PORT ANGELES — The City Council will continue using a shortened version of meeting minutes.
The 5-2 vote Tuesday made the shortened minutes, which had been tested since February, into policy — with two amendments suggested by City Council member Brad Collins.
Collins asked that a short, summarized statement of reasons for voting for an action item and a similar short item when a statement is made for the record be included in the minutes.
“It doesn’t need to be a long diatribe, but a short summary statement,” he said.
Council members Max Mania and Cherie Kidd voted against the motion.
Mania said that even with the amendment, he couldn’t support the shortened minutes.
The council has been testing new software that plays audio recordings of the meetings on the city’s website.
Distrusts recordings
Mania said that wasn’t enough, because recordings can be lost.
He said he had requested a recording of a recent Harbor-Works Development Authority’s meeting and the recording had malfunctioned, so it wasn’t available.
“There are people who don’t have computers or like computers or don’t have speakers for their computers, and as demonstrated [at the Harbor-Works meeting] things happen,” he said.
Kidd said she felt there was not enough transparency in the shortened minutes.
“The minutes are the primary source of information and communication with some of the our constituents, and in the spirit of openness and transparency, I cannot vote for this,” she said.
The new audio software allows users of the website to select specific agenda items rather than having to listen to the whole meeting to find the desired segment.
The League of Women Voters of Clallam County suggested the change after voicing concerns that audio recordings are not an adequate replacement for lengthy minutes.
In other action the council:
• Approved increasing home-monitoring systems and community service as a way to decrease jail costs.
Port Angeles’ annual costs are expected to reach about $600,000 this year. In 2005, that expense was about $200,000, according to city staff members.
• Heard a presentation from city Finance Director Yvonne Ziomkowski about the idea of sending out a survey to gauge community support for the various areas of the budget.
The city would gain an idea about where citizens wish cuts to be made, she said.
The survey, once finished, would likely be sent out in the utility bills as well as being available online, she said.
• Approved lower fees charged by the Port Angeles Police Department for evidence photos. The fees will go from $10 for the first photo and $3 for each additional photo to 25 cents per photo.
The cost of fingerprint processing for concealed weapons permits will decrease from $24 to $19.25.
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Reporter Paige Dickerson can be reached at 360-417-3535 or at paige.dickerson@peninsuladailynews.com.
