WHAT HAPPENED: The Duluth Economic Development Authority will no longer be comprised of just nine city councilors. By a 5 to 4 vote, the council voted to reduce its membership to three, while adding four private citizens to the authority. All of the members will be appointed by the mayor and must be approved by the council. Any expense exceeding $100,000 made by DEDA must first be approved by the City Council.
WHAT THEY SAID: Councilors who voted in favor of the change said they wanted to see citizen involvement on the board, while those opposed worried that unelected citizen involvement could lead to increased boondoggles and less representation of the public.
HOW THEY VOTED: Councilors Jeff Anderson, Tony Cuneo, Gary Eckenberg, Todd Fedora and Sharla Gardner approved the change; councilors Jay Fosle, Garry Krause, Jim Stauber and Greg Gilbert were against it.
