Those in attendance at the Marion City Council meeting last night spent the better half of 2 hours listening to arguing between the council and the city administration, citizens within a questionable public hearing and among council members themselves.
Tuesday’s meeting saw six ordinances on the table that, if passed, would require the administration or department heads to seek approval from the council if looking to spend more than $5,000 at a time.
While each ordinance was set to have a public hearing, Council President Deb Cain announced there would be one overarching public hearing for all 6 ordinances, thus limiting speakers to 3 minutes total.
Speakers included Karen Arland, an attorney who specializes in municipal law, City Controller Julie Flores, the Marion Police Chief, members of the Board of Public Works and Safety, and former city council members.
A motion, made halfway through tense discussions, to table these ordinances failed 5-4.
Due to time constraints, some citizens opted to remit their three minutes to Arland, stating they wanted her to speak on issues surrounding these ordinances.
After calling a brief recess to talk with legal counsel, Council President Cain revived a vote to table these ordinances and revisit them in a budget committee meeting at 6 p.m. on January 18th.
You can hear the meeting in its entirety here.
