There is something strange going on at city hall.
At first it was hard to put a finger on exactly what was different then it became apparent. There was no dissension, no arguing and no frustration. People had smiles on their faces rather than frowns.
While it is still in the honeymoon stage, council appears to be working together very amicably.
The other surprising thing was the number of people who came to council just to watch and listen to the proceedings and not necessarily get up and complain. Although council was willing to listen if they did. Moving the Committee of the Whole meeting to after the regular council meeting rather than dedicating a whole other Monday night to it was another positive step. This is also a way to save the taxpayers some dollars by combining the meetings and not having as many staff members attend the meetings helps as well.
Another interesting turn was that the people in the gallery, council and staff interacted and chatted with each other at the end of the meeting, rather than getting out of there as fast as they could. The business of the district is getting done and the meetings (at least so far) are not going on until the bum numbing stage. This is what happens when you have a council that respects each other and listens without rancor to opinions. Not everyone is going to agree all the time, but for now they do and it was, in a word, pleasant. How many council reporters can say that?