By Reggie Connell, Managing Editor
It's not just Apopka Mayor Bryan Nelson's decision anymore.
At the September 4th City Council meeting, Commissioner Nick Nesta made a motion to restore public comments to the live feed during the regular meeting and broadcast them on the City's YouTube page as it has for years. Vice Mayor Diane Velazquez seconded the motion, but Commissioners Nadia Anderson and Alexander Smith joined Nelson in voting against it, defeating the motion 3-2.
For three straight meetings, public comments have been moved from the front to the back of the agenda, and the live feed has been turned off.
"Mayor, are you going to stop recording public comment again today, as well?" Nesta asked Nelson before the vote.
"Yes," Nelson said.
After the vote, Nesta asked Smith if he agreed with stopping recording public comments as part of the live feed.
"Yes, as long as the audio is still going," Smith said. "That's all that is required."
As an alternative to watching and listening to public comments in real-time on the City's YouTube live feed, the City is offering the option of requesting a copy of the audio of public comments through a public records request.
This breaking and developing story will be updated in future versions of The Apopka Voice.
