EVERETT — For the first time in Everett’s history, the City Council has some formal guidelines for doing its business.
The City Council voted unanimously Wednesday night to pass a lean set of rules and procedures.
They cover the order of meetings, the election of the council president, how laws get made and voting.
Councilwoman Brenda Stonecipher also suggested the council come back in about a year to take stock of how things are working and make changes, if appropriate. That, too, got passed.
After the final vote, Stonecipher and Councilman Drew Nielsen said they wished the document had gone further.
Nielsen said the council was losing an opportunity to “solve problems in advance of a messy situation.” He said he felt “a sense of disappointment that we’ve done less than we should have.”
Thursday, council President Paul Roberts said city leaders had taken meaningful steps to improve transparency, openness and accountability.
He said the document will augment the city’s charter and traditions.
Until this week, Everett remained one of the few councils statewide without written procedures. That’s led to some embarrassing public missteps, such as a surprise vote in January to move meetings to night.
After that event, some on the council began earnestly talking about making a change.
So did some residents, including a group of people who live mainly in the north part of town. Without a request from the city, they researched the issue on their own time and eventually presented an 11-page document to the city.
During a time set aside for public comment Wednesday night, one of those people, Barb Lamoureux, gave the council a tongue-lashing for not letting people who want to help into the process.
Before she got going, Councilman Arlan Hatloe stood up and left. He declined to comment Thursday.
Debra Smith: 425-339-3197, dsmith@heraldnet.com.
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