Joe McNamara - Council President
At Large (D)
joe.mcnamara@toledo.oh.gov
Committees served:
Utilities & Public Service - Chair
Economic Development (Alt.)
Human Resources, Information Technology & Finance
Intergovernmental Relations & Environment
Neighborhoods, Community Development & Health
Joe McNamara was first elected to Toledo City Council At-Large in a 2006 special election and was re-elected to a full term in November 2009. He currently serves as Vice Chair of Council's Economic Development committee.
Joe's priorities on Council include creating and saving good jobs through strategic economic development, forging a city energy policy that builds on our community's unique assets, creating neighborhoods of choice by strengthening public safety and investing in revitalization, and reforming government to deliver better value for Toledo's taxpayers.
Serving on Council during challenging times, Joe has consistently worked to make government more efficient, effective, transparent, and accountable. With Councilman Frank Szollosi, Joe co-authored Toledo's Balanced Budget Amendment requiring the Mayor to submit a balanced budget estimate to City Council annually. This measure was approved by 82% of Toledo voters in 2007.
Following the resignation of former-Council President Mark Sobczak, Joe was elected President in July 2009 by a unanimous, bipartisan Council vote. Serving as President until January 2010, Joe championed public safety and worked across party lines to reduce the city's debt by over $11 million without raising taxes. After a brief hiatus, Councilman McNamara was again elected President by a unanimous, bipartisan Council vote in January 2012.
An independent-minded leader, Joe has time and again taken on special interest groups and fought on the side of Toledo's neighborhoods and middle class families. Joe has passed legislation cracking down on slum property owners by raising fines for code violators, protecting homebuyers from predatory and deceptive practices, and keeping cigarettes away from kids by keeping tobacco sales away from schools.
Recognizing our region's opportunities in the new energy economy, Joe has led the fight on Council to promote clean energy and green jobs. Joe has authored and passed legislation in support of green economic development principles, solar energy generation, and energy efficiency. Joe worked successfully with community organizations and Lucas County Commissioner Tina Skeldon Wozniak to create new green job training opportunities for young people and he is currently seeking to establish a new comprehensive city energy policy.
Joe McNamara is an attorney and practices out of his downtown Toledo law office. He graduated from the University of Michigan and the New York University School of Law and attended Oxford University in England. While in law school, Joe served as an intern to Ohio Supreme Court Justice Andy Douglas and as an intern with the City of Toledo Law Department.
Since returning to Toledo after law school in 2004, Joe has dedicated himself to service through leadership roles in our community. Prior to being elected to Council, he served as a Trustee of the Toledo-Lucas County Public Library and as a board member of the Greater Toledo Urban League. Believing strongly in equal rights for all Americans, Joe served on the Board of Directors of Equality Toledo and led the effort on City Council to make Toledo the first major city in Ohio to establish a domestic partnership registry. He is currently a member of both the Central Committee and Executive Committee of the Lucas County Democratic Party.
Joe's strong work ethic, faith, and commitment to service are values learned from his family. Joe's father, the late Dan McNamara, served as Lucas County Auditor and as a member of Toledo City Council. Joe's mother, Jill B. Kelly, is a former prosecutor and former Lucas County elections director. Joe's stepfather, the late Mike Ordway, was a metallurgist for Jeep and a UAW member.
Joe and his wife Valerie Moffitt, an attorney and community development professional, live in West Toledo with their dogs Honey, Xena, and Bit. They attend Christ The King Roman Catholic Church.