When is a vote not a vote?
In an unusual move, the Duluth City Council voted 6-2 Thursday not to vote on a resolution calling on the Duluth school district to bring the red plan to a public referendum.
Councilor Garry Krause said he wrote the resolution at the urging of community members. However, Councilor Todd Fedora brought forward an unusual motion to remove Krause's resolution from the agenda, arguing that the council shouldn't interfere with the school district's business with a symbolic vote.
"There's already a great amount of ill will within the community," Fedora said. "Conducting this vote will only further the ill will we're feeling right now."
And if the council passed the resolution, Fedora said he doubted "the School Board or district will have an epiphany and allow the public to vote."
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Voting with Fedora were Jeff Anderson, Tony Cuneo, Sharla Gardner, Greg Gilbert and Roger Reinert. Councilor Jay Fosle, an employee of the school district, abstained.
Gardner, like Fedora, noted that she's a critic of the red plan and wants the community to vote on it, but said the resolution was likely to make the School Board less willing to work with the council in the future.
"I would not want us to do this before we talked with the School Board," she said. "I would like to be able to talk with them about our concerns."
Councilors Krause and Jim Stauber voted against removing the resolution. Stauber said Thursday's agenda session, when resolutions or ordinances are discussed but generally not voted on, was not an official meeting with an official quorum or minutes being taken.
"This is an effort to censure one of your members, a member who has an issue that was brought forth by the public who wants it discussed openly," he said. "I'm very disappointed that we're attempting to do this to any one member. To cut him off, whether you believe in his cause or not, I think that's just wrong. I think the public has a right to ask a councilor to bring something forward."
Krause also had strong language for the council, saying the body was entering dangerous ground and eliminating public input on an agenda item.
"This activity has never happened," he said. "It's unheard of, it's inappropriate and it's leading to future consequences in city government."
City attorney Bryan Brown and Council President Reinert said similar actions have been taken before, but it is rare.
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Regardless, Krause said he would put the issue back on the agenda today for inclusion in the Monday meeting.
"This is not going away. You're going to vote one way or the other. You are going to allow the public one way or the other to have input," he said.
After the agenda session Krause somewhat backed away from those comments, saying he would put an item on the agenda that wouldn't be symbolic, but rather pertaining to actions the council will take in the future relating to the red plan, such as approving street vacations and easements.
"I am troubled that my constituents have been silenced tonight," he said.
