Glendale council approves ordinance letting mayor cancel meetings for narrow reasons

The Glendale Common Council on Wednesday adopted an ordinance giving the mayor the authority to cancel a regularly scheduled council meeting under four specifically enumerated circumstances: severe weather, natural disaster, advanced knowledge of a lack of quorum or when there is no business for consideration.

Mayor Brian Kennedy introduced the measure, saying the change would formalize an action he once took during a citywide power outage early in the COVID-19 pandemic. "In the early days of COVID, we had a citywide power outage," he said, adding that he had previously canceled a meeting but learned he lacked explicit authorization to do so.

Council debate was brief. Alder Bailey moved to adopt the ordinance and Alder Doherty seconded. The mayor called for voice votes; those present responded "Aye" and the mayor announced, "Motion carries." The ordinance was adopted during a meeting that the mayor said was convened specifically so the council could authorize future cancellations in limited circumstances.

The ordinance confines the mayor's discretion to the four listed conditions rather than allowing open-ended cancellations. The council did not record a roll-call vote in the transcript; the motion was adopted by voice vote.

The ordinance takes effect immediately, according to the mayor's remarks; no implementation steps, reporting requirements or sunset provisions were discussed during the meeting.

What happens next: Council members did not set any follow-up actions in the meeting record. The city clerk or city attorney were not recorded as providing an implementation timeline during the session.