Auburn council declines blanket rule change; agrees to allow extra applicant time on a case-by-case basis

Councilmember Kelly Griswold proposed an amendment to Auburn City Council rules to allow a project applicant or the applicant’s representative up to 10 minutes to speak outside the five‑minute public‑comment window.

Griswold said the change was meant to let the council and the public hear more from developers before the formal public hearing: "I was proposing an amendment to our rules to allow the, applicant or his representative to have up to 10 minutes to address the council outside of the public hearing window," Griswold said. "I want to give folks an opportunity just to, say their piece as to what it is we're presenting because we've all received the packets ahead of time."

Mayor Anders and other council members discussed two approaches: adopt a blanket rule that gives a designated project representative 10 minutes for every development item, or continue using the current process and suspend the rules on a case‑by‑case basis when additional time is needed. The city attorney/staff noted that under Robert’s Rules of Order suspending the rules for extra time would require a two‑thirds vote.

Council members raised practical concerns about a blanket rule because multiple development items may appear in a single meeting. One councilmember said: "Sometimes that is more than one per evening. And we know as we are watching the Planning Commission agendas, that world is ramping up pretty good right now." City staff added that council members may also ask open‑ended questions during hearings to prompt fuller presentations.

After discussion Griswold withdrew the draft resolution and the council agreed to pursue the more flexible path of suspending the rules for specific items when warranted. The minutes reflect that the proposal was withdrawn and no rule change was advanced on the May 6 agenda.

What happened next: staff told the council that if five members request it, staff will place a formal resolution on a future agenda using Griswold’s redlined language as a starting point. The council did not take a formal vote on amending the rules that evening.

Why it matters: the decision leaves discretion with the council to grant additional presentation time where they deem it necessary, rather than imposing an across‑the‑board extra allotment for all development applicants. That preserves flexibility but also requires members to use a suspensions process to grant more time.

Council direction and next steps: the council requested staff prepare a formal resolution only if five councilmembers wish to pursue it. Separately, any member of the public retains the right to use the five‑minute public‑hearing time if the council grants extra time outside the hearing.