Hello and good evening and welcome to our Tuesday evening workshop.

We're joined here by the chief of police chief of police, Carly Conley, and also uh Administrator Kenrath.

Uh if you two want to kick it off, uh that'd be great.

All right, thank you, Mr.

Mayor.

Good evening.

Uh counsel.

Uh here with the chief.

We are here to present um a proposal um that you see in the LCIP.

It is for uh take-home vehicles uh for the police department.

Uh just to kick us off.

This is uh something that um will show could lead to some efficiencies and cost savings in the long run uh over a longer period of years.

Um, but also the main goal is to um increase our efforts with recruitment.

As you know, we are down anywhere between eight and twelve to fifteen officers at a time.

Um we need to find other more creative ways to attract uh and recruit uh quality officers here to Lewis, and it is uh one of our major challenges.

Uh as we've talked about public safety is one of our top priorities.

Um and until we fill these seats at the police department, these vacancies, um, doing things like more proactive patrols, community policing, et cetera, um, is exceedingly difficult.

So we need to fill these seats, and this is one potential uh way to begin tackling this problem.

So with that, I'll turn over to Chief Connolly, who has uh slide deck to go through, and then it's time for some questions.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you for the move the mic closer to you, that'd be great.

Uh a lot of people.

A lot closer.

A lot closer.

All right.

Um so thank you for taking the time to uh to hear about this project.

Um it's something that we uh we looked into a little bit a few years back and um we've revisited it.

Um I gave everybody a packet that um basically is the the slide deck and it includes a memo and then also Counselor Chitam had reached out with some questions ahead of time that we answered, so we provided those to you as well.

Um we can also share this with you after um the presentation, and feel free to ask any questions.

So I'm gonna go through the slideshow.

Um please feel free to interrupt if I'm going too quickly.

Um, and feel free to ask any questions as we proceed.

So basically the fleet enhancement project.

Oh, we're not I'll wait a little bit before.

That's a really cool picture.

So what this is is transitioning to a take-home vehicle model, um, to improve long-term cost control, operational readiness, and officer recruitment and retention.

Um the goals of the fleet enhancement project is uh obviously to transition to a take-home system.

Right now we have a pool system.

Um cost savings, improve operational efficiency, support recruitment and retention, as the city administrator mentioned.

That's that's a big one for us.

Increase accountability and fleet longevity, excuse me, longevity, and deter crime and enhance police visibility.

Um a little bit about the program.

It's a model that's used by uh the main state police, uh, every sheriff's department in Maine, and a limited number of rural police departments.

We would be the first municipal l of our size to uh use this program.

And basically, what it does is it's permanently assigns a vehicle for each sworn officer.

And the benefit of it would be patrol vehicles would transition.

Right now we're in sort of a three-year rotation cycle as far as vehicles go before we need to trade them in.

So we would be looking at patrol vehicles lasting seven years, and our CID, which is our detective division, and admin vehicles potentially lasting 10 years.

Obviously, it would increase the visibility in neighborhoods, create a stronger public safety presence, and faster response to critical or large scale incidents.

And this last one I'll touch on just a little bit to bring us back to October of 2023.

That was definitely an issue for us.

But what we dealt with is officers taking their personal vehicles to the scenes, not being equipped.

Some of them had to go to the police station to get weapons and gear.

So that was that was definitely this would be very beneficial should we see any kind of critical incident in the future.

Some of the studies and research, and I and I won't, unless you want me to read every single one of these.

This is just kind of a reference.

What we've found is there's significant evidence to show that operating costs for assigned vehicles are substantially less than the pool systems that we currently are in.

Examples of jurisdictions that have decreased their operating costs by adopting an assigned vehicle program are seen here.

But uh a city of Cape Coral Florida study concluded that an assigned vehicle program was most cost effective in the short term, one year, near future, three years, and the longer term seven years.

In a study done by the city of St.

Petersburg, Florida, they found that the cost per mile to operate patrol cars in a pool program was 49 cents compared to a cost of 40 cents per mile for assigned vehicles.

That savings amounted to them $7600 roughly per vehicle over the course of its life expectancy.

As you can see in there, there's there's several other examples.

Under the pool system previously utilized by that agency, the average life expectancy of a patrol vehicle is only 1.7 years.

And then if you go down to the bottom and look at Texas, that that says that also.

