Chris Monzel

Biography
Chris Monzel was sworn in as a Cincinnati City Councilmember in January of 2005 after being appointed to replace the seat vacated by Pat DeWine. Chris’ passion for public service is the result of years of serving the communities in which he lived. He has held the position of trustee for the Mt. Adams Civic Association and most recently, vice-president of the Winton Place Community Council. While serving his community, Chris was able to grasp the issues first-hand and realize the problems facing Cincinnati. As a result of his commitment to community service, he was appointed to Cincinnati City Council in 2001 and retained the seat after being elected later that year.

Chris is currently a member of the Law & Public Safety Committee, the Finance Committee and Health, Tourism, Small Business Development, Employment Committee. Chris previously served as a Cincinnati City Councilmember from 2001-2003. During that time, he earned a reputation for reducing taxes, curtailing City spending and fighting crime.

In 2001, Chris took the lead in going after Cincinnati’s worst slumlords. After months of work and negotiation, the City and Hamilton County agreed to set up the Housing Docket. Instead of facing civil fines for building violations, slumlords now are sent to the Housing Docket to face criminal penalties. The Docket was established at no extra expense to taxpayers.

Chris understands that Cincinnati needs to take major steps in order to attract and maintain homeowners. During his first term on Council, Chris fought for a property tax rollback to prevent homeowners from facing high property taxes due to rising property values. Chris’ work saved City taxpayers millions of dollars. He also fought to reduce unnecessary spending and bureaucracy at City Hall, sponsoring motions that cut waste at City Hall. Chris also had a role in pushing through Council managed competition, a process in which City employees bid against the private sector for the delivery of services. As a result of his efforts, the City successfully bid out street sweeping, saving the City $700,000 and increasing the number of lane miles swept by 70%.

Chris is a 1990 graduate of Purdue University with a degree of Bachelor of Science in Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering. He furthered his education by earning Masters degrees in engineering from the University of Cincinnati and in Public Policy from Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government. Chris and his wife, Jana reside in Winton Place and are proud parents of three children: Mary Grace, Jacob and Andrew.