Residents tell commission the charter strengthens direct democracy but debate signature thresholds

Multiple residents spoke during public comment at the Willow Park Home Rule Charter Commission meeting on Dec. 17, praising the draft charter and raising questions about petition-signature thresholds.

Houston Wingard thanked the commission and described the petition process in Article 6, noting that formation of a petitioner's committee requires 10 qualified voters and that thresholds for ballot referral are set as the lesser of 30% of those who voted in the most recent general or municipal election or 10% of current registered voters. "This would be approximately 225 signatures using the 30% or 440 signatures using the 10%," Wingard said.

Marcy Galley said state law permits a referendum requiring 5% of registered Willow Park voters to send certain bond issues to a general election — roughly 230 signatures — and argued citizen-driven petitions provide democratic checks beyond actions taken solely by council members. "A referendum driven by 5% of registered voters represents more democratic legitimacy, not less," Galley said.

Commissioners discussed those points and acknowledged trade-offs. Some argued that using a percentage of the last-election turnout effectively counts only active voters, which can lower the numeric threshold and invite concerns about small but organized groups driving ballot items; others said that requiring a very high signature threshold could impede citizens' rights. The commission noted it adjusted some numbers to follow state law where applicable and committed to further review and public explanation of how the thresholds were chosen.