C’mon. Really?
On Tuesday’s agenda of the Franklin Common Council meeting:
WHEREAS, the Public Health Emergency continues to exist. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT PROCLAIMED, that I, Stephen R. Olson, Mayor of the City of Franklin, Wisconsin, on behalf of all of the Citizens of Franklin and the staff of City government, and upon the advice and consent of the City of Franklin Fire Chief, as the City of Franklin Emergency Manager, and the City of Franklin Director of Health and Human Services/Health Officer, hereby declare, as follows: 1. The duration of the Public Health Emergency proclaimed, declared and resolved within the Proclamation and Resolutions cited in the preamble to this Proclamation, is hereby extended to June 5, 2021 at 11 :59 p.m. 2. That all of the Declarations and Resolveds in the Proclamation and Resolutions cited in the preamble to this Proclamation, not pertaining to the time of duration of the Public Health Emergency, as amended hereunder, shall remain in full force and effect. Dated this 14th day of January, 2021.
Stephen R. Olson
Mayor
Do you need to be at the meeting for the whole time to voice your opinion?
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No. You can show up and speak at the very beginning of the meeting. After the Pledge of Allegiance there’s a citizen comment period. Three minute time-limit. Or you can e-mail the mayor and or your alderman.
https://www.franklinwi.gov/Departments/Elected-Officials.htm
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Thanks for the information. Wish there was more time to let people know.
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Legally the city doesn’t have to post meeting details until a day or two before the meeting. Agendas for Tuesday meetings are usually set the Friday before. I just found out today.
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Mayor Olson informs me:
Resolution 2020-7605 appointed the fire chief Emergency Manager and the health officer Incident Commander establishing authority and structure and authorized the mayor to perform actions necessary for continuity of government in short terms without council approval. The other two resolutions authorized common council and boards and commissions members to attend meetings electronically. The resolution on the agenda for tomorrow night merely extends these authorizations to June 5, 2021. And because we have the resolution and declaration in place and active we stay eligible for federal funds.
I responded:
Thank you for the clarification. Being skeptical I still worry about you guys, especially when there’s language about a public health emergency being extended. Maybe that should have been explained better in the agenda resolution rather than the typical government-ese.
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You typically post corrections and updates in your original blog posts, yet you post this update in the comment section. Classic case of “my bad” but let’s bury it will no one will see it. Not to mention you still point blame at the City for not having it “explained better in the agenda resolution…”. One could easily argue that you, as a journalist, should have asked the the Mayor or City Attorney for clarification before posting a very inaccurate article. Using words you recently like to use…just sayin’.
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I, indeed, jumped the gun. But when I see language like a health emergency is being extended, my radar goes up. And I wasn’t the only one mystified by the city document. At least my blog set the record straight.
Also, I’m no longer a 24/7 working journalist. This is a volunteer hobby.
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