Residents urge Gurnee board to move public comment before votes, praise East-side revitalization efforts

Two residents used the public-comment period at the Feb. 17 Gurnee Village Board meeting to urge a change in meeting practice that would allow public comment before votes on agenda items.

Keith Owens of 6464 Bridal Drive said he reviewed meeting rules and ordinances from about 20 nearby municipalities and argued that many allow public comment before or during agenda items. "For a village that takes pride in being one of the few that has no property tax, no utility tax, and soon to have no debt, to be one of the few that has no public comment before any of the items on the agenda ... I think it prohibits people from thinking that they have an opportunity to do that," Owens said. He said he would provide copies of ordinances he referenced to the board.

Jory Stuckwish of Bell Plain Avenue thanked the board and village departments for recent outreach in the eastern side of Gurnee and said neighborhood-watch meetings and police engagement have supported local revitalization. Stuckwish also endorsed Owens’ call to consider moving public comment to the start of meetings, saying the current practice — allowing public comment only after votes — can prevent residents from speaking for or against items before the board acts.

Owens named several municipalities he reviewed during his survey, including Lake Forest, Lake Zurich, Buffalo Grove, Highland Park, Vernon Hills, Mundelein and Northbrook, and described a range of approaches: some allow comments before the consent agenda, some after roll call, and some permit comments as agenda items arise. He said the specific rules vary — some are set by ordinance, others by meeting practice — and offered to give the board copies of ordinances he collected.

No action on meeting rules was taken at the Feb. 17 session; the board adjourned after public comment.