A Commentary on Inconsistent Public Comment Rules

By Mike Lednovich

Corrine Garrett led off the public comment segment of the May 7 city commission meeting with a question.

"I would like to know if Fernandina Beach city commissioners are in line with the law?" Garrett said.

Five seconds of uncomfortable silence followed. Then Mayor Bradley Bean mandated "Miss Garrett, this is not a question and answer time ... this is not a comment period."

However, just 15 minutes later, Bryn Bryon went to the lectern and inquired about an outside legal opinion about RYAM's plans for a bioethanol plant - she had asked a question.

Guess what? Bean proceeded to answer.

The optics of exchanges like this are not positive for the sitting commissioners.

Bean had previously invoked this same rule in a March 19, 2024 meeting when a speaker asked commissioners about the RYAM plan. Again, Bean declared "this is not a question-and-answer time."

So, what exactly are the rules regarding public comment? When can you ask the city commission a question in a public meeting?

Commissioner Darron Ayscue last week on social media said, "Public comment is reserved for the public to make comment, not for there to be an open discussion between citizens and commissioners."

Ayscue evidently is suffering from short term memory loss.

It was only six months ago when Commissioner Ayscue chose to respond to a public comment at the Dec. 5, 2023 city commission meeting. The speaker had read a statement questioning the city police department's handling of former City Manager Ty Ross' alcohol-related bicycle accident. Ayscue responded with, "Mayor, can I make a comment real quick?" Ayscue continued and praised the work of police officers.

That meeting also included three other instances of commissioners and city staff responding to various public comments.

Briefly, one speaker raised the issue of selective enforcement of code violations regarding a parked boat. That drew responses from Commissioner Ross and a comment from Mayor Bean. Also at that meeting, another speaker made remarks about RYAM possibly making a presentation to the city commission, which had City Attorney Bach responding and Bean declaring he was recusing himself from any discussion about RYAM. Vice Mayor David Sturges also made statements regarding the comments concerning RYAM.

Then, a fourth speaker questioned David Sturges' possible conflict of interest regarding Brett's Waterway Cafe and voting on density issues. The Vice Mayor responded to those statements.

What's clear is that rules regarding public comment and commission responses to them are left to the vagary of the commissioner running the meeting - the mayor.

There are two important points to make regarding public comment.

First, the mayor's rulings are in fact, arbitrary. As mayor, Bean holds no defined authoritative power to make those decisions. The mayor conducts the meeting according to the aforementioned "rules of procedure" and Robert's Rules of Order.

Second, in the city commission's "rules of procedure" defining public comment there is no prohibition of commissioners not being able to make comments about what has been stated. There is also no prohibition against speakers asking commissioners a direct question.

If public comment is intended for people to share their opinions with commissioners and not ask questions without commissioner comment, then the "Rules of Procedure" need to be revised.

More importantly, commissioners then need to follow the rules.

The other side of this debate is, do citizens have the right to hold city commissioners accountable during a public meeting for their positions on critical issues facing Fernandina Beach? If a city commission meeting isn't the appropriate setting to have commissioners queried collectively, where is? A city commission meeting is the only time all five commissioners are participating in a public forum.

There is a position to be made that city commissioners responding to specific questions or concerns raised during public comment facilitates clarification on certain issues and fosters better communication between the public and our elected representatives.

For example, an issue addressed during public comment at the Jan. 16 city commission meeting took place when Jackie Stevenson raised concerns about the planning of the beach walkover at Seaside Park and how it expanded into the 600-foot parking on the beach zone.

After she spoke, Interim City Manager Charlie George and Commissioner Ross provided details on how decisions were made about the walkover design and construction. They both provided details previously not known to the public.

A solution may be for the city commission to conduct quarterly workshops devoted solely to Q&A from the public. Limit speaker comments to two minutes and commission comments to three. That allows for 12 questions/answers in a one-hour workshop.

The commission needs to find an answer to end the frustration on both sides and implement a solution that meets the needs of citizens of Fernandina Beach.

The Observer reviewed every public comment session of the current city commission from Dec. 5, 2022 to May 7, 2024. Here are the findings excluding the examples mentioned above.

• At the city commission's April 16, 2024 meeting, Jack Imber spoke about the RYAM proposal. When Imber finished, Commissioner Chip Ross jumped in and said, "I'd like to say something," in response to Imber. Ross went on for two minutes explaining the city government process on RYAM's effort to bring bioethanol production into the city.
• At the Feb. 20 city commission meeting, Bean commented on remarks made by Imber again on the RYAM proposal.
• Dec. 19, 2023 - a comment on numerous city annexations prompted questions by Commissioner Ross and discussion with City Attorney Tammi Bach.
• During the Sept. 5, 2023 public comments, Mayor Bean responded to a statement about preserving oak trees and replacing historic sidewalk tile on Eighth Street by the Florida Department of Transportation.
• At the Aug. 15, 2023 meeting during public comment a speaker asked questions regarding paying city utility bills. City Attorney Bach, Vice Mayor Sturges and Mayor Bean responded with Bean concluding "did that answer your question?"
• Mayor Bean responded to public comment regarding affordable housing on Aug. 1, 2023.
• July 18, 2023 Vice Mayor Sturges addresses a public comment regarding the management of the city's enterprise fund.
• June 20, 2023, Mayor Bean talks about a public comment regarding spending and taxes.
• Feb. 7, 2023 Mayor Bean, plus Commissioners Ayscue and Ross made statements on public comment concerning the legality of city impact fees and an Auditor General's review of how those fees were spent by the city.
• Jan. 17, 2023 Mayor Bean requests the city manager answer questions regarding access to natural gas in the city following a public comment that included several questions about the issue.