Darien work session hears Darien Birding Community presentation; council moves into executive session

Mayor Hugh “Bubba” Hodge called the City of Darien work session to order at 5:30 p.m. on Aug. 18, 2025 in the David Bluestein Meeting Room at City Hall. Present were Mayor Pro‑tem Griffin Lotson and Councilmembers William Collins, Russ Quarterman and Jeff Ragsdale; Deputy City Clerk Sonja Gibbs, City Manager Holden Osburn and City Attorney Sam Oliver were listed as staff present.

Susan Inman and Sara Manning presented on behalf of the Darien Birding Community. The minutes list the organization and presenters but do not summarize the content of the presentation or record any follow-up direction from the council.

Council members discussed the agenda for the Aug. 19, 2025 regular council meeting. The minutes state the agenda was discussed and that no formal action was taken during the work session on those items.

At 5:46 p.m., Councilmember Russ Quarterman moved, and Councilmember Jeff Ragsdale seconded, a motion to move the meeting from the work session into an executive session to discuss legal, real estate and personnel matters. The public minutes record the motion and the time but do not provide a roll-call vote or tally of how members voted.

At 6:32 p.m., Quarterman moved and Ragsdale seconded a motion to come out of the executive session and resume the work session; the minutes again record the motion and the time without a vote tally. Mayor Hodge adjourned the meeting at 6:35 p.m.

The minutes do not disclose discussion that occurred in the executive session, consistent with the closed-session topics listed (legal, real estate, personnel). The public record on file lists the items above and identifies Deputy City Clerk Sonja Gibbs as the minutes’ custodian; no additional motions, votes, or staff directives are recorded in the public minutes for this work session.