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Mayor calls for stricter decorum, adds timer for public comment
Summary
Mayor Drozsky opened the Aug. 4 meeting by urging civility after a disruptive prior session and announced new procedural steps: a three-minute timed public-comment limit, visible countdown light, and an enforcement framework including warnings and removal for egregious behavior.
Mayor Todd Drozsky called the Aug. 4 Deerfield Beach City Commission meeting to order and opened with an extended appeal for decorum after disruptions at the prior meeting. "There has to be more decorum at these meetings," he said, announcing a visible three-minute timer at the clerk's desk and a graduated enforcement policy: a first warning for mild disruptions, a second warning, and removal for egregious behavior.
Drozsky said he has been working with the city attorney to put clearer procedures in place and expects to bring proposed rules forward later in the fall. "We want everyone to participate," he said, "but it has to be done with some civility back and forth." Vice Mayor Hudak and other commissioners responded with their own remarks underscoring the need for respectful dialogue; Hudak apologized for losing his composure at a previous meeting and said he would accept being held to a higher standard.
The commission immediately implemented the visible three-minute timer for public comments for that meeting and reminded speakers their time would be signaled by a yellow light at 30 seconds and a repeating red beep at time expiration. The mayor emphasized the rule applies equally to the dais and the public.
