Residents ask for more chances to address council

By Audrey Levine Staff Writer
   Residents are looking for more opportunities to speak, as many questioned Monday why the Borough Council moved the public comment time at the meeting from the end to the beginning of the agenda.
   As of the March 10 meeting, the council’s public portion was put on the agenda prior to ordinances and resolutions, where it has remained since. Residents are encouraged at this time to question anything, both on and off the evening’s agenda.
   Prior to the March meeting, the public portion was held after the council had voted on the evening’s ordinances and resolutions.
   Business owner Dean Shepard questioned why the meetings do not include two different times for public comment, both before and after the resolutions and ordinances are read.
   ”A lot of times, we have more comments after the council takes its vote and gives its reasoning for the resolutions,” he said.
   According to Borough Attorney Francis Linnus, residents do have a chance to make a comment once ordinances are read during public hearings. He said ordinances are always introduced at one meeting, and residents have the opportunity to comment at the following one.
   ”We must by law allow the public to comment on an ordinance in a public hearing,” he said.
   Still, Mr. Shepard said he thinks it would be beneficial to allow the public to speak after the council members explain their thoughts on the resolutions as well.
   In past years, the public portion was held at the end of the meeting, in addition to the invitations for public comment during hearings for ordinances.
   Several residents questioned why the change was made in the first place.
   Mayor Lillian Zuza said the council will revisit this issue, but she “doesn’t think we need two public portions.”
   Councilman Ted Petrock said he does not remember many people actually coming up to speak when invited to do so after resolutions and ordinances were read.
   Former Mayor Angelo Corradino said in a separate interview that he thought it was important to have the public portion at the end of the agenda to allow residents to speak after the council has voted.
   ”At the end is important in case the public wants to comment on anything that was done during the meeting,” he said.
   Still, Mr. Shepard advocated having a second chance for the public to comment during meetings, saying that he is concerned that, with the 5-minute time limit that was implemented in January, residents do not have the time to speak about items both on and off the agenda. He said that residents who have comments after the voting takes place are forced to wait until a subsequent meeting, and then they run out of time to discuss all concerns they might have.
   ”I want the council to reconsider having a public portion at the end of the meeting,” he said to applause from several residents present. “It doesn’t seem fair that we can’t make a comment about anything that was discussed with the resolutions.”