Columbia Councilman Baddourah Proposes Meeting Changes to Improve Public Access

Columbia City Councilman Moe Baddourah is pushing for larger meeting spaces and proposing a cut-off time for council meetings to allow for more public input.

Baddourah, a mayoral candidate, released a statement Monday saying he will propose the changes at council's next meeting on Sept. 3. 

Baddourah suggests holding meetings in larger spaces such as the Eau Claire Community Center or school auditoriums in order to give the public greater access to council deliberations.

Read Baddourah's full statement below:

“City government must become more open. Decisions are more likely to reflect the citizens' best interests when those decisions are made in full public view. 

"In recent months, there have been several notable instances of closed-door decision-making which have strained the public trust -- such as the Palmetto Compress controversy and the Bull Street development issue.

“In particular, the Bull Street issue – in which a vote was rushed, citizen input was limited and details were withheld from the public until after the vote -- created ill will and caused skepticism about the deal with the developer. 

“Earlier this month, City Council took a vote on a very sensitive issue at 3 o'clock in the morning – a time when few citizens or members of the media were able to be in attendance.

"The confusion surrounding the vote should remind us that there can be real consequences for making such important decisions out of public view.

“The 3 o'clock vote was unnecessary, and we should make sure it doesn’t happen again by adopting a cut-off time for meetings."