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Coral Gables amends public-meeting decorum rules to prohibit eating, require silenced phones and 'appropriate dress'
Summary
The commission adopted changes to the city code that add rules of decorum for City Commission meetings, including no food or drink in the chambers, silenced phones, quiet entry/exit and a minimum standard of dress; passage followed a contentious public-comment exchange.
The Coral Gables City Commission on Sept. 25 adopted an amendment to the city code adding specific rules of decorum for public meetings: no food or beverages in the commission chambers, cell phones required to be silenced, quiet entry and exit from the chambers, and a minimum standard of dress (shirts and shoes required). The ordinance will be codified as amendments to chapter 2, article 3, section 2-83.
Why it matters: Commissioners said the measures are intended to preserve order, shorten meetings and make public comment more productive after repeated disruptions and accusations that some attendees were using council meetings to harass officials. The proposal prompted lengthy discussion about First Amendment implications and enforcement.
Key provisions: Deputy City Attorney Stephanie Throckmorton summarized the additions as (1) no food or drink in chambers, (2) phones silenced and conversation taken outside, (3) quiet entering and exiting, and (4) a minimum standard of dress. The commission also accepted a vice mayor amendment to add an explicit ban on vaping and smoking in the chambers for second reading.
Public comment and enforcement: The debate included sharply worded public testimony. City Attorney explanations referenced existing code sections (2-78 and 2-83) on the chairperson’s authority and sanctions. The attorney advised commissioners the measures are standard time, place and manner restrictions and did not in her view violate the First Amendment.
Outcome: The ordinance passed by a recorded vote. Commissioners asked staff to publish the decorum rules outside the chambers and on printed agendas and to bring refined language back for second reading with the added anti-vaping language.
Ending: The commission asked staff to post clear signage and to provide a public-facing summary of the rules in printed agendas and on the city website; enforcement remains at the chair’s discretion under existing code.
