pages: CityCouncil/2018-05-15.pdf, 17
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CityCouncil | 2018-05-15 | 17 | Council concurred with Councilmember Ezzy Ashcraft. Councilmember Ezzy Ashcraft stated the OGC was viewing the public speaker limit from the public's perspective, and so was the Council; she would be willing to omit the one minute limit with the ability to be able to fall back on the suspension of rules; suggested having two tiers: three minutes is the default limit, but above a certain number of speakers, the time is reduced. Vice Mayor Vella stated one impetus for this was meetings going very late; the amount of time given to speakers and the ceding of time sets Alameda apart from other jurisdictions. In response to Councilmember Ezzy Ashcraft's inquiry, Vice Mayor Vella stated the City of Oakland limits speakers to two minutes across the board. Vice Mayor Vella suggested trying a two-minute time limit, rather than a tiered method, to see if it expedites things; stated if there are meetings where the rule needs to be suspended either way, it can be done. Mayor Spencer stated that she does not like the idea of starting at two minutes; she prefers the OGC suggestion of starting at three and reducing if necessary. Councilmember Matarrese concurred with Mayor Spencer. Councilmember Oddie stated that he likes the tier method with removing the one minute limit; suggested having a three minute limit for the first six people, and once it goes to seven, it will be two minutes. Vice Mayor Vella stated she would support the suggestion in the alternative of not having a reduced time; sometimes Council waits hours before being able to deliberate. Mayor Spencer stated that she always asks the Council if they want to reduce speaker time when there are a large number of speakers, which allows flexibility. Councilmember Oddie state it is hard vote to limit time; creating a trigger is an easier solution. In response to Mayor Spencer's inquiry on how the tier number of speakers was decided, Councilmember Ezzy Ashcraft stated the subcommittee did the math: six speakers would be 18 to 21 minutes; the staff presentation time and time for each Councilmember has to be factored in; the goal is to move items along. Vice Mayor Vella stated that she likes the idea of a tiered method so speakers can prepare their statements accordingly. Regular Meeting Alameda City Council May 15, 2018 17 | CityCouncil/2018-05-15.pdf |