Gahanna residents will decide on 10 proposed changes to the city's charter when they vote on Tuesday, Nov. 3. The amendments, labeled Issues 18 through 27, cover mayoral elections, ward boundaries, zoning appeals and more.

The city's CivicAlerts page describes the charter as Gahanna's local constitution, adopted Jan. 2, 1962. A seven-member Charter Review Commission appointed by the mayor and City Council met from February through July to review the document and take public input. Gahanna City Council approved all 10 proposals on July 20.

The commission started with more than 20 potential changes and narrowed them to 12 by early June. Two proposals failed at that stage: an annual strategic-planning mandate and a measure granting the city attorney explicit authority to call special council meetings. The commission also rejected a proposal that would have shifted Gahanna from a strong-mayor system to a council-manager form of government.

What each issue would do:

Issue 18 would eliminate the mayoral primary election when two or fewer candidates file. A primary would still be held if more than two run.

Issue 19 would set a consistent standard for when holding another public office or public job conflicts with serving as mayor, a council member or city attorney.

Issue 20 would base ward boundary adjustments on federal census population data instead of voter registration numbers. Gahanna last redrew its ward lines in 2013. The city's four wards range between roughly 8,100 and 9,200 residents each.

At a May 21 commission meeting, Vice Chair Carrin Wester said, "Regardless of political affiliations or leanings, guard rails must be in place to ensure any changes are data driven and are not politically motivated."

Issue 21 would end automatic removal of a council member accused of improperly abstaining from a vote. Instead, the allegation would go through the charter's existing notice-and-hearing removal process.

Issue 22 would remove the list of individual city departments from the charter while keeping the Director of Finance's charter duties intact. The change would give the city more flexibility to reorganize departments without a charter amendment.

Issue 23 would update rules for the elected city attorney, including how vacancies are filled and the office's powers and duties.

Issue 24 would let the Planning Commission set its own attendance rules rather than follow a fixed requirement written into the charter.

Issue 25 would eliminate the separate Board of Zoning and Building Appeals and shift its responsibilities to the Planning Commission. Appeals of Planning Commission decisions would go to Franklin County courts.

Issue 26 would extend the charter review cycle from every five years to every 10. Commission Chair Ethan Barnhardt proposed language at a June 4 meeting that would "reduce the frequency of charter revisions and promote long-term stability."

Issue 27 would update the charter's nondiscrimination language to match the city's existing ordinances and applicable federal, state and local law.

Commission members include Barnhardt, Edward Alfred Hill Jr., Jamie Belisle, Richard Maxwell, Raymond J. Mularski, Karen Reynolds and Wester. City Attorney Priya Tamilarasan and Clerk of Council Jeremy VanMeter served as non-voting, ex-officio members.

Each amendment needs a simple majority to pass. Polls are open 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. on Nov. 3. Full text of all 10 amendments is available on the Franklin County Board of Elections website.