Cheektowaga board adopts new meeting schedule and moves public comment to start of meetings

The Cheektowaga Town Board voted to change its regular meeting schedule and to move public comment to the start of meetings, a procedural shift the board said is intended to give residents an earlier opportunity to be heard and to create more structured time for deliberation.

Under the adopted schedule (Resolution 20 25-64, as amended), work sessions will be held on the second Tuesday of each month at 6 p.m. and regular town board meetings on the fourth Tuesday at 6 p.m. The board also approved an amendment to the resolution to ensure that, at the start of work sessions, the agenda includes tabled items and resolutions so the board can address time-sensitive matters such as warrants and hirings early in the meeting.

Supporters said the change will create a regular, predictable window for discussion and allow the board to do more in-depth work between meetings. "I think this will give enough time for us to put forth some really hard good thought process," Council Member Vernon Thompson said during debate. Supervisor Brian Nowak and other members said they were willing to try the revised schedule and revisit it after testing it in practice.

Officials and the town clerk raised operational questions before adoption, chiefly about how late-filed resolutions and public-notice timelines would be handled and whether essential town business such as the warrant (bill payment) would be reliably processed. The town clerk said current deadlines are designed to ensure staff time to prepare and post agendas, and noted that late filings can force items onto suspension-of-rules lists; the clerk asked the board to consider those administrative impacts when setting filing deadlines.

Why it matters: the procedural change affects when residents may speak, when the board deliberates and how municipal business such as hiring or approval of warrants will be scheduled. Board members said they expect to refine procedures and remain open to future adjustments.

The amended schedule passed on a voice vote after the amendment to list tabled items and resolutions after the call to order was added and approved.