SALISBURY, Md.- In a letter obtained by WBOC, Salisbury Council President D'Shawn Doughty has a warning for Mayor Randy Taylor.
Doughty wrote to Taylor to ‘address the important matter regarding the decorum and professional expectations during all City Council Meetings.’
Doughty went on to say during Monday night’s council meeting, there were ‘moments that negatively shifted the atmosphere in the Council Chambers’. Doughty clarified with WBOC this is in reference to moments where, according to Doughty, Mayor Taylor ‘interrupted’ council proceedings. Specifically, when the council was preparing to override the mayor’s veto on increasing the residential density downtown.
Mayor Randy Taylor says he should have been allotted a moment to speak and defend his veto and speak to the issue.
“He is trying to control the flow of information in my view. As president of the council he can control the dialogue, but you know I am the mayor. It was my veto. He didn’t even give me a chance to present until I stepped up to the podium. I think that speaks to his intentions relative to transparency and opening dialogue to the public,” said Taylor. “I just don’t think that’s a fair way of conducting a meeting for the public.”
In a statement to WBOC, Doughty said, “The City Council is a collaborative body where every member has a voice, and our decisions are made through open discussion and debate. I encourage anyone to review our meetings in their entirety and form their own conclusions. Accuracy and fairness in sharing information are essential to good governance, and I remain committed to ensuring that my colleagues and the public have the full scope of facts. I hope to have the continued support of the Mayor’s office as we work together in the best interest of our city.”
In Doughty’s letter to Taylor, Doughty says ‘if these principals are not adhered to, we will have to reevaluate your level of involvement in council meetings’.
"I think he controls things point where he can have things presented, have things discussed, but at the end of the day present how he wants. You know if you look at it most of the times I only get to speak at the end of the meetings, I don’t get to speak on the issue unless it’s a work session," said Taylor.
Doughty declined our request for interview but did provide the above statement.
Monday night’s meeting can be watched on PAC 14’s YouTube page here.
The next council meeting is on February 10th.