A study showed an increase from three to six years after going to an assigned take-home car model over a pool car.

So I mean, all the research we've done is the longevity of these vehicles, the wear and tear.

Right now, you know, these are running 24-7.

So a cruiser with 60,000 miles on it, they they look at the engine, and it looks like it has 300,000.

So this is where it gets a little convoluted with numbers.

Um, but basically, this is our detailed cost breakdown.

So if you see at the top, the vehicle cost that we would be looking for.

This is the breakdown of what a patrol vehicle would cost in this program.

65,000.

Um, and then you see that we would need our 45.

Um, an admin vehicle, what that is is that's the CID vehicles or the admin packages that we have.

They don't have all of the equipment that the patrol vehicles have, so they're a little bit cheaper.

Um radios, computers, and MDTs, the price prices on that, the in-car camera, um, and then our additional vehicle fees are things like the internet that we need for our MDTs, things along those lines, and then estimated annual fuel and repairs.

So, what we did is we basically took our current system, what we have in place right now, and we tried to compare, we looked at the comparison of if we transition to a take-home, what's that going to look like?

And that's over we did what a cost analysis over seven years.

So that is the beginning of this is that's what this reference is.

So you're looking at monthly in car internet, estimated annual fuel, estimated annual repairs, and you'll see that what this does is it breaks down the current vehicle cost and then the proposed with the increase of to the fleet with the take home.

And the breakdown of that gives you uh an increase of one million.

So what this is is this is the um present costs for vehicles, and that's uh six million at 76,000 dollars a vehicle, roughly, and that's the vehicle including all of the the equipment that we need in it, um the radios, the MBTs, things along those lines.

The estimated take home costs with 65 purchased at a price right now that we'd be locked in at $65,000 would be $5 million, around $5 million.

And then the we estimate that over the course of the next seven years we're gonna need 21 replacement cars.

We have vehicles in the fleet right now that within the next few years are obviously going to need to be traded in, and we incorporated what the cost of that would be, and then added the additional um fees associated with these cruisers and came to the uh seven million mark.

So your net capital cost um right there is five hundred and twenty thousand over the seven years, an increase.

This is just a to give you a picture of what we expect our replacement schedule to be with vehicles.

Um year one, we'd obviously be receiving the 65, we don't need any new vehicles at that point.

Um, and then year two, three, we'd expect given what our circumstances are with the fleet right now, we'd be looking at possibly three more each year, and then it would move on to five, five, and five.

So in that those seven years, we expect it we'll be getting 21 more vehicles based on the lifespan of the vehicles currently in our fleet.

And then you have to look at okay, once you're done this program, what what do we expect to be getting for vehicles from there on?

And we think probably eight is a safe number, potentially ten.

Right now, uh we're budgeting for about 13 a year, just to give you an idea.

This is uh one of the things that in the research we did, uh, many agencies looked into uh what they call the mileage cost comparison.

So they did studies on whether or not there was value based on the pool program, the current program that we have, and then the take home.

So this is basically where I think we see our savings uh to be honest, and when you break this down over the course of seven years, you have about 46,000 dollars in savings.

And then this slide is basically the the breakdown of your capital increase based on um the previous slides, the mileage savings that saves you the 406,000 dollars, the vehicle trade-in.

Um on average right now, we get 10,000 for a trade-in.

Uh so we expect to see that with the 21 vehicles that we trade in, and what we're looking for for a net savings is 95,000.

And this just kind of breaks down where we came out with this.

So basically, the challenge is right now.

What we're looking at is on average, if you look at our budget, what we've been budgeting for our fleet, and and as I mentioned, you're looking at 10 to 13 cars a year.

It's on average a 31% increase every year.

Um so that the baseline for 2000 or 26 is 56,000, 11 vehicles.

We're projecting that out in FY31 to be over six million dollars.

So the solution that we think uh would provide the best efficiency and support an expanding fleet with lowering the long-term cost per unit.

And obviously it provides uh operational excellence and over a half a million dollars and cost avoidance that can be reallocated to other needs in the take-home program.

And then this last slide is sort of just a breakdown of what our expectations on in the next five years where we think we're gonna land if we stay with the same system, which is uh, you know, on average 13 vehicles a year with with a complement of about 38 versus 85 vehicles take home ready to go at five point six million.

Anything you'd like to add, uh uh administrator Kenrath?

