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Resident urges later meeting times after online criticism; chair apologizes for perceived laughter
Summary
During public comment a resident said weekday morning meetings limit attendance and asked commissioners to hold meetings at more accessible times; the chair apologized after audience members interpreted earlier laughter as mocking.
A member of the public urged the Santa Rosa County Board of County Commissioners to schedule meetings at more accessible times, saying many taxpayers cannot attend weekday morning sessions and that online commenters felt mocked.
"Taxpayers have jobs…when you hold meetings at 09:00 and 11:00 in the afternoon on a weekday, people have a hard time showing up," the resident said, urging the board to "start holding these meetings at an appropriate time." The comment followed an exchange earlier in the meeting in which the chair apologized for what some saw as laughter at a previous meeting.
The chair told the room he had not been laughing at citizens and offered an apology: "I did not laugh at nobody…What I was laughing about…My wife took the car to a Toyota dealer, and they wanna charge me $200 for labor." A fellow commissioner repeated that the pre-meeting laughter was unrelated to the public and apologized for any miswording.
The exchange underscored tension between in-person attendance and online participation; the resident said there were over 200 online comments about meeting timing even when only a few people were present in the chamber. The board did not take an immediate scheduling vote but continued with the published agenda.
