Rules Stand-Off and Homelessness Debate Spark Friction at City Council

MONTPELIER – Although the June 24 city council meeting opened with a review of the rules of order, a grounding moment, and a reading from the Tao Te Ching led by Mayor Marc Gwinn, tempers got heated during both a discussion about homelessness, and a regular city critic ignoring the mayor’s attempts to enforce public speaking time limits. 

Out of Order

For a second consecutive council meeting, Gwinn attempted to rein in frequent city critic Steve Whitaker after he exceeded the three-minute limit for public comment during the “general appearances” section of the meeting. Whitaker argued that councilors had voted over a year ago to allow five minutes for people to speak during general appearances, and he kept speaking.

Earlier, at the start of the meeting, Gwinn had reviewed rules of procedure “to help us have a welcoming, productive meeting.” Rules include members of the public stating their first and last name before speaking, a three-minute public comment limit for speaking during general appearances, and two minutes for agenda items “in order to have respectful dialogue.”

Gwinn requested comments be focused on “policies, decisions, and ideas, rather than individuals,” and, he added, “let’s keep our thoughts about someone’s character or intent to ourselves or to some other forum.”

These procedural norms, Gwinn noted, are designed to have a meeting “where everyone can be heard” and the community’s business can be conducted in an orderly way. In fact, the need to repeat rules of procedure has come up so often at Montpelier City Council meetings that they were also included in the agenda packet. Indeed, just minutes after stating those rules of order, Whitaker challenged them.

Councilors also discussed new rules for when members of the public can comment, and because proposed changes felt confusing, they voted to allow anyone to comment on any agenda item. 

“Let anyone talk about anything,” Councilor Ben Doyle suggested.

When Whitaker, among other matters, continued criticizing the city about public records requests he claims have not been produced, Gwinn interrupted him after three minutes. Whitaker continued, and Gwinn responded “Mr. Whitaker, you are out of order. Your time has expired.”

Whitaker argued back, saying he had a full five minutes to speak, not three, and continued speaking. 

“Mr. Whitaker, you are out of order, for a second time,” Gwinn said.

“I’m not out of order. I’m gonna go five minutes,” Whitaker said. 

Doyle suggested allowing Whitaker to finish speaking, but also for the council to determine how to respond “when someone is repeatedly out of order.” 

Whitaker again insisted he was not out of order. 

Gwinn said he accepted Doyle’s suggestion “in the spirit of de-escalation.”

“We could call the police, but it is not a good idea,” Doyle said. He suggested adjourning the meeting at such points and waiting for tempers to simmer down.

Councilor Cary Brown agreed that calling the police is “extreme and unhelpful,” but if the disruption reaches the point where councilors cannot conduct business, they should adjourn and go home. City Manager Kelly McNicholas Kury said it might be worth exploring charges for disorderly conduct.

Zack Hughes, chair of the Homelessness Committee, said he prefers de-escalation to police enforcement. “We’ve been down the road of disorderly conduct, and the state’s attorney did not press the charge,” and he reminded the group of when Whitaker Montpelier police forcibly removed Whitaker from a council meeting and charges did not stick. 

Picnic Tables, Transit Center, and Encampment Policy

A new agenda item that shows up at every council meeting allots time for updates on the issues that arise out of a growing population of those who are unhoused. This time, the conversation focused on where to locate picnic tables where people can congregate.

“I can’t believe what I am hearing,” said local volunteer Nancy Smith, when talk dragged on about finding a place to put the picnic tables. “Why are we talking about picnic tables? Get these people out of the wind and the rain.”

Smith told councilors she has volunteered serving food at Christ Church as well as helping at a women’s center. She said she has noticed increased police presence and crackdowns on the unhoused population. 

“I know that punishment reinforces negative behaviors,” she said, adding that feeding people decreases negative behaviors.

Councilor Jim Sheridan said the council should have used the Transit Center to help homeless individuals when the council transferred the lease from Green Mountain Transit to Tri-Valley Transit on June 10. 

“We let the ball drop. … We either have to say, ‘Are we going to do something or not’?,” he said. 

McNicholas Kury said councilors will have to decide whether to invest in upgrading the basement of city hall for use as a shelter or identify other locations, considering that city hall is scheduled to soon undergo flood damage rehabilitation. 

Councilor Cary Brown said there is no reason to wait for the Homelessness Committee to decide where to put picnic tables for homeless individuals to use because they can put them wherever they decide on their own.

Steve Whitaker said he had seen a plan that pinpointed Home Farm Way, Dog River, and Peace Park as places for potential use as encampment spaces. He noted that some of the behaviors of some unhoused individuals have been challenging lately, so those with the more challenging behaviors could be located in the spaces farthest from the general population while those people with more civilized decorum could camp closer to the town center. He also emphasized the need for hot and cold running water to keep people from getting “diseased.”

Sheridan called for moving forward on converting the Transit Center for use by the unhoused, but McNicholas Kury said they have to move more slowly since there are competing interests for the Transit Center, which the city owns. She said soliciting public input would be important.

No action was taken, but McNicholas Kury said she would pursue making changes to the encampment policy, create an MOU (memorandum of understanding) for service providers, and arrange for the city council to meet with lawyers on the matter.

Berlin Street Closure Approved

On the eve of a big sewer upgrade project, the contractor asked to close down an entire section of Berlin Street so the work would go more quickly and safely. Two members of Cutting Edge Landscaping and Excavation LLC appeared to provide their reasoning and to answer questions. Project Manager Justin Pratt said “everyone knows during construction bad things happen,” and closing down the entire street would help shield the public from an unsafe situation. The contractors said they would coordinate alternate pathways for emergency vehicles to reach all buildings affected by the closure. The city council unanimously approved the closure of Berlin Street between Phelps and Wheelock streets.

Council Amends White + Burke Contract by a Split Vote

With Jim Sheridan voting “no,” Pelin Kohn abstaining, and Doyle, Brown, and councilors Sal Alfano and Adrienne Gil voting “yes,” an amended contract for real estate advisors White + Burke got approved. The $62,000 contract is now increased to a sum “not to exceed $130,000” with a deadline of October 2025. 

Doyle and Alfano said White + Burke had been extremely helpful in bringing the Country Club Road development project along the process.

Whitaker grumbled about the situation, though, particularly the part about the brownfield contamination, which he said is “going off the rails.” And again, Gwinn had to repeatedly remind Whitaker his time was up and his comments were to end. Whitaker did give up the mic after some prodding.

Cassandra Hemenway contributed to this story.