Grand Rapids City Commission Meeting - January 13, 2026
Grand Rapids City Commission Meeting - January 13, 2026
The Grand Rapids City Commission convened on January 13, 2026, to address routine administrative items, including the appointment of a new commissioner and updates to financial disclosure policies. The primary agenda item was a contentious debate regarding a proposed amendment to the city's noise ordinance, which sought to prohibit the use of amplified sound devices within 100 feet of healthcare facilities. The discussion centered on the tension between the First Amendment right to free speech via amplification and the government's interest in patient privacy and neighborhood quality of life.
Consent Calendar
- Budget and Reports: Accepted reports on bond sales ($41.2M water system, $48.2M sewer system), comptroller warrants ($56.04M), and the treasurer's report.
- Administrative Appointments: Approved the motion to remove Kyle Van Strain's appointment to the City Planning Commission from the consent calendar for individual deliberation, following the Mayor's recusal due to a business relationship.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Opposition to Noise Ordinance (Amplification Ban):
- Public Protesters and Faith Leaders: Multiple speakers, including street preachers (Stephen Nylon, Jordan Sweezer, Daniel Scott, Jeff, Zafire) and advocates (Hallie Schneiders, Dean Lantinga), argued the ordinance is unconstitutional, not content-neutral, and a violation of the Sayles v. New York precedent which recognizes loudspeakers as indispensable instruments of speech. They expressed strong opposition, stating the ordinance targets pro-life messaging while masking itself as neutral.
- Planned Parenthood Advocates: Speakers like Joyce Gibson and Christian argued the ordinance is necessary to stop harassment and intimidation of vulnerable patients seeking healthcare. They expressed that amplified speech effectively functions as harassment and that the current environment is unsafe.
- Legal Perspectives: Elizabeth Johnson (Alliance Defending Freedom) testified that the ordinance is not narrowly tailored and targets specific content (pro-life messages) by defining "healthcare facilities" broadly to exclude non-abortion clinics while appearing neutral.
- Supporters of the Ordinance: Speakers including Tyver Bruggy and Chris Zastro argued for patient privacy and peace of mind, stating that individuals seeking medical care, especially those giving birth or near death, deserve quiet. Chris Zastro further argued the ordinance addresses a specific injustice regarding abortion services.
- Specific Concerns: Dan Jones advocated for including the gaming/esports ecosystem in arts and culture strategies, while Andrew Carly (Strong Towns Grand Rapids) urged investment in bike lanes and ADUs rather than road repaving.
Discussion Items
- Appointment of Kyle Van Strain to City Planning Commission:
- Mayor LeGrand recused himself due to a partial business partnership with Van Strain, framing the decision on transparency and avoiding the appearance of favoritism. Commissioner Kilgore noted Van Strain's past service and the need for institutional continuity. The commission voted to approve the appointment without the Mayor.
- Conflict of Interest and Financial Disclosure Policy:
- Commissioner Robbins and Mayor LeGrand championed the update to require robust financial disclosure for commissioners and their spouses to increase transparency and trust. Commissioner Purdue noted the addition of "business interests" as a key factor in securing support. The commission voted to adopt the updated policy.
- Noise Ordinance Amendment (Amplification Ban):
- Mayor LeGrand: Expressed support for the ordinance, arguing it is a reasonable, content-neutral restriction to balance free speech with the right to privacy and peace of mind near medical facilities. He emphasized that rights have limits and noise is a legitimate public safety concern.
- Commissioner Robbins: Opposed the vote, citing concerns that the discussion had shifted from noise to content (dislike of the message) and advocating for enforcement of existing noise ordinances rather than a new ban on amplification.
- Commissioner Purdue: Opposed the vote (via a motion to postpone), citing concerns that the 100-foot zone would create a "floating buffer" in downtown, inadvertently restricting legitimate protests (e.g., nurses, athletes) near other healthcare facilities like Cherry Health and Trinity. She requested further review of federal laws addressing obstruction and intimidation instead of a broadcast ban.
- Commissioner Sasi (now Knight as President): Supported the ordinance, emphasizing the need to address noise complaints from neighbors and businesses, and highlighted the companion item reducing penalties from misdemeanors to civil infractions. She also noted the distinction between the ordinance's intent (noise/privacy) and the content of the speech.
- Commissioner Kilgore: Opposed the motion to postpone but warned against "Christian nationalism," clarifying that elected officials are accountable to the Constitution, not religious text, and rejected the idea that the city is governed by Christian law.
