Locals reacts to Call to Public changes

YUMA, Ariz. (KYMA, KECY) - The Yuma City Council has adopted a resolution that will update some of the Call to the Public rules.

The council had not updated or reviewed public input guidelines since 2010, and now some locals have mixed feelings about the changes.

“Well, we can’t be overwhelmed by public input because the meetings get too long and you lose your focus," said former Yuma City Councilmember Gary Wright.

Some of these changes include people must now submit “Speaker Request Forms” before 5 p.m. the day of the meeting for Call to the Public and agenda items. 

Speakers will now only be provided three minutes to speak instead of five, and now only a maximum of five people can speak per topic.

Local Kwawdo Stevenson says he respects and appreciates all the work the council has done, but wonders if there are other ways to better communicate with the city.

“We think that the application in terms of truncating the minutes and times is probably not very helpful in our opinion," said Kwawdo, the communications chair for the NAACP Yuma County Branch.

These changes go into effect at Wednesday’s city council meeting.

For more ways to reach out to the city you can make an appointment with a city council member, visit the Yuma website here, or also get the Yuma Click and Fix app.