An Edmonds woman has launched a petition asking for the Edmonds City Council to return to in-person meetings as soon as possible.
Rebecca Anderson said she was inspired by a recent My Edmonds News letter to the editor, written by Lynne and Craig Chelius. The letter points to “issues facing Edmonds that could change our city forever,” including proposals from the Edmonds Citizens Housing Commission, and adds that moving to in-person meetings would “help eliminate the feelings many in Edmonds have that council and the mayor are not listening to the citizens.”
The Chelius’ letter “resonates with many in Edmonds who know how important it is for residents to participate in the business of their city by being able to attend meetings in person,” Anderson said. “I doubt the rally regarding the (Waterfront) Connector would have had the same results if it had been facilitated on a Zoom call instead of in council chambers.”
Residents of Edmonds, she added, “are listed at the top of the city’s organizational chart, but it doesn’t seem like the majority of our elected officials acknowledge that. If they did, perhaps they would take a pause on these issues or extend policy deadlines during this unprecedented time of lockdown.”
City of Edmonds spokesperson Kelsey Foster said that the city is currently planning to reopen City Hall, and that “in-person council meetings will likely coincide with that date/plan.” While no date has been announced, Foster did say that Gov. Jay Inslee’s plan to reopen the state June 30 “is a big factor in the plans allowing for in-person meetings.”
My letter to the council regarding the tree codes: The City of Edmonds has used Covid to surreptitiously, and successfully, mask decisions that affect all citizens, confident in the knowledge that the majority of us are not paying attention because there are not in-person meetings that can be attended or easy-to-watch meetings on the local channel.
Thank you for initiating the petition to have in-person Council meetings. I agree there are too many very important decisions pending and the citizens of this city need to have first hand access and input to those decisions. These issues, e.g. Housing commission proposal for up-zoning all of Edmonds, have huge impacts and should not be made in the dark.
I respect the opinions of the folks who would like the council to return to in-person meetings, but would like to add that the online meetings have allowed access to the meetings for many who would not otherwise be able to be there. I have experienced the online council meetings as giving me easier access to the meetings and shedding more light on the process of the council.
Excellent point, Rachel. The City needs to provide both systems together~ in-person meetings in Council Chambers and also continue remote involvement via Zoom or some other tool. Remote access is important for those Edmonds citizens who can’t conveniently get to Council Chambers on Tuesday evenings. The COVID crisis has enabled those folks to participate and that should not be taken away just because Council is finally able to meet in person.
Thank you for your comment.
Before the COVID shutdown, the meetings were streamed live online which made them accessible remotely to everyone. However I don’t it believe it was possible to make comments by voice unless you were in the council chambers.
So even with in-person meetings resuming, perhaps the city would add a Zoom like feature to the live stream so people could have the opportunity to voice their public comments remotely.
That would be a win-win for Edmonds.
Yes it would. Thank you. Where can one sign this petition mentioned above in Helen’s response. Thank You.