No, I think the the chief covered it, but uh you know, like I said, there's there's two, I think, main points to this.

The first is uh an effort at recruitment.

Um there is lots of uh information out there, whether it's anecdotal or otherwise, um, and just the experience of other agencies that this could be uh a major recruitment tool, number one, and number two is when you look at the longer term, there is some cost savings and some efficiency achieved also.

So those are the two main points, but I think we would probably agree that the the effort of recruitment uh is the top priority.

Thank you.

Uh we have about 15 minutes or so uh for time for discussion and questions from counselors.

Uh counselors, do you have questions?

Uh yes, Councilor Roy.

Um thank you very much.

Um thank you for the presentation.

I think it sounds really good money-wise.

I don't know because we've got a lot of stuff coming up.

Um couple of questions I do have.

Um how many officers are we down right now?

So we're we're down eight, but we have two going into the academy, so that would bring us to six.

We have four leaving.

It's like playing a game of chess, to be honest.

Um, but we have four leaving for sure this summer.

Okay.

Um and the two that are in the academy, do they count technically?

But it takes them about a year before they count as as a patrol officer, to be honest.

So we could possibly say maybe around 10 by summertime, we could be down if give or take.

Yes, that that's fair.

Okay.

Um how do we feel this would increase the retention by having a take-home car?

So what I'll say this is I think it helps.

I think we've had a couple officers in the past few years look at other agencies that offer um take-home cars.

Where I think it's our biggest uh assistance is recruitment.

I mean, we're we are fortunate at our agency.

Most most police officers that start working here we don't leave unless they retire.

Um but recruitment-wise, everything we're seeing is it's huge.

It's a huge recruitment thing.

This this generation really likes the the take-home thing.

You know, Andrew Scottin County right now, they're pretty much completely full, and they have take-home cars, state police, it they're down.

I think they have 350 officers, they're down only six.

And in the interviews that we do with a lot of the new hires, that's one of the biggest things they talk about.

Um my final question would be um is there a chance we may be able to spread this over uh a couple of years, like because again, with a big hit to the budget being five plus million dollars, right?

You know, if there's a way to kind of maybe spread it out a little bit to make it a little bit more appetizing would be kind of so we've looked at that, and I have Sergeant Brown here also, if he can be available, because he may be able to, he's really our expert in he manages our fleet uh manager and he does all the research.

But and he may be able to expand on this.

But one of the things if if you look at the average price right now in the pool system is $76,000.

With this, we're locked in at $65,000.

So there's a savings there, and we can't guarantee that that's what it's gonna be next year.

And the problem with uh doing it over the course of three years, then you sort of stay stuck in that pool system of vehicles being driven 24-7.

So it's it that's a challenge.

Um, there are some things we can do that we've discussed, and like I said, he may be able to expand on a little bit more.

I think we may be able to get more time should we go this route out of these vehicles because they're not gonna be as worn down out of patrol and maybe delay getting new vehicles by being able to put those into CID and the life of the vehicles, I think are gonna last longer.

Good.

Yeah, I I think the chief covered it.

I mean, the problem is if you delay it over the course of two or three years, um you're not starting the program until the three-year mark.

So the first couple of years when you're starting the program, all you're doing is just adding a few more cars and a few more cars.

So you are going to leave a little a leave a alleviate a little bit of pressure, but you're still in a fleet program where cars are going to get wear and tear, and then by the time you start that third year and you're in full swing, you've got those cars that you've had for two or three years now that they're fleet cars.

So you're going to start that cycle back over.

So you're just kind of kicking the can down the road.

Appreciate that.

Thank you.

Counselor Harman.

Thank you.

I guess I have a similar question.

So if we buy 65 cars all at once, then at some point we're going to have to replace 65 cars all at once, right?

So I I just wonder, I'm not as concerned about the upfront cost because it's going to be bonded anyway over several years.

But if we if we were to phase this in over several years, it seems like when we get to the 10-year mark or so, we're not going to have another 65 vehicles to replace all at the same time.

So I just wondered, would it make more sense to stagger it over a few years because of that?

So the with the research that we've done, I don't believe that we're going to be dealing with buying 65 more cars, you know, at year six or seven.

Um the vehicle replacement schedule that we're looking at is is how we think it's going to proceed based on.

I I to be honest, I think we're going to get more than what we're projecting as far as the lifespan of the vehicles.

