Columbus Monthly / March 2012 / A clash among the commissioners

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A clash among the commissioners

Franklin County Commissioner Paula Brooks recently bought a T-shirt for her daughter that reads, “Women who behave rarely make history.” The motto speaks to Brooks, who’s often described as “difficult”—a label that she embraces. “I’m a distant relative of Margaret Thatcher,” she says. “I suppose she was probably considered difficult. I suppose Hillary Clinton is probably considered difficult. That to me is a badge of honor.”

Three sources tell Columbus Monthly that Brooks’s “badge of honor” caused her fellow commissioners, Marilyn Brown and John O’Grady, to break from tradition and consider denying Brooks her turn as president of the board in January. The rebuke never came, however, because O’Grady switched his position at the last minute and sided with Brooks, the sources say. After an unusual 40-minute executive session on Jan. 9 to discuss who would lead the board, the commissioners voted unanimously to appoint Brooks.

Brooks declined to comment on the presidency discussions, saying she’s not permitted to talk about what happened during an executive session. When asked about the incident, O’Grady says, “We voted 3-0 to elect Commissioner Brooks president of the commission, and I stand behind Paula.” (Columbus Monthly couldn’t reach Brown for comment.)

Since voters first elected Brooks to the board of commissioners in 2004, the lawyer and former Upper Arlington city councilwoman has ruffled feathers. In 2007, she briefly challenged Mary Jo Kilroy, her senior colleague on the board, for the Democratic nomination in the 15th Congressional District, even though the better-known Kilroy nearly had defeated the then-Republican incumbent, Deb Pryce, in 2006. The county has been a relatively peaceful place since O’Grady replaced Kilroy in 2008, but sources say Brooks’s personality has continued to irk her colleagues—particularly Brown—behind the scenes.

Brooks describes her leadership style as Socratic and deliberative. “I like to ask questions,” she says. “I like to hear all the facts.” She says she has a good personal relationship with her colleagues. “I appreciate that we all have different views and different approaches to policymaking,” she says. “I like them both very much.”

The presidency is largely ceremonial, but it does give that commissioner a somewhat higher profile, which comes in handy when running for reelection, as Brooks is in 2012.

A similar dispute broke out in 2000 when then- commissioners Dewey Stokes and Arlene Shoemaker refused to let their colleague Dorothy Teater take control of the board. The move led to a year of public acrimony among Teater and her two colleagues, especially Shoemaker. Perhaps that memory influenced O’Grady’s decision to switch his position.