Residents press council on outside-counsel hires and fees for community group

Residents addressed the Des Moines City Council during the public-comment period on May 18 to object to the city hiring outside counsel for a project and to criticize fees levied against a community wellness group.

Carol Maher, a downtown resident, spoke during consideration of the consent agenda about hiring eight outside counsel across three different firms for a project she said is outside the law department’s usual scope. “We rarely do it,” Maher said. “This one appears to be something that may be beneficial to residents with the big payout at the end. I’m wondering if maybe next time we do something like this … we are more up front about why we’re doing that and what the impact will be.” Maher asked the council for clearer, more upfront disclosure about the rationale and fee arrangements.

During the public-speaking section, Jason Zilk criticized the city’s enforcement response and a reported $4,300 fee associated with the 515 Club, a free, informal community wellness group. Zilk said the fees and threats of lease intervention send “a chilling message” to young and minority-led organizers and urged the council to distinguish commercial events from volunteer neighborhood gatherings.

The council approved the consent agenda items (3–34) and other routine items by vote during the meeting; no immediate policy changes or reversals were recorded on those specific points.

Next steps: concerns raised during public comment were entered into the record. Any formal review of procurement practices for outside counsel or fee enforcement practices would require further staff follow-up or a council-initiated agenda item.