Apr 3, 2003 By Patty Shultz 3 min read

CONNELLSVILLE – A planning session to determine what items should come before council at its upcoming monthly meeting did not meet the expectations of several of the participants. “I’ll go to these meetings, but I really don’t think we need to be there for more than an hour or so,” said Councilman Bruce Jaynes following the Tuesday meeting. “If we’re not going to vote on anything, there is no real need to discuss everything at length.”

Last month, by a 3-2 vote, council agreed to meet informally to discuss items each member planned to bring to the table to be voted upon by the panel. The session was also to allow council to meet in executive session with city solicitor Joseph Ferens or to seek his advice on matters that may have legal ramifications.

Jaynes, who did not support the initiative, left after reviewing his planned department agenda items and meeting for 11/2 hours with Ferens in executive session to discuss pending legal action against the city and the purchase of property.

“If someone has a question about a matter I plan to be present, I will take the time to answer it, but it doesn’t require them to go on for hours and talk about everything,” said Jaynes. “It took me five minutes or so to go over my resolutions and that was long enough.”

Jaynes departed the meeting at 9:30 p.m., 2 1/2 hours after Reed called it to order. It was adjourned at 10:15 p.m.

Reed, meanwhile, used the forum to bring the other panel members up to date on other meetings she had attended over the past few weeks.

“If I can spend three hours at a meeting, I can spend a minute letting council know what is going on,” she said. “Not every council member attends every meeting. I feel it’s my responsibility and obligation to make your aware of these things and this is the perfect time.”

Reed covered nearly two dozen of the 35 issues listed under her department before Councilwoman Judy Keller interceded to note her apparent misunderstanding of the purpose of the meeting.

“If we follow this kind of format, we’re going to be here three hours tonight and three hours again next week (at the regular council meeting),” said Keller. “I thought the meeting was to prepare the agenda so that the solicitor has at least a week to look at any possible legal ramifications; so we don’t have this debate the night of the council meeting and put him on the spot.”

Ferens advised that each member of the panel bring a list of tentative agenda items for review by the other members and any questions be addressed by the appropriate department director.

“If you’re going to go over each and every item and resolution, you might as well have another (regular voting) meeting,” he said.

Reed, meanwhile, said while she was not in favor of holding the sessions, it was beneficial to have the opportunity to meet with Ferens to discuss the legal issues facing the city.

“Sometimes it’s very hard to communicate with him,” she said.

Council will meet in regular session on April 8.