City Hall has always been a place for civic engagement. Engaged citizens often share ideas and literature in the lobby outside of the City Council Chambers and civility has rarely been an issue. Yet on February 5, 2012, an item came up on the agenda to curb this exchange between active citizens. The policy revision reads, "Public distribution of fliers or other literature other than to the City Council or City staff is not permitted in City Hall" -- which begs the question, why now?
Activists got a surprise when Scott Hall, CEO of the only oil & gas operator in Fort Collins, stood among many of his fracking opponents and expressed sincere appreciation for the civility of citizen participation at council meetings.(Scott's dialogue is 2:33-4 into the February 2, 2013 City Council video.) Scott's plea, along with the written and verbal pleas of other citizens resulted in the ultimate defeat of this resolution.
Be sure to view the full resolution.
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