- Procedural Outcome: Commissioner Purdue's motion to postpone the vote failed (3-5). The commission proceeded to a roll call vote on the noise ordinance amendment.
Key Outcomes
- Appointment Approved: Kyle Van Strain appointed to the City Planning Commission (Mayor abstained, motion carried 6-0 among voting commissioners).
- Ethics Policy Adopted: Resolution to revise city policy on conflicts of interest, ethics, and financial disclosure passed unanimously.
- Noise Ordinance Adopted: The ordinance amending Chapter 151 (noise control) regarding amplified sound within 100 feet of healthcare facilities passed by a vote of 4-3 (Yes: Mayor LeGrand, Commissioners Belchak, Sasi, Kilgore; No: Commissioners Robbins, Purdue, Knight).* (Note: Transcript notes the vote tally as "Passes four three" after a roll call listing Yes/No positions).
- Companion Ordinance Adopted: The ordinance amending Chapter 17 (municipal civil infractions) to change the penalty for noise violations from a misdemeanor to a civil infraction passed unanimously.
- Motion to Postpone Failed: The attempt to delay the noise ordinance vote for further legal review did not carry.
Correction on Vote Tally based on text: Mayor LeGrand (Yes), Commissioner Belchak (Yes), Commissioner Sasi (Yes), Commissioner Kilgore (Yes) = 4 Yes. Commissioner Robbins (No), Commissioner Purdue (No), Commissioner Knight (No) = 3 No. Result: Passed.
Meeting Transcript
Call this meeting of City Commission order. It sounds like we almost uttered our moment of silence earlier there. But um we do like to start our meetings with a moment of silence, so please join us. Please join us in the Pledge of Allegiance. One nation, another God, individual liberty justice for the clerk, if you could call the role, and while you're doing that, if your interpreter could come up, um well, you're close enough. I'll let you go first. Um just explain your role in Spanish uh since in English everyone knows if there's anyone here who needs translation um services into this uh of what we're saying into the Spanish language. Um interpretaciona sta disponible butnol, por favor. Gracias. Thank you. Commissioner Belchuk. Present. Commissioner Purdue. Present. Commissioner Sasi. Present. Commissioner Robbins. Present. Commissioner Knight. President Commissioner Kilgore, Mayor LeGrand. Present. Um, and that moves us into public comments on agenda items. So anyone who wants to talk to uh uh speak to items that are on the agenda, uh please keep your comments uh focused on the agenda itself. And also uh there's a three-minute timer that's up here, so we'll keep we'll ask you to abide by that three minute time. I don't want to have to interrupt you, so keep an eye on the timer. Thanks. Hello, I'm D. Jones. Happy 2026, everybody. Feel like I should be the first person to speak because I like to take initiative. Uh I would like to speak on Fiscal Committee Resolution 5, which is the city of GRK developing arts and culture strategy. So, as you guys know, I brought the largest regional finals in the entire United States here uh to our city, uh to the divorce place, and I've actually uh got an opportunity to develop a camp. I've actually created and developed the culture around gaming and esports. Uh a lot of people know the city for beer and furniture, but our city is also known globally because of me for esports and gaming. So, as you guys are developing these strategies and speaking about arts and culture, as you guys probably don't know, but the gaming industry is two times larger than the film and music industry combined. That means you could combine every song, every production, every TV station that every TV show that you sit there and spend your time on, and it's two times the revenue. So gaming is very, very huge. And I've already known this, and I am the sole pioneer that has put years and years and years and years of advocacy into uh our community. Also, uh just yesterday, Union High School just received their video game consoles uh for their esports lab. So we actually are going to have full-fledged esports teams for our community around our uh city, and so the infrastructure is growing, the ecosystem is growing. I helped build literally the ecosystem, the infrastructure. We will literally have no gaming or no educational advancement uh at this capacity without D. Jones' leadership. So as you guys think about strategy across Kent County, I saw as I am the person, the sole person who organized this who's seen this uh since 2018 and literally brought the largest regional finals to the U, the Voss Place. Uh, I would like for you guys to potentially have D. Jones be a part of this. I'd like to be able to give some feedback or figure out how I can give some feedback and you guys a strategy for arts and cartridge because there is literally nobody in the community that did it big as me, and nobody's going to do it as big as me uh this 2026 as we had 39 schools at the divorce place, uh, only at 50% capacity. So I look to see Betsy DeVoss this year and speak to her about public education. Thank you. And if you could give us your name and and where you live, that'd be great.
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