Lately Naperville city council meetings take more time than watching a major sporting event or driving to Des Moines, Iowa. Council meetings are ending later and later, often times starting on one day and not ending until the next day. That’s asking a lot of the folks attending the meetings or remote viewing.
Mayor Steve Chirico has done a really good job starting meetings on time (7:00 PM), limiting public forum speakers to three-minutes, and resuming meetings, in a timely manner, after a brief recess. So what’s up with turning the lights out so late?
Watch and listen to Naperville councilman Kevin Coyne as he mentions the issue, followed by Chirico’s comment:
Meetings could start at noon, speakers could be limited to one-minute, short recesses could be eliminated, or allowing two or more speakers to talk at the same time would also shorten meetings and definitely be entertaining.
The real answer is less jabbering from council members, specifically council members Patty Gustin, Judy Brodhead, John Krummen, and Theresa Sullivan. They appear to have a difficult time making their point in a succinct manner, without circling around later and re-stating their same thought with slightly different wording.
If public forum speakers are required to make their point within three minutes, why can’t council members organize their thoughts prior to speaking, make their point, and be done with it. Council members Kevin Coyne and Benny White can do it, along with the mayor, so it can be accomplished.
What is maddening is when the council can deliberate endlessly, and conclude with a 9 to 0 unanimous vote. Some council members must think the more they talk, the more important their vote becomes. The next council meeting is Tuesday evening. Let’s not only listen to the content of their message, but also how long it takes them to make their point.
