At a Fort Collins City Council meeting on April 2, council members voted on a measure allowing meeting locations to be moved, or be remote entirely, to deal with things like weather, emergencies, or public disruptions. KUNC’s Programing & Operations Manager Desmond O'Boyle spoke to Rebecca Powell of The Coloradoan about the measure and a later discussion around consolidation within the Poudre School District.
The primary reason behind the passage of the measure, which was approved unanimously by the city council, was in reaction to a protest on March 5. A large crowd was attending the meeting, and they wanted the City Council to pass a Gaza ceasefire resolution. During the protest, three individuals glued their hands to a wall inside the chambers.
“And part of that demonstration was, you know, shouting out a statement," Powell said. "And that statement interrupted the city council meeting, which was already in progress. So, you know, after a couple of warnings, the mayor gaveled that meeting into recess.
“And so, you know, for the next 40 minutes, the crowd gathered in the chamber, passed the time by, you know, chanting, singing their protest songs, or they even took to the public comment podiums, and kind of really just rallied there.”
Powell said eventually, after that recess, the City Council came back into the chambers. But they only came back for business long enough to cancel the meeting. The City Council never got to any actual business or other public comment that night.
Afterward, the women who glued themselves to the wall were freed by the members of the fire department. They were also given citations.
The recent resolution also includes plans for potential disruptions such bad weather or things like the COVID-19 pandemic. In any case, Council will need to provide a 45-minute notice of the change and there would still be a public comment period at the new setting.
In addition to the meeting addendum, council members also discussed proposed plans to consolidate several schools in Poudre School District.
The plan would include closing several schools in Fort Collins, including Beattie Elementary School. Several parents from Beattie voiced concern over the plan and asked to be more involved in the process.
“Because they're saying these plans have implications for some of the city's own priorities," Powell said. "And those are priorities like making the city more walkable and specifically safer for kids to get to school by walking or biking And, you know, it has implications for the city trying to achieve some goals around carbon reduction.”
Powell said the City Council agreed that it should be more involved in the planning process around redistricting PSD schools.
