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Public commenters urge charter change and criticize alleged local contract conflicts
Summary
During public comment, residents called for a petition-driven charter change to alter how the mayor and vice mayor are chosen and raised concerns about council members doing business with the city.
Bobby Beverly, a resident from the 7th Ward, used the public comment period to press for structural change, urging citizens to start a petition to modify the city charter so the mayor and vice mayor are chosen differently. “This would require 10% of the qualified voters to begin the process,” Beverly said, describing petition requirements and urging electoral turnover in 2026: “Remove and replace 2026 is upon us.”
Beverly also criticized perceived conflicts of interest, saying some mayoral and council officials have contracts with businesses they have conducted business with and calling local government more corrupt than higher levels of government. The council did not take action on these allegations at the meeting; Mayor Samuel Payer closed public comment after hearing three speakers and moved the meeting to the consent agenda.
