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Mayor defends ordinance to restrict disruptive residential protests amid council questions
Summary
The mayor defended placing Item 11 on the council agenda to limit late-night disruptive protests near private residences, saying the measure balances free-speech rights with neighborhood peace; some council members questioned who originally drafted the proposal.
The mayor defended placing an ordinance (Item 11) on the council agenda that would limit certain residential protests, saying the measure was intended to protect households from late-night disruptions and would be consistent with other cities and Supreme Court precedent.
A council member pressed the mayor on who brought the item forward and why the mayor would not take full ownership; the mayor said the proposal had support among multiple council members and that misinformation had circulated on social media. "No one was gonna be prevented from protesting. It was just you have to do it and respect the neighborhood," the mayor said.
The mayor described complaints from residents in his own neighborhood, saying, "My neighborhood cannot live in peace if you're gonna allow people at 11:00 at night with bull horns, drums, shining lights into your house," and said the aim was to balance protest rights with residents’ privacy and safety. Council members asked for clarification about the authorship of the item and whether other elected officials had urged the mayor to adopt it; the mayor said he had worked with council and would not single out authors during the session.
No vote on the ordinance was recorded during the briefing. Council members and the mayor continued to discuss process and outreach as the council moved on to other business.
