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Informal Meeting

February 23, 2026 ·4:00 PM Final

Council Chamber, 2nd Floor - City Hall

Agenda PDF 📹 Watch video Official record ↗

Agenda — 22 items

  1. 1 Call to Order
  2. 1 Council Members Present
  3. 2 Chamber Emergency Evacuation Announcement
  4. 2 The Honorable Cynthia Newbille, President The Honorable Katherine Jordan, Vice President The Honorable Sarah Abubaker (late arrival) The Honorable Andrew Breton The Honorable Kenya Gibson The Honorable Nicole Jones The Honorable Stephanie Lynch (late arrival) The Honorable Ellen Robertson The Honorable Reva Trammell
  5. 3 Chief Administrative Officer Odie Donald provided an interim update on the city’s response to the January winter storms, including the timing of emergency declarations, interdepartmental coordination, resource deployment, material usage, contractor support, and preliminary fiscal impacts. CAO Donald advised that a comprehensive after-action report, including detailed expenditures and operational analysis, will be submitted by March 2nd in accordance with City Code requirements. Councilor Reva Trammell expressed concerns about untreated residential streets, impacts on elderly and vulnerable residents, sidewalk violation notices, and constituent communication during and after the storms.
  6. 3 Staff Present
  7. 4 Docket Review
  8. 4 Lisa Braxton, Council Management Analyst, Principal Laura Drewry, City Attorney Kiley Kesecker, Deputy City Clerk Candice Reid, City Clerk Tabrica Rentz, Deputy City Attorney RJ Warren, Council Chief of Staff
  9. 5 Councilor Sarah Abubaker arrived at 4:25 p.m. and was seated.
  10. 6 Other Discussion Item(s)
  11. 6 Council President Cynthia Newbille called the meeting to order at 4:04 p.m. and presided.
  12. 7 City Response to January 2026 Winter Weather Events
  13. 8 Adjournment
  14. 8 Upon the President’s request, Council Management Analyst Lisa Braxton provided information on the appropriate way to evacuate the Council Chamber in an emergency.
  15. 10 Council Management Analyst Lisa Braxton reviewed the following agenda items as indicated: Consent Agenda: 1. Ord. 2025-259 – retained on Consent Agenda
  16. 11 2. Ord. 2025-270 – to be amended and continued to Tuesday, March 10, 2026 3. Ord. 2025-276 – to be continued to Tuesday, March 10, 2026 4. Ord. 2026-003 – to be continued to Tuesday, March 10, 2026 5. Ord. 2026-019 – to be amended and continued to Tuesday, March 10, 2026 6. Ord. 2026-024 – retained on Consent Agenda 7. Ord. 2026-026 – retained on Consent Agenda 8. Ord. 2026-034 – retained on Consent Agenda 9. Ord. 2026-035 – retained on Consent Agenda 10. Ord. 2026-036 – retained on Consent Agenda 11. Ord. 2026-037 – retained on Consent Agenda 12. Ord. 2026-038 – retained on Consent Agenda 13. Ord. 2026-039 – retained on Consent Agenda 14. Ord. 2026-040 – retained on Consent Agenda 15. Ord. 2026-041 – moved to Regular Agenda 16. Ord. 2026-045 – retained on Consent Agenda 17. Res. 2026-R003 – to be continued to Monday, March 23, 2026 18. Res. 2026-R008 – retained on Consent Agenda 19. Res. 2026-R009 – retained on Consent Agenda 20. Res. 2026-R010 – retained on Consent Agenda 21. Res. 2026-R011 – retained on Consent Agenda 22. Res. 2026-R012 – retained on Consent Agenda Regular Agenda: 23. Ord. 2025-215 – to be continued to Monday, March 23, 2026 24. Ord. 2025-231 – to be continued to Tuesday, March 10, 2026 There were no comments or discussions concerning Consent and Regular Agenda items reviewed.
  17. 16 Bobby Vincent, Public Works director, outlined the city’s snow and ice removal strategy, explaining roadway prioritization based on federal classifications and traffic volume, and described operational challenges caused by prolonged ice conditions. Mr. Vincent reported on brine and salt application totals, residential street treatment efforts, pothole response protocols, post-storm street cleaning plans, and the issuance of sidewalk snow removal notices. Councilor Kenya Gibson requested information on storm-related infrastructure damage, including pothole trends and repair timelines, and asked how recommendations from the prior emergency communications audit were implemented during this event. Vice President Katherine Jordan sought clarification on sidewalk notice-of-violation enforcement procedures and suggested reviewing the policy to ensure fairness and consistency.
  18. 17 Councilor Stephanie Lynch arrived at 5:06 p.m. and was seated.
  19. 18 Councilor Sarah Abubaker inquired about post-storm street cleaning schedules and the city’s coordination efforts to assist residents with urgent needs, including heating fuel access and prescription retrieval.
  20. 19 President Cynthia Newbille acknowledged improvements in storm response, noted lessons learned, and thanked staff and emergency personnel for their service, expressing anticipation of the forthcoming comprehensive report.
  21. 21 There being no further business, the meeting adjourned at 5:14 p.m.
  22. 22 ___________________________________ CITY CLERK