And we have a mix of vehicles.

We have we have patrol vehicles that are driven a little bit more frequently.

Um and obviously our our CID and admin packages are not.

Um I I foresee or our estimations are between eight to ten a year starting uh in year eight.

Okay.

Yeah, that makes sense with the the difference between patrol and other vehicles.

Um I also wondered if we could go back to its page 14, I guess, curbing the trend.

Um sorry, I just got this just when we got here.

Um so I haven't had a lot of time to digest it, but I'm wondering about the math on the left-hand side there, if you could explain what's the 31 percent annual growth and so what we did is we went back five years, I believe, and looked at what our current fleet budget is, and on average there's a 31 percent increase each year currently in in the program that we have.

So then we took where we're at this year and then moved it forward to FY 31 with that increase based on previous budgets, and that's where we think we would be at five years it remaining the same status quo per se.

Okay.

Thank you.

Councillor Nagy.

Thank you, Mr.

Mayor.

Um thank you, Chief, for their uh presentation.

And I I have a few questions uh concerning um I'd like to start just really quickly.

Um this is not completely off track, but um we had requested um a presidential ear mark for uh a bear cat and some other equipment, and I know that that was suspended uh due to like uh the freezes um on the uh uh federal budget.

I'm wondering if if we're coming close to seeing that come through, do we know at all?

So we did just get an update on that, and it looks like it has passed, um, but it has not been signed yet.

So but it's looking like we are gonna receive those.

Okay, that's good.

Thank you.

Um the second question that I have, and I think this is probably more for the fleet manager, but currently we have 20 cars, is that correct?

So yes and no.

Uh we actually have 38 vehicles in our fleet right now.

I'm sorry, can you say again?

Did you say 38?

38, yes.

Um but 38 includes our parking enforcement vehicle, includes um our ACO, our animal control vehicle, uh motor two motorcycles, um, some of the it's they're uh say that again.

Yep, uh those aren't ours.

I didn't actually include those.

Those are the fire departments.

Um we have currently right now, I think I put it in the answers to Councilor Chitham, uh, the breakdown of all of our cruisers and where they're allocated.

I think we have 16 or 17 cruisers actually upfitted and for the and road ready.

We have a couple of cruisers right now that are in the upfitting process and the rest are administrative vehicles and the administrative vehicles include some of the ones I just mentioned.

Okay.

And out of the out of the 17 cruisers that we have, on average, how many of those are in maintenance mode versus on uh ready to go on average?

On average, I would say we have 12 to 14 cars ready to go.

Okay.

Perfect.

That gives me kind of a good idea of operational readiness.

Um right now, um, how many admitting cars are take home vehicles?

Uh I believe it's only the chief and the deputy chief that have take-home vehicles at the moment in my crowd.

For admin cars?

Yeah.

Yes.

Okay.

Um so this proposal, instead of being being focused on patrol, crew, and crow, it would it would expand to the entire department.

Am I correct on that?

Yes.

Okay.

Um one of the things that kind of stands out is that we're having a difficult time getting patrol officers, I believe.

Uh and and so and I think crew is pretty impactful as far as like immediate response within the community in order to uh both um uh respond to crime and also to suppress crime um and also crow as well.

And so I'm wondering, was there any consideration to only keeping this open to patrol crow and crew as opposed to expanding it to the full department?

And keeping and keeping basically a a um uh pool fleet for uh admin staffs in CID.

No, we hadn't really looked into that.

Um so if you look if you look around um the state, it's actually flipped.

Some agencies do sort of like a take-home just for um the admin and CID.

And for us, we felt it was important to have patrol have that option.

You know, that that's the most important for us as far as response and visibility.

Um but you know, we we see a value in in our detectives too.

Um there's there's they're often called called in for scenes, called in um, you know, to handle cases, and obviously their supervisors and admin as well have to be called in at times.

That makes sense.

Um the next question would be as far as distance from the station, um, do we have an idea of you know one of the things I was thinking about was if you live 15 miles from the station, for instance.

You know, like it, you know, my first thought was like if you're a Lewiston resident, it would be great to give only the Lewis and residence vehicles.

Um but then you know, if you live in Sabatis, if you live in Auburn, you're still close enough to the department.

Whereas if you're living if you if you're driving 35 miles each way to get to work, uh that's I think it's a lot more wear and tear on the vehicle, and already there's um operational readiness isn't the same.

