Gurnee resident asks board to restore opening public comment, require readings and publish packets a week early

GURNEE, Ill. — During public comment at the Jan. 27 Gurnee Village Board meeting, resident Keith Owens urged trustees to restore public comment at the beginning of meetings for items on that night’s agenda and to adopt several procedural and planning changes intended to give the public more time to review proposals.

Owens recommended that opening public comment be limited to matters on the meeting agenda and suggested a 30-minute total public-comment period with no more than three minutes per speaker. "Restore public comment time at the beginning of trustee meetings, limiting this period to old and new business matters to be discussed or voted on at that meeting," Owens said. He also asked the board to require any new-business items that will be voted on to receive a first reading by trustees before final action and to post proposed packets and supporting documents at least one week in advance on the village website and social media.

Owens said he reviewed the village ordinance, which refers to Robert's Rules of Order (1991), and could not find a prohibition on beginning meetings with public comment; he suggested updating the citation to a more recent edition. He also proposed that the village consider ordinances modeled on Lake County best practices to regulate business signs and exteriors to improve curb appeal. Finally, Owens asked a procedural question about how trustee vacancies are handled when a remaining term exceeds two years.

The transcript records Owens’ suggestions and questions but does not show trustees taking action or providing responses during the public-comment period.