Last night, for the first time all year, and in over a year, the Council met in chambers. Councilor Madore was absent, so Councilor Sargent ran the meeting. Let’s get to it.
Public testimony was pretty light, and that may have been due to the need for the public to speak in chambers once again. The move in 2020 to Zoom opened up the opportunity for more feedback and engagement. This is one of the matters the council considered and debated. In fact, it was probably the most hotly contested item on the docket, since I have a page and a half of notes. The original motion on the table was put forward by Councilor Turiel. He moved that all meetings would be held in-person with the provision that the public was provided virtual public testimony and participation. Earlier in the day, the Committee on Government Services met with staff from SATV, who said they could probably handle a hybrid situation, but that they had to “work out the kinks.” Councilor Riccardi asked how it would work for committee meetings, which are typically not covered by SATV, but were more accessible when Zoom was being used. Councilor McCarthy also noted that other boards in Salem (like the planning board) have decided to retain remote for the time being, which will make joint meetings difficult to coordinate. He asked for flexibility. Turiel amended the motion, retaining the language but giving Chairs or the Council President the ability to proceed with meeting planning as most appropriate. Councilor Flynn asked Ilene Simons, the City Clerk, her preference, and she was keen to retain remote through the summer, at least. It would give her and her staff time to practice hybrid with SATV and ensure compliance with Open Meeting Law. Turiel amended one last time, moving to continue remote meetings through the summer with a goal to locking in a hybrid process by September. The motion passed with Sargent and Dibble voting against. The LWV lobbies for accessible and transparent government, so I am pleased that the council voted to move back to remote while they sort an equitable way to engage the community. It was encouraging to hear new voices and see such high numbers of attendance this past year! We cannot go backwards.
Councilor Morsillo introduced two measures to neutralize gender language in ordinances. The first was to modify zoning ordinances, and the second was to correct for oversights and errors following the last update. [Edited] The language in the zoning ordinance has been sent to the planning committee for a joint public hearing. The latter passed unanimously and with no debate.
Ilene Simons was reappointed as City Clerk, and all ten councilors sang her praises before unanimously reappointing her. The LWV has a good relationship with the clerk’s office and we, too, appreciate their hard work. Last year, especially, there was a tremendous demand for Ilene and her team to establish expanded voting in a short time frame, but it resulted in exceptional voter turn out. I do think it is odd that Simons was not asked to step away for the discussion and vote; were there any dissension, it would be difficult for a councilor to be forthcoming.
Exciting developments to watch for:
The establishment of a race equity commission was sent to Ordinances, Licenses, and Legal Affairs. The commission would advise government, develop programs, support the community, and seek grants with a goal of creating equitable practices and dismantling systemic racism.
Salem is getting a big chunk of change from the America Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). Salem is expected to receive $26.6M from the federal government and $8.3M from the state; we have already received $13.3M. A full-time employee will be hired to manage the funding and ensure transparency.
Pedi-cab license approved. You’ll be seeing a pedi-cab tour cruising the streets of downtown Salem in the near future. There are a number of limitations on the operation, but it should a fun and funky new tour to the city.
Quick bits:
The home rule petition, which would ask the state to allow Salem to use speed cameras in school zones will remain in committee.
The temporary moratorium on development in buffer zones has been kicked over to the planning committee for a joint public hearing.
Block parties and road races are in full swing.
The bond orders, and water and sewer rates went through second passage. Councilor Dominguez voted against the water rates; Dominguez and Dibble voted against the sewer rates.
The council resolved conflict of interest for three city workers.
All routine money matters (retirement buy-backs, DPW contract services, phone and wi-fi) were approved. Dibble did wax poetic about the high cost of fixing pipes, and McCarthy noted that if a pipe bursts at 2AM, the emergency services are necessary and the city will pay higher amounts to ensure residents have clean water.
Respectfully submitted,
Jen