And it you're still gonna like whether you're driving 25 minutes to work uh in an emergency or 20 minutes to to work in an emergency, or you know, like so I just as a question, like is there any thought about limiting uh the radius?

So we currently have a radius as far as where you can live, and I believe it's 25 miles as far as to each, you know, to the to end to the line, depending on you know whether you're leaving from Lisbon or headed towards Auburn.

Um and there has been some we haven't landed on a complete decision, but there's been some conversations about that.

Some of the other studies that we've looked at um have allowed people to live within the county or allow people to you know uh live beyond the county.

That's definitely things that we're we're talking about.

Okay.

Um and and I know that because of the way that the shifts are set up and if we have limited availability for vehicles, sometimes we do run into a situation where officers are are uh coming to work and there could possibly not be a car ready for them to take.

Um that does happen, correct?

Yeah, I I would say that the biggest issue with that is details.

Uh last year, I mean I'm sure most of you are aware of the projects going on on Main Street, and I mean we just we had a summer where it was very busy, and there were several times where we had to say we'd have to double officers up, the patrol officers, and there were several times where we had to say we can't provide the detail, which obviously that's revenue that can come into the city, um, but we weren't we just didn't have the the cruisers available for it.

Okay.

Yeah, those were basically my questions.

One of the th one of my thoughts was you know, maybe we start with like one shift for patrol, but I don't know if that actually works.

Um my thought would be, you know, like maybe we give everybody on third shift on patrol a take-home vehicle, and then you know, we see how that works and then maybe either phase it in.

Because one of the challenges that I have with what with bonding this money is like I understand that like yeah, we're bonding the money, so therefore it's not coming out of the general budget, but we are paying interest on it.

So if we take a large hit uh for a lot of cars all at once and then find out that there's uh issues with the program, like we've already we're all in.

So you know that's just a thought from for myself, but I do like the idea for sure.

Um I just think there's a there's it's a big number.

So uh yeah, I understand that it's uh um thank you, Counselor Newton.

Uh I understand it's a big number.

Uh I think if we try to piecemeal it, we will have all these other considerations about how do we, you know, all these um, you know, how do we do it halfway?

I think if we're gonna do it, we should just do it.

Um you know we know it works because other departments are using it, correct?

Doesn't ASO and Sharden Sheriff's Office have take-home vehicles for all of their officers?

Yes.

Okay, thank you.

Uh we got a couple of minutes left for questions before you move to hello, counselor uh uh Counselor Chitham, and then uh Counselor Martell.

Thank you, Mr.

Mayor.

I apologize for being late, and you may have addressed this earlier in your uh comments, Chief.

But one of my questions or the only question I have at this point is when you did your financial analysis, did you include uh as Councillor Neagine alluded to the cost value of money?

Uh we have to pay interest on money that we borrowed to purchase.

What was were those interest payments included in your analysis of savings?

They were not.

Okay, thank you.

Uh Counselor Martel.

Uh thank you, Mr.

Mayor.

Uh thank you for the presentation.

I'm not sure if this is uh for the sergeant or the uh the chief, but could you guys expand a little bit on just the operational and public safety benefits that this would provide uh that may not be it might be in addition to uh the pool vehicles and having you had mentioned the the mass shooting response.

Um there any other scenarios that you can uh elaborate on that could be beneficial from a public safety point of view, uh not just recruitment or the savings, but that might give you uh the ability to better serve the public that you don't have currently with a pool system.

Certainly.

Uh so I think visibility in and of itself uh deters crime.

I think that the visibility of of cruisers, more cruisers uh in the city, you know, whether they're leaving work or um you know, heading into work.

And I think given that you have an officer who is leaving work and in his cruiser and it's equipped and ready to go, he's able to, if something happens in front of him, address it immediately.

Um so I think you know that would be the the biggest thing.

And um so I'm just kind of brainstorming here because we need to fill these vacancies and public safety is how we're gonna drive economic development and all the other needs of the city right now.

So I consider this to be important to see those positions filled.

And I'm just brainstorming a couple different ways for recruitment, and I imagine one would be a spike in pay raise, but that just comes as a hundred percent expense to the city, right?

That just to pay more is gonna cost us more.

I'm seeing uh about a hundred thousand dollars a year savings.

I know it's over time uh to drive recruitment, so to me it seems like a bit of a no-brainer.

