I've been live-streaming city council meetings for about four years.
Something that always bothered me about meetings is the fact that public comments were often met with silence from the council. A citizen would pour their heart out over an issue they found meaningful, only to be met by crickets. Council member Steven Bourke noticed this, too, and proposed that meeting policy be changed to allot time for council members to reply to citizen input. The council agreed to make this change and, in my view, the relationship between citizens and the council took a big step in a positive direction.
At the Jan. 17 work session, one of council member Wendy Hughes' first proposals was to eliminate the council reply segment of meetings. In the discussion that followed, a decidedly "us versus them" vibe emerged. As a long-time observer of council meetings, I came away with the distinct impression that the council at large perceives citizens as little more than an annoyance and hindrance to their all-important agenda. Only Mayor Flynn spoke out in favor of continuing to allow council members to comment on the concerns of citizens. I left the meeting feeling a bit sick to my stomach.
Is this the direction and attitude toward citizens our new city council is going to take? The greatest asset our city council possesses is the public trust. Citizens must know that the council hears and cares about their concerns. Once that trust is lost it's nearly impossible to get it back.
I urge the city council to keep the council feedback segment of meetings. Failing to do so would undermine the relationship between council and the citizens they're sworn to serve. It would be a big step backwards.
Kevin Dooley
Bella Vista