City Council Meeting Roundup | January 4, 2022
Posted on 01/07/2022
The Newcastle City Council held a regular meeting on Tuesday, January 4. If you missed watching it live, you can always see videos of past Council and Commission meetings, which are generally posted the following business day.
Here are the highlights from last week’s meeting. See the Agenda Packet for additional information and documentation.
Happy New Year, Newcastle! Please join us in welcoming our newest councilmembers, Pratima Lakhotia, Paul Charbonneau, and Robert Clark! Each were elected in November and will serve a four-year term. They join our second-newest councilmember, Chris Villasenor (whose appointment to Tony Ventrella's old seat only gives him one meeting's worth of seniority on our newcomers,) and your returning councilmembers Linda Newing, Ariana Sherlock, and Tom Griffin to comprise your 2022 Newcastle City Council. We're grateful for all their service, and we look forward to a productive year of working for our residents.
At the January 4 meeting, your council re-elected Linda Newing as mayor and elected Ariana Sherlock as deputy mayor. This is the first time in city history that both positions have been held by women, and we congratulate them both on this historic leadership milestone for the community.
Other items of note from this meeting include:
• Council approved an amended consent agenda, which included the December 7 minutes, a street-sweeping contract as revised on January 4, and confirmation of a municipal judge.
• Public Works Director Jeff Brauns presented a robust CIP report on Q4 2021. (See the Agenda Packet for additional information and documentation.)
• Council viewed a presentation of the 2021 community survey.
• Council set up further discussion for a facilitated study session on council priorities, city goals, and parameters for return to in-person meetings and the reopening of City Hall
• Council removed from consent and had a discussion before approving the confirmation of new Planning Commissioner, Maggie Lo. Welcome, Commissioner Lo!
• Council added to the agenda for discussion amendment of council rules to restore the pre-2018 practice of council confirmation of the mayor’s committee appointments and directed staff to bring back a resolution on January 18 on this subject.
Do you want your City Councilmembers to know your preferences and opinions on City issues? You can always email them directly at [email protected], or you can submit public comment, either live at a Council Meeting or by writing to the City Clerk at [email protected].