Yes, it's a big money out initially, but if the city is saving a hundred thousand dollars a year and it's gonna help drive recruitment, um that just seems like a double bonus for me.

So I'm inclined to support this.

Thank you, counselors.

Uh thank you.

Uh do you have a quick final thought, Councilor Herman?

Um We are over time.

I mean, I don't know if it'll be quick, but I did just receive this 30 minutes ago.

Um I just had a question on the the mileage cost comparison.

Um that's page 12 on the slide deck.

Um you say currently you have about 800,000 miles a year driven, and then you think with the take home program that'll increase just to 900,000.

Um I was wondering if you have an idea of the average distance that an average employee lives from the station, because uh if you take a hundred thousand out, divide it by sixty-five cars, and then divide that by fifty-two weeks, that's only that's only 30 miles a week.

So that's only like a three-mile commute.

Um I don't know if that is that the average commute of an average officer, or is it more than that?

Yeah, let me uh Sergeant Brown did the research on this, so he can probably explain to you how that was just a number that I had pulled from other studies, seeing on gauging on what their increase was.

I just use that as a rough estimate.

We I don't know exactly if we use 800,000, and that was a an approximate one based on the mileage of some of our cars over the last few years.

Um and then I used the percentage increase on their studies and just referenced it on ours, and it came up to about 100,000.

I didn't account for the size of the agencies, I didn't necessarily account for the size of the um how many you know cars they had.

Um so that again was a rough estimate of 100,000.

You're probably not wrong by saying it could be closer to 150,000, it could be more.

Again, just using very generic numbers from the studies that I was able to locate online.

Okay, thanks.

Certainly, feel free to reach out and uh we can share this presentation by email.

I know it was a lot to digest in a small time frame tonight, so feel free to reach out.

Yeah, uh, and that would be great if you could send us to that to us.

Uh uh, we'd be most appreciative.

Thank you both.

Madame Clerk, I think we're heading in to uh an executive session.

Yes, sir.

Uh executive session to discuss the acquisition or disposition of real estate of which the premature disclosure of the information would prejudice the competitive marketing position of the city.

Requested action to enter into an executive session pursuant to main revised statutes annotated title one section four oh five six C to discuss the acquisition or disposition of real estate of which the premature disclosure of the information would prejudice the competitive bargaining position of the city.

Councillor.

Counselor from word two.

Yes.

Yes.

Mr.

Mayor.

Yes.

Uh, we are heading into executive session, but we'll be back for the regular meeting after that.

Hello, and welcome to our Tuesday.

If I can have it quiet, please, that'd be great.

Yeah, yeah, everyone needs to be quiet.

Including you, whoever that was.

Listen, thank you so much for coming to our Thursday evening council meeting.

We're gonna kick things off with the Pledge of Allegiance.

Uh we have Captain Kaya here from the fire department who will lead us.

Uh so uh thank you very much, Captain.

We appreciate you being here.

Uh so a couple of things.

Uh you know, we're gonna obviously work through uh this meeting as uh efficiently as possible.

We need to keep these aisles open.

Uh administrator Kenrath one aisle was here and then what one aisle in the back, is that correct?

Correct across the back.

Okay.

So we do have overflow seating, uh sorry, overflow uh room uh right outside.

Uh the TV is running, so you'll be able to watch us and we'll once we get to public comment, we'll kinda find a way to coordinate all that.

Uh yeah, does that make sense to everyone?

And then uh we need to have it quiet in here, so if you need to talk, uh you know, you can just text each other, so there's that.

Or you can head out to the uh to the hall and converse out there.

Uh all right, did I miss anything?

Uh Madam Clerk or Administrator Kanerath.

Okay, Madam Clerk, I do believe we're ready to begin.

Uh thank you, Mr.

Mayor.

Um, all roll call votes for this meeting will be given with the counselor of Ward Two.

And I understand we have uh minutes.

You do the acceptance of the minutes of the January 5th and January 8th meetings.

So moved.

Counselor Chitham, second.

Sending by Counselor Nagy, Madam Clerk, please call the vote.

Counselor from Ward 2.

Yes.

Ward 3.

Yes.

Word 4.

Yes.

Ward 6.

Yes.

Word seven.

Yes.

Ward one.

Yes.

Mr.

Mayor.

Yes.

Motion pass a vote of 7 to 0.

