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Isanti council orders officer at next park board meeting after staff member reported feeling unsafe
Summary
After staff reported feeling unsafe at a recent meeting with a member of the public, the Isanti City Council agreed to have a police officer attend the next park and recreation board meeting as a short-term measure and directed that the park fund cover the overtime cost; council will revisit the policy later.
Isanti City Council agreed on a temporary arrangement to have a police officer attend the next park and recreation board meeting after staff reported feeling unsafe at or after a recent meeting.
Administrator Wood told the council that “a staff member did feel unsafe at and after a meeting recently,” and that was the basis for recommending additional police presence. Police Chief Travis said he regularly attends meetings as part of his duties and noted that assigning an officer to a volunteer park-board meeting would require overtime. “You’re going to have to appropriate around $3,500 out of the park budget to pay for that,” he said, describing the three-hour minimum overtime requirement under contract.
Councilmembers debated whether a standing resolution was necessary and flagged two practical concerns: the cost of posting an officer to every volunteer board meeting and uncertainty about enforcement of public-input limits. Staff and council discussed that the city’s former three-minute public-comment rule remains in policy but is inconsistently enforced; as one official noted, limiting a speaker’s time can raise First Amendment concerns if not applied evenly.
Rather than immediately amending the written policy, the council voted to have an officer present at the next park-board meeting as a short-term step while staff consults with the League of Minnesota Cities and checks policy language. Councilmembers agreed the park board would cover overtime charges from park funds for this single meeting; the council asked staff to return with follow-up recommendations.
The motion to require an officer at the next meeting was moved and seconded and carried (recorded outcome: 4-1). Councilmembers said the action is intended as a safety measure and not a presumption against the park board itself.
The council did not adopt a permanent amendment to the police-presence resolution at this meeting; members asked staff to pursue guidance on enforcement of public-input procedures and the city’s options going forward.
