Harford Court Common Council Meeting, January 12, 2026

The City of Harford Court of Common Council convened on January 12, 2026, for its regular meeting. The Council verified a quorum, approved the minutes from the December 8, 2025, meeting, and processed a series of routine appointments, resolutions, and committee reports. The session included significant debate regarding tenant protections and rental licensing enforcement, followed by actions on executive session resolutions. The meeting concluded after the approval of legal settlements.

Consent Calendar

• Approved the appointment of Nelki Maldonado to the Fair Rent Commission.
• Authorized the purchase of property located at 341-345 Main Street.
• Confirmed the appointment of Edison Silva to the Harford Parking Authority Board of Commissioners.
• Confirmed the appointment of Angela Aikenberry to the Harford Parking Authority Board of Commissioners.
• Approved the recommendations of the Capitol Region East Coast Greenway study.
• Confirmed the appointments of Brandon Bess and Kerry Shea to the Historic Preservation Commission.
• Confirmed the appointments of Kyle Anderson and Kathy Herms to the African American and Black History and Culture Commission.
• Established new City Council rules (Item 6.1).
• Established City Council Committees (Item 6.2).

Public Comments & Testimony

• Councilman Mickdom expressed strong support for enforcing fines on non-compliant landlords with four to nine units, stating he could not understand why the city would leave "three or four hundred thousand dollars on the table" to help out-of-town landlords. He noted that 75% of the city are renters and argued that the city should not be "allergic to helping the tenants who suffer for their profit."
• Councilman Gale expressed concern regarding the difficulty of the online application process, citing his personal inability to navigate it as a part-owner of a four-family house. He stated it was not reasonable to penalize landlords who might not afford the fines and argued for the delay to ensure better information is provided.
• In response, Councilman Mickdom maintained that ignorance of the law or confusion regarding the ordinance is no excuse, emphasizing that landlords are better placed to bear the burden of enforcement than their tenants.

Discussion Items

• Rental License Amendments (Item 5.6): The Council debated amending Chapter 18, Section 18-20 to extend the filing deadline for rental license applications for owners of buildings with four to nine dwelling units. The proposal aimed to address non-compliance where an estimated 37% of landlords ignored notices despite receiving them. The Council determined that while the process was new and confusing to some, the legal framework required compliance.

Key Outcomes

• Item 5.6 Passed: The resolution to extend the time period for filing rental license applications for four-to-nine unit buildings was approved by a vote of 8-1 (Councilman Mickdom voted No). The Council retained the ability to enforce fines while providing more time for compliance.
• Executive Session Resolutions Approved:
  • Item 7.1: Approved the resolution for the case David O'Keefe versus the City of Hartford ETAL.
  • Item 7.2: Approved the resolution for the case Anthony Guardino versus the City of Hartford.
• Items Postponed: Agreements were made to postpone specific items (relating to bike lanes, flag display, dog/cat limitations, and tenant relocation services) to a future date of January 26, 2026.
• Items Withdrawn: Item 5.17 regarding the review and amendment of handicapped parking policies and meter charges was withdrawn by the sponsors following a motion.
• Items Referred: Several items, including appointments to the Harford Housing Authority Board of Commissioners and grant acceptances, were referred to appropriate committees.
• Recusal: Councilman Rosado recused himself from the vote on items 3.1 and 3.2 (Housing Authority appointments) due to his employment with the Hartford Housing Authority, though the items passed without a roll call vote affecting his recusal status in the final tally.

Note: The transcript date is January 12, 2026, while the summary title date matches the transcript date rather than the user-prompted 2026-01-13 date.