Uh, we are now up to public comment period.

Any member of the public may make comments regarding issues pertaining to Louis Ton City Government.

This period is reserved for non-agenda items.

Public comment is also allowed during individual agenda items.

Public comment is limited to three minutes per person.

Please state your name for the record and please indicate if you're a losing resident.

Because this is the business meeting of the city council.

All questions should be directed to the mayor who will ask staff to follow up at a future time.

It is illegal for the city council to allow comments related to personnel matters.

All personnel complaints should be made directly to the city administration office.

Uh before you begin.

Why is that?

We're paying these salaries.

We have a right to know what their benefits are and what uh their contract has as far as salary, etc.

Second thing is the city is operating very much lack of transparency, unethical.

And when I say unethical, there are a number, we have two city councils that have been censored by the fellow members for conduct that basically should have been considered criminal.

They were using an app to have conversations between themselves and another city employee.

We have a counselor who approved expenditures for an organization of which his wife was an officer in that nonprofit.

We have city councilors that are having conversations outside of chambers among other counselors.

There was a big uh commotion when we had the gang of four, in which four city councilors went out for a beer at the cage after a council meeting.

And there were several other people there, including at this point a present uh city councilor.

That is still going on, except they're smart.

They're no longer communicating via text message or email.

They're doing things by going to businesses and homes and telling other councils this is what we're going to do, and this is how we're going to vote.

We also have a city administrat uh city mayor and city councillor who have brow beaded city employees.

They have done things behind closed doors that the public is unaware of.

It's actually an embarrassment to the city and city residents.

We're not being told a whole lot of what's going on.

We're being lectured by city councils being told you don't need to worry about the community, uh the main community fund that distributed money to nonprofits.

And I think the comment made at the council meeting was I've been educated, let's drop it.

There's no need.

You don't need to hear about it.

We have a mayor and city councillors that are telling other city councillors you don't need to go.

I have one last comment.

We have that is time, thank you.

We're moving.

I don't agree with your rules.

Just like officers.

Can you please step aside so we can have the next comment please?

I don't agree.

I agree with the city.

Um counselor, yes.

We have a three-minute time limit.

I understand.

Thank you.

Uh next person, please.

Please be mindful that you have three minutes.

Yes.

Can you hear me?

Uh well, my name is Justin Young.

I'm a Marine Corps veteran.

I'm a resident of Auburn, and uh I feel like it was my civic duty to speak here tonight.

And I like to focus my attention on the uh Ward 5 City Council member that's going to be decided tonight.

Uh that's going to be uh public comment during that agenda item.

So you can't speak on that now.

Okay.

So we're just stay a little bit longer, you'll be able to talk about it then.

Okay.

Well, I'll speak about what else I was going to talk about.

But um I think uh importantly, issues across the city and including uh Auburn as well.

Um I think that there are a lot of issues that we're pretending are political issues, but in reality they're not left or right, they're not conservative or liberal, they're not Republican or Democrat.

There are issues that I believe that should be at the forefront of each and every one of your uh decision making, and that is what is best for the residents of Maine, and specifically good policy.

Good policy is seemingly left the ideals or the ideas of politicians today.

And I think that going forward, I think it would be very important that each and every one of you, especially us as citizens focus on what is going to be best for Maine and what is going to be best for the citizens within it, not what is best for your political party or what is going to favor your agenda in the future.

And that's all I have to say, so I appreciate your time.

Uh there's no uh there's no clapping here, thank you.

Um or booing either.

Please continue with public comment.

Uh Mr.

Mayor, before I speak, uh the time is not on the uh screen behind you.

As it traditionally is.

I'll let you know when you're running out of time, good sir.

Please continue.

Okay.

If you want to go against practice, okay, whatever.

Would it be the first time?

Again, as Pauline was saying.

Uh sorry.

Thank you, the IT guy in the back, uh, Matt Roy Ward six.

Um we've had two meetings this far this year.

Um the city attorneys does not understand what the word shall means with within contracts and legalese.

And again, um not to mention um the interpretation that interpretation we got concerning the the charter.

And again, this is all I've said this for God, four five going on five years now.

Going on five years now.

Again, the lack of transparency, the accountability of the government to its residents.

The interpretation that we got.

I I again, well.

And then former Council Pease at the special meeting, Perry's changed his mind because back in 2022, he was all in favor of withdrawing the warrant for the Charter Commission.

