Outgoing Cincinnati Council Member Liz Keating won't say whether she plans to run for public office again. Voters last week chose nine endorsed Democrats for City Council, leaving Republican Keating a few thousand votes short of keeping her seat.
Keating spent three years at City Hall after being appointed to a vacancy in late 2020 and winning a two-year term a year later. She says she'll consider future political opportunities as they come up.
"But right now I'm focused on finishing up this job, enjoying the last few weeks that I have in probably one of the greatest jobs that I ever have had and ever will have," Keating said.
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Keating was the only Republican working alongside eight Democrats for two years. She was the lone vote against a residential tax abatement reform ordinance put forward by Mayor Aftab Pureval, based on recommendations from an external study.
Her opposition wasn't enough to halt passage of any legislation, but she was often the only council member to publicly question policy decisions.
"I'm hoping that council moving forward will understand ... their role is to ask questions and push for better outcomes," Keating said. "That also means that we're going to need much stronger public engagement, for the public to show up, to ask questions, to push council."
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Most issues decided in City Hall aren't traditionally partisan, though. Keating started the discussion on zoning reform during her first year in office, sparking a heated debate and eventual split among her Democratic colleagues.
Keating's ordinance offered the first major change to city zoning code in decades. It would have allowed higher-density housing in parts of the city already zoned for multi-family. Council Member Reggie Harris strongly supported the ordinance, which was first discussed in committee in early 2022. It failed to pass out of committee.
Harris has since been working with Mayor Pureval's office on a more comprehensive measure they're calling Connected Communities. Public engagement started more than a year ago and the first draft of an ordinance is expected soon; it will likely suggest multi-family housing in some areas zoned only for single-family homes, something expected to spark some public opposition.
"I do hope that we can finally get the political will to change zoning so that we can actually build the housing that we need to be able to close that housing gap," Keating said.
During the City Council meeting the day after the election, Pureval said he will deeply miss Keating, pointing to her work on litter and development, and volunteering as a lifeguard two summers in a row because city pools were facing a shortage.
"And on top of that, she's helped make us all better leaders and a more cohesive team," Pureval said. "Asking challenging, insightful questions that have helped shape better policy, putting values and results over partisanship time and time again."
Keating's term wraps up at the end of the year. She's currently leading the process for City Manager Sheryl Long's annual performance review, alongside Council Member Jeff Cramerding.
The next council takes office in January, with eight incumbents and newcomer Anna Albi.
