Last night’s five hour long Atlantic Highlands Council meeting, in addition to being a record for its length and possibly diverse and numerous topics to be discussed, decided and delayed, also raised more questions on so many issues.
For instance, Councilman Jon Crowley abstained from voting on the regionalization question. So why all of a sudden should he be involved in any discussion?
Why should he be making any recommendations about anything to do with it, and for that matter, why should he continue to be seated at the council table during discussions?
At least when Councilman Brian Boms abstained on another issue, while he did not absent himself from the table, he did not get involved in any discussion.
Did the mayor and council simply let the people have their say on the cannabis issue because the meeting room was so crowded and they did not want to disappoint or anger folks on both sides of the issue?
And there were lots there on both sides to be sure. They had already announced they were withdrawing, not just tabling, but withdrawing the ordinance. So why waste time talking about it at all?
The people have been voicing their opinion on cannabis at earlier meetings, council knows how they feel, why not just work on whatever their new ordinance is going to be, hope they follow all the steps in the proper order, advertise it correctly, then let the people have their say at the public hearing?
And once they made it clear, though they had not announced it in advance, that any speaker wanting to be heard on ZOOM must put his camera on so he can be seen, it begs the question…
What happens to those who do not have a camera or are giving their opinions via a phone connection?
Will they be deprived of their right to speak?
Or does it mandate that as an equality issue, inasmuch as if they spoke at the meeting they would be seen, so why they not be seen on ZOOM?
