Cleveland City Council delays consideration of stained-glass legislation

by Zoe Ryan

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Cleveland City Council on Monday delayed a vote on controversial legislation that would have allowed the Cleveland Catholic Diocese to remove stained glass windows from closed churches without first receiving the approval of the city Landmarks Commission.

When -- or if -- the legislation will ever come to a vote is unclear. Council members at a Finance Committee hearing on Monday expressed doubts about the legislation and several said they had no intention of voting for it.

"I'm not going to vote to take anything out of those churches," said Councilwoman Dona Brady.

When Bishop Richard Lennon announced plans in 2009 to close churches and remove the stained glass, some council members rushed to save the windows by designating the structures as landmarks. At least a dozen closed churches have landmark status.