And we wouldn't be in this lot of these problems that we faced in the last few months regarding the charter, council seats, school committee seats, is due to the lack of due diligence from city staff, not including change the Charter Review Committee's report to the council included changing that provision from next municipal election to term, which would negate the whole point of the special meeting for three hours of you guys going around and around in circles.

Again, this is on due diligence and the city attorney not understanding the Charter Review Committee.

Because everything he said has no basis.

Council does not decide the recommendations that go to the referendum.

That is the whole point of the Charter Review Committee as outlined in the last 46 years in the city charter.

Thank you.

Further public comment.

How are we doing this evening?

My name is David Jones.

I live in Falmouth, Maine.

I'm here tonight to let you know that we created a petition to launch an investigation by Pam Bondi and the Department of Justice to find out what has happened with the money that was given to the uh people for the victim's fund.

Now there's about 1.9 million dollars that we found out has gone to NGOs and other sources, and we want to find out the backstory on each one of those NGOs.

I think I asked when I was here before that you launch your own investigation.

I think it's important.

I think the people of Lewiston want to see this.

Now we've had over 3,000 people, over 3,000 people sign this petition that they want to know what is going on.

And I hear that Maureen, he comes in, I'm so glad that he fought for our country, you know, and stood up for this.

But we have to have we have to know that the people that represent us are real, and they really do have our back.

I'm not seeing it.

And I'm talking to people in the halls all the time, and they feel the same way.

So I want to read a a couple of uh couple of comments that I got, you know, from the uh petition we are, and this is from Angela.

I donated a considerable amount of money, and I had, and had I known this money was going to be misused or would have donated, I would have donated directly to families with all the fraud, waste and abuse from NGOs.

This angers me to the core that this money was misused.

Another guy, David, no relation.

The lawlessness and corruption in this state and the city of Lewiston needs to end.

And this is the newest, this is the lowest form, a committee trusted with working people's donations, not giving every penny to the victims and surviving family is utterly despicable.

Every person on that committee should be arrested.

Now we don't know who it was, and we don't know what was going on, but these are comments that we're receiving for people.

Roberta, victims deserve justice.

John, turning tragedy into a black box for millions of dollars is how you destroy public trust.

Public trust is what it's all about.

Maine is sliding into a low trust state because accountability is missing.

Investigate the funds, release the records, and stop treating transparency as an option.

So, you know, you hear it, you've you heard these other people speaking to.

You know, why is it that this body is not doing everything they can to find out where that money is?

It makes no sense to me.

It makes no sense to the general public, and I would ask again that each and every one of you get up in the morning, look at yourself in the mirror, and say, Am I doing right by the people that I represent?

That's all I have to say.

Thank you very much.

Further public comment.

Public comment.

Hi, my name is Ephraza It Issa from Mort number two.

Um I just want to say last Thursday we had a community listening session at IFCA community, and I was very happy to see different community members coming in.

It's great to have a relationship with the city and the community where they can have conversations directly because we don't get to see each other in the community.

So that was a great opportunity to meet with each other.

And another thing I just want to say is we're going through a very traumatic events these days.

No, they are ethnic community-based organizations that serve people who were traumatized.

And now again, people are locked up in their houses, afraid to come out because of a narrative that's been politicized.

It became very political.

And some people have not come out and and have supported us.

But I really would like to see companies to show us solidarity because right now anybody who supports immigrants is politic politicized.

And I would like for us to be strong again, like how we came all together during mass shooting at the church and celebrated.

And everybody said Lewis and Strong.

I would like that type of solidarity to see all of us together like that.

I hope we can overcome this.

Thank you.

Further public comment.

Public comment is now closed.

Administrator Kenrath, I believe you've uh have a report.

Right, yes, thank you, Mr.

Mayor.

Appreciate it.

Um quick update.

We are uh moving through the early stages of our fiscal year 27 budget process.

Department budget requests were due to us by January 15th.

So we're now going to begin the process of meeting uh with departments coming through these budgets uh and developing the proposed uh FY27 budget, which will be presented here uh in March per the city charter.

I have a number of staff updates.

I want to welcome some new employees uh to our ranks, uh starting with uh Kendra Wood, who's a new customer service specialist in our finance department.

Um we have three new firefighters, Thomas Hunter, uh Marcus Gaudet, and Ryan Long, so welcