Madison City Council adjourns to executive session to discuss personnel and negotiations

MADISON — The Madison City Council voted unanimously to adjourn into an executive session to discuss matters related to individuals’ reputation, physical or mental condition and preliminary negotiations involving trade or commerce, the council approved by roll call near the close of its public meeting.

The motion to go into executive session was moved and seconded during council comments; a subsequent roll call showed all members present voting in favor. Mayor Drake then said, “We are adjourned to the executive session.”

The executive-session motion came after routine procedural business. The council first approved minutes from the Dec. 17 meeting after a motion to waive the reading. Members then adopted the meeting agenda as presented and approved a consent agenda that the clerk said contained two items; the council agreed that those two consent items would be discussed further in a work session rather than in tonight’s meeting. The clerk recorded the votes on each procedural motion by roll call.

No public comments had been scheduled for the meeting, and several council members offered brief comments of thanks to staff and seasonal reminders before the motion for executive session. The council’s motion cited personnel-related topics — described in the meeting as matters concerning reputation, professional competence and physical or mental health of individuals — and preliminary negotiations “in which the government bodies become contributions to private individuals, entities or other government bodies,” language spoken during the motion.

The council reconvened in closed session after the public roll call; the public portion of the meeting ended with the council entering executive session. No further public actions or votes were recorded in the transcript before adjournment to the closed session.