BY HACKNEY HIGH

The Town of Edenton values citizen input.  Town Council and its management make every effort to respond to citizen inquiries and concerns promptly and transparently. Town Council and I sincerely mean it when we say that we believe in the importance of thoughtful, critical feedback. But this column crosses a line — it does not just critique policy; it impugns character and suggests motives that are simply not there which leave me no other choice but to respond and defend my colleagues on Town Council. 

1. Public Comment and Council Engagement

The writer suggests that our Council discourages public participation and fails to respond meaningfully to citizen concerns and as a result our meetings are not well attended. With respect, this is not accurate. Our Council meetings consistently enjoy strong public attendance — often standing-room only. Other than his attendance at Edenton Town Council meetings, the column writer lacks the experience to opine as to attendance at our Town Council meetings relative to other public meetings of governmental entities in our local area.  In my experience representing numerous governmental units across Eastern North Carolina over the past 35 years, Edenton’s Council meetings are among the best-attended in our area.

The writer criticizes Edenton’s policy which limits public comment to three minutes per speaker as if this policy is somehow sinister and unique to Edenton. The “three-minute rule” is a widely adopted, best-practice standard throughout North Carolina for governmental meetings. It ensures that all citizens have a fair opportunity to speak while allowing the Council the time to manage meetings efficiently and respectfully. It also prevents a few voices from dominating the conversation and helps maintain focus, decorum and efficiency.

In order to make our public comment portion of the agenda more meaningful, Town Council, at my urging, moved the public comment agenda item from the end of our meetings to the beginning of our meetings so that our citizens could have their voices heard prior to votes being taken on agenda items rather than after a vote was already taken.  

As to the writer’s complaint that Council members do not respond during the public comment period — this is by design. As is standard across municipalities, public comment is an opportunity for residents to be heard, not to hold live debates. This protects the integrity of the process, ensures accuracy in responses, and avoids creating confusion or misstatements during complex discussions. 

Under our current policy in Edenton, concerns raised at a public meeting are either addressed on the spot if appropriate and where a simple answer can be provided or followed up with a response at the next meeting — usually by the Town Manager, whose job it is to oversee day-to-day operations.  Since it is the Town Manager’s job to run the daily operations of the Town, the Manager, and not the Councilmen, is in the best position to respond to the concerns raised.  

This current approach reflects my own efforts to improve responsiveness after I took office as Mayor. Prior to this, I noticed that during public comment our Councilmen would simply and smile and thank our citizens for their comments and many times those citizen comments often went unaddressed for months. I instituted a process to ensure concerns are formally noted and answered in a timely, transparent manner and usually within 30 days at our next regularly scheduled meeting.

Yet, despite this Council’s deliberate efforts to encourage public engagement — by moving the public comment period to the beginning of each meeting and ensuring that our Town Manager provides timely responses to citizen concerns within thirty days — the writer has inaccurately portrayed this Council as one that discourages public participation and fails to respond meaningfully to the public.

The writer also questions Council preparedness for meetings and as a purported basis for this concern, the writer cites the fact that Council doesn’t receive its agenda packets for its regular Tuesday meeting until the Friday before the meeting.  As to this concern, I can say confidently that each member of this Council is deeply and daily engaged with the work of governing our Town. Councilmembers are in communication regularly, not just at meetings. Agenda packets are distributed five days in advanceof our regular monthly meetings, and Council members routinely review them in detail, raise questions, and do their homework before each meeting. To imply that Council cannot adequately digest our agendas over a five-day period is insultingboth to the intelligence of our Council and the hard work and time Council takes to review the council packet over the weekends prior to our meetings.  Any implication that Council is disengaged or unprepared is unfounded and, frankly, unfair.

2. Staff Time Limit Policy

The policy limiting staff time to three hours per individual or request was not implemented lightly. It came in response to a small number of individuals whose requests have significantly burdened staff and interfered with other essential services. This policy helps ensure fairness and efficiency across all residents’ needs. Where an issue is serious or complex enough to merit more time, staff are encouraged to exercise discretion and flexibility in following this policy.

Other local governments have adopted similar policies to protect staff resources and avoid repetitive demands on town personnel. Our goal is not to limit transparency but to ensure that our staff and employees are able to perform their duties in the daily operations of our Town.  

3. Consent Agenda

The writer also criticizes the use of a Consent Agenda and suggests it may be used to obscure Council actions and once again seems to assign nefarious motives which are unique to Edenton. In reality, the Consent Agenda is a best practice employed by countless municipalities of all sizes all across North Carolina — including our neighboring counties and school boards which include the Pasquotank County Board of Commissioners, Perquimans County Board of Commissioners, Chowan County Board of Commissioners and Edenton-Chowan School Board. It is used to efficiently approve non-controversial items and minor and clerical issues so that more time and focus can be given to substantive matters. Every Council member retains the right to remove an item for individual discussion. Transparency is not sacrificed as these items are included in the published agenda and recorded in the meeting minutes.

Final Thoughts

The Town of Edenton respects the rights of its citizens to disagree with our decisions and actions.  It is one thing to challenge decisions or policies. That is a citizen’s right and, often, his or her responsibility. It is quite another to question the motives, ethics, and character of those who serve this community in good faith.

As Mayor I remain committed to processes and policies which treat all of our citizens with the same respect and openness that I always have. However, I must be clear: if you attack the integrity of my colleagues on Council, I will respond.  

I am always open to constructive dialogue — public or private — and welcome criticism grounded in fact and fairness. What I cannot accept are accusations that undermine the trust and hard work of people who I love and respect and who care deeply about our Town.

Editor’s note: Hackney High is the Mayor of the Town of Edenton. He is also managing partner of the High and Crow LLP law firm.