BY NICOLE BOWMAN-LAYTON

PLYMOUTH — The Plymouth Town Council meeting scheduled for Monday evening (Aug. 11) was significantly abbreviated after audio equipment problems and disruptions from the public led officials to strip the packed agenda to a few items and adjourn early.

A large group of residents that overflowed into the nearby hallway attended. Council members attending in person were Mayor Brian Roth and Councilwomen Mary Ann Byers, Crystal Davis and Donsenia Teel. About 30 people attended the meeting via video conferencing.

Technical Difficulties Hamper Proceedings

The meeting began with ongoing sound system issues that made it difficult for audience members to hear council discussions.

While discussing the agenda, Davis asked that open discussion of the demolition of 108 W. Water St. be taken off the agenda due to not being able to throughly investigate the matter.

For the most part, Council could be heard clearly on the Zoom meeting. Town staff indicated they were waiting for SoundSide Group, an Information Technology company based in Plymouth, to resolve microphone problems. Council members noted that microphones the town believed were functional had been deemed “out of date” and non-operational.

Public Disruption and Council Response

As technical problems persisted, tensions rose between council members and audience members who expressed frustration about not being able to hear the proceedings. The situation escalated when a man moved his chair within a few feet of Roth, Davis (Ward II) and Byers (Ward III). He said that he couldn’t hear council members talk.

Officials called for law enforcement intervention, with Davis stating, “We’re not playing this game tonight. Let’s talk to the attorney.”

Several audience members spoke over each other. The man was among some of the audience members that noted that council could be sued for removing attendees from the meeting.

Roth initially proposed going into immediate closed session to consult with the town attorney, while staff worked to address the audio issues. Byers’ motion to go into a 15-minute recess was approved, allowing time for resolution.

Agenda Significantly Reduced

Following the recess, Councilmember Teel made a motion to “reset this meeting to a later time,” citing concerns about the evening’s atmosphere and potential for extended conflicts. Teel also suggested that the new meeting would give town officials time to deal with the sound quality in council chambers and let people calm down before attending the next meeting.

Byers noted that her nerves were frayed but was willing to deal with the town’s business. She attempted to get the audience’s input on continuing the meeting, but was cut short of doing so by Roth and the other council members.

“We need to try to have this meeting,” Byers said while apologizing to those who attended the meeting. “We’re better than this. … We have to be.”

However, after discussion with staff and town attorney Arnita Dula about time-sensitive items, the council opted for a compromise approach.

The agenda, approved with a 2-1 vote (Teel and Davis voting for, Byers against), was pared down to include:

• Approval of July 14, 2025 meeting minutes
• Two budget amendments
• Authorization for a Washington County magazine advertisement. The full-page ad costs $400.
• Approval of a Community Development Block Grant administrative services agreement
• A closed session

Limited Business Conducted

Despite the disruptions, the council managed to approve the items on the newly created agenda unanimously.

Town Attorney Dula reminded the council that state statute requires at least one public comment period per month, and since this was the town’s only scheduled meeting, any future reconvened session would need to include public input opportunities. She noted that she didn’t have the exact statue in front of her so she didn’t know whether the state required public comment to be held during a regular meeting.

Meeting Outcome

After completing the reduced agenda items, the council entered closed session to discuss legal matters and personnel issues. The meeting was then adjourned with no specific date announced for addressing the remaining agenda items.

The town has not yet announced when the remaining agenda items will be addressed.