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After nearly a year of meeting only three times a month, the Charlotte City Council is returning to four monthly meetings in 2013.
Council members said they wanted to spend more time with their families when they approved a compressed calendar in February.
But some said they later regretted that decision, saying they didn’t have enough time to review important issues. At the time, the change to a condensed schedule had upset some free-speech activists, who objected to the city reducing the number of monthly citizen forums from two to one.
Under the new calendar, there will again be two monthly forums, in which people can address council members on any topic.
• Starting in January, the first Monday of each month will be reserved for a council workshop and citizen’s forum. The workshop is usually for informal presentations about upcoming issues by staff members. There is no limit to the number of people who can speak during the first forum of the month, though each person is limited to speaking for three minutes. That meeting is usually held in room 267 of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Government Center. It isn’t televised.
• The second Monday will be for a regular City Council business meeting. People can sign up to speak on issues that are on the formal agenda. That meeting will take place in the government center chamber and is televised.
• The third Monday will be for City Council zoning meetings. It will take place in the government center chamber and be televised.
• The fourth Monday will be for a citizen’s forum and regular business meeting. There will be a limit of 10 total speakers for this forum, with each speaker allowed three minutes.
Council members first discussed changing the calendar in November. They voted Dec. 10 to make the switch.
