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Resident Robert Baumgartner accuses council of using new public-comment rules to curb criticism
Summary
At the May 4 North Ridgeville City Council meeting, resident Robert Baumgartner said recent changes to the city's public-comment rules (referenced as Section 26) impose a subjective —courteous tone— requirement and amount to suppression of dissent; council granted him an extra three minutes before closing lobby session.
Robert Baumgartner, a North Ridgeville resident, told the City Council on May 4 that recent changes to the city's public-comment rules amount to an attempt to silence critics.
Baumgartner, who gave his address as 6327 Stoney Ridge Road, said the council's revision to what he described as "Section 26" institutes a subjective requirement for a courteous tone and empowers the presiding officer to cut a microphone. "You cannot mandate politeness to shield…
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