ach started the recall effort more than a year ago, collecting signatures for a petition. City charter dictates that a recall can only go forward if 25 percent of the voters who voted in the last municipal general election sign such a petition.

The first time the group handed in the petition, the Lorain County Board of Elections determined the group was 413 signatures short of the goal of 2,270 names.

But the city charter gave the group 10 additional days, and the group worked quickly — collecting 902 more signatures that currently are being verified by the county Board of Elections.

Bevan said many residents stepped forward and wanted to be a part of the recall effort after the initial signature shortfall.
“We had people call and say, ‘We won’t let this fail’ and ‘We won’t let you fail,’ ” he said after the second batch of signatures was turned in last week.

Lundy, who once served as an assistant safety service director for Grace, said he went to Grace soon after Stand Up Elyria turned in the additional signatures and pledged his support.

“I know some people think the mayor is an embarrassment, but this is really an embarrassment to the city,” Lundy said. “Everywhere I go, people want to know what is happening in Elyria.”

Baird, an at-large councilman who served more 25 years on Council before retiring, said he joined Lundy to chair the committee because recalling Grace would be wrong. He also was asked to lead the city’s failed income tax increase campaign, but his schedule did not permit it, he said.

“I don’t think this is a political issue,” he said. “It’s a community issue. I view it much like a school levy or library levy. It’s something I wanted to get on the right side of immediately.”

Before the measure goes to voters — the Yes Elyria name reflects the fact that the ballot issue will demand a  “yes” vote for Grace to keep his job —  Lundy and Baird said they will do everything in their power to make sure residents know how they should answer.

“For me, it comes down to one thing: Does what they say warrant a recall and the answer is no,” he said. “Nothing has been done to warrant a recall.”

Yes Elyria, which will be a nonpartisan committee, will use direct mailings, yard signs and education forums to tell voters about the significance of the vote. The two said they hope to raise $50,000 to fund the anti-recall campaign.

“There may be the common misconception that Grace and his staff would all go, but the only person to walk out the door if this recall happens is the mayor,” Baird said. “We just want residents to be reasonable and understand that even if they don’t like the mayor, they can see this recall is not warranted.’’

If Grace is recalled, the city charter dictates that Safety Service Director Chris Eichenlaub will step in to fill the remainder of his term.

Grace said Wednesday he is confident he will once again prevail at the polls.

“Every day people approach me and offer support,” he said. “I believe in the coming weeks, many people will step forward and let it be known they believe this to be a waste of taxpayer dollars.”

City Auditor Ted Pileski has said a special recall election could cost the city as much as $50,000, money the city does not have as it is facing a $4 million deficit in 2010.

Contact Lisa Roberson at 329-7121 or lroberson@chroniclet.com.

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