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Carbondale council approves consent agenda, honors outgoing members and enters executive session
Summary
The Carbondale City Council on May 13 approved consent agenda items including warrants and an audit engagement, adopted resolutions honoring outgoing members, and voted to enter executive session to discuss pending or imminent litigation.
Carbondale's City Council approved its consent agenda on May 13, 2025, adopting multiple resolutions commending outgoing members, approving warrants and an audit engagement letter, and then voted to enter executive session to discuss pending or imminent litigation.
The council approved the consent agenda on a motion by Councilmember Gilman, seconded by Councilmember Lowes. The agenda included approval of regular meeting minutes from April 22, 2025; a warrant for the period ending April 25, 2025, in the amount of $2,307,609.96; a Wells Fargo warrant for the period ending March 31, 2025, in the amount of $177,579.22; and a resolution authorizing the city manager to execute an engagement letter with Kerber, Eck & Braeckel for the city's FY2025 audit. Councilmember Gilman moved, "I move that we approve all consent agenda items." The motion passed on a roll-call vote with all members present recorded as voting yes.
The council also adopted resolutions commending Jeffrey W. Daugherty for more than three decades of service to Carbondale, Lecaj(e)/Lekaje Hill for service after appointment in 2023, and Ginger Rhys Sanders for four years on the council. Former councilmember Jeffrey W. Daugherty spoke briefly after receiving his resolution, thanking colleagues and noting his long service to the city.
After concluding the consent vote, the council voted to enter executive session to discuss pending or imminent litigation under the Illinois Open Meetings Act. Councilmember Kilman moved to enter executive session; Councilmember Maxwell seconded. The council conducted a roll-call vote in which the members present were recorded as voting yes; the mayor said, "we will go to closed session. No decisions will be made, and we will reconvene after that."
Why it matters: the consent agenda included the city's largest single warrant amount presented at the meeting and formalized the engagement of an external auditor for FY2025. The executive-session vote indicates the council will discuss litigation matters away from the public record in accordance with state open-meetings law.
Votes at a glance: - Motion to approve consent agenda (items 4.1'4.8): mover: Councilmember Gilman; second: Councilmember Lowes; recorded vote: Kilman/Gilman (yes), Lowes (yes), Maxwell (yes), Roberts (yes), Stanfield (yes), Mayor Carolyn Harvey (yes); outcome: approved. - Motion to enter executive session to discuss pending or imminent litigation (item 6.1): mover: Councilmember Kilman; second: Councilmember Maxwell; recorded vote: Kilman (yes), Lowes (yes), Maxwell (yes), Roberts (yes), Stanfield (yes), Mayor Carolyn Harvey (yes); outcome: approved.
No other formal votes occurred in open session. Councilmembers and staff said no further action would be taken publicly on any litigation matters until after reconvening from closed session.
