05-08-2023 Council Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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MINUTES OF THE ORONO CITY COUNCIL MEETING April 24, 2023 6:00 o’clock p.m. _____________________________________________________________________________________ Page 6 of 10 currently invested for the building project. This money will be drawn down as needed to pay for the construction project and outfitting of the building, all of which is in the total budget, he said. Walsh moved, Benson seconded, to approve the proposal for IT, AV and Security Systems installation at the new Public Works facility. VOTE: Ayes 4, Nays 0. PUBLIC COMMENTS Kathy Sweetman 475 Deborah Drive, said tonight, she rose here to speak because of her concern regarding the dysfunctional pattern of communication regularly on display during the Orono City Council meetings. Also, she would be remiss not to comment that this evening, things have gone very well. She has observed; however, that verbal abuse pervades these meetings, and frequently. For example, instead of addressing a person's argument or position, the person's personal characteristics are viciously attacked. Name calling, cursing, accusatory speech, yelling and gaslighting are frequent in these meetings. The result is pervasive fear and intimidation. The Orono City Council code states that one of the chief roles of the Orono Mayor is to exert leadership in City affairs. She'd add that effective leaders also pause and listen carefully to others. Effective leaders respectfully consider input from diverse perspectives and move to maintain respectful civil communication while addressing civic matters. These essential leadership qualities are not displayed by Orono City Council leadership. Rather, it has embraced verbal abuse as though it's normal. And she would like to clearly say it is not normal, and it is not good for our City, nor is it good for our community. She does not claim to have a solution. But if the great Greek philosopher Plato is correct, that silence gives consent, tonight she must openly object. She does not consent, just silently witnessing abusive discourse. And she will stand in support of those who are seeking to restore civility and respect to our City meetings and to our community. She plead with the citizens of Orono to join together and speak out clearly to restore civility in our public discourse. Nancy Brantingham, 3185 County Road 6, said she would like to speak on behalf of myself and said that she entirely supports Dr. Sweetman’s comments. Also, because she believes that the citizens of this City have a right to be heard and Ms. Kim Carswell was not able to be here this evening. She asked me to read her statement and she is going to do so in support of my fellow citizen. From Kim Carswell at 261 Cygnet Place. This statement is in support of Kathy Sweetman’s statement on civility. The way this Council shows up and interacts with the public suggests a lack of interest and respect for citizens. This lack of respect and interest is also observed within the Council when certain members speak. The disinterested stone faces that we see in the audience suggest a dysfunctional team leading the City. Today she asks the Council to build a code of ethics and she will be proposing one in future meetings. The Council expects civility from the citizens and the citizens deserve civility from the Council. Todd Newcomer, 1070 Old Long Lake Road, said he came here tonight to ask for an open forum communication about the Fire Department. He has been informed that on May 22 a presentation is going to be made, a couple of weeks are going to go by, and then a final presentation will be made on June 22 in this forum where people are only allowed to comment for three minutes. What he is asking for is a chance for the men, women, and the children that are protected by Long Lake Fire Department to have the opportunity to ask questions, hear answers, and have a dialogue back and forth about this, not just making the statement and letting it go forward. But a lot of the questions they're going to have on the what, the