County Board Chair Attempts Adjournment Over Agenda
While the 2/20/19 Board of Commissioners meeting was shorter than previous meetings, it was still dominated by discussion around the Invocation Policy.
That policy fails to make the responsibilities of the individual commissioners clear with respect to selecting providers of the invocation and the communication of their selection process.
Commissioner Betsy Coffia requested an agenda item to discuss this issue. The Chair and two other commissioners attempted to block discussion of this item and have it stricken from the agenda. With LaPointe absent the vote was 3-3, and the chair attempted an immediate adjournment.
The board actions to block a needed discussion of a relatively narrow point were disturbing. They are well described in the Ticker article here: https://www.traverseticker.com/news/commission-meeting-nearly-canceled-over-prayer-policy/
After Commissioner Wheelock “scolded” the chair for not doing the public’s business, it was finally agreed to cover the invocation question in Commissioner Coffia's report and proceed with the agenda.
In her report, Commissioner Coffia said she has had calls from folks wanting to know if they could provide the invocation, and she has no answer for them (with respect to the process). There is no clearing house, and no one person responsible for scheduling and/or screening. As it stands, this could result in discrimination.
In the public comments section additional items included:
The early timing of meetings was questioned again during public comment.
David also requested they look into having sidewalks along Garfield next to the airport. Many pedestrians and bicyclists use this area and they are either in mud or in the road.
Readers can get additional information from these sources:
Official Agenda, Minutes, and Video: http://www.grandtraverse.org/AgendaCenter/Search/?term=&CIDs=2,14,15,16,&startDate=&endDate=&dateRange=&dateSelector=
Ticker Article: https://www.traverseticker.com/news/commission-meeting-nearly-canceled-over-prayer-policy/
