May 7 video is Mayor Bean's 'inconvenient truth' he was unable to reconcile at public comment workshop

May 7 Video of Mayor Bean saying public comment is "not a question and answer time" (click to play)

There's a well known television commercial with the tagline "it's like it never happened."

Mayor Bradley Bean employed that tactic at last Tuesday's city commission workshop discussion regarding public comment and whether speakers would be allowed to ask commissioners questions.

During the workshop, Bean was oblivious to his behavior one month ago when he shut down Corrine Garrett, a public speaker who confronted commissioners with a series of questions. Bean told Garrett, "this is not a question and answer time." When she persisted with more questions, Bean said "this is not a (commissioner) comment period."

As a result of that May 7 exchange, Commissioner Chip Ross proposed changing the commission's rules of procedure to permit speakers to ask questions during their public comments.

"At meetings it's been said people can't ask a question. So I think instead of doing public comment, they can ask a specific question during those three minutes (allowed speaking) of items not on the agenda. I think it would make meetings more transparent, give people more opportunity to participate in government and it's the right thing to do," Ross said.

Twice during the workshop discussion, Bean proclaimed that questions to commissioners during the public comment portion of the meeting had always been allowed.

When introducing Ross' proposed changes to allow questions, Bean said "I would say, the public is always welcome to comment on any item and that comment can ask questions and that certainly has always been allowed. That's been our procedure as long as I've been here," Bean declared. "Freedom of speech also includes the freedom not to speak. Just because someone is asked a question doesn't mean they're forced to respond."

Bean then allowed Commissioner Ross to introduce his changes.

After Ross spoke, Bean responded "this (asking a question) is currently allowed, every speaker gets three minutes. If they want to use it to ask a question and just pause for an indefinite amount of time and can ask another question, that is currently allowed. This is something that is already the same, adding this wouldn't add anything to our process."

Much later in the workshop, Ross summarized what commissioners had agreed on including "Anybody who comes to the podium can ask a question as opposed to giving a public comment."

Bean maintained "Commissioner Ross that's always been the case."

Ross fired back "that's a little disingenuous. Several meetings ago, a lady came up here and kept asking and you said this is not an appropriate time to ask questions. It was specifically said to her you cannot ask questions. I want to change that. What you're saying now is that any one who comes up here can ask questions of any city commissioner or to the mayor and they're (commissioners/mayor) going to say they're going to answer it or not answer it."

Bean, with support from Vice Mayor David Sturges and Commissioner Darron Ayscue, also dismissed two other changes regarding public input. First, Ross sought to have public comment scheduled to the front of the city commission agenda instead of near the end.

Second, Ross proposed the city commission conduct a monthly town hall for residents to voice their concerns and ask commissioners specific questions.

Bean said he holds his own town hall meeting monthly at the Nassau Council on Aging and suggested Ross start conducting his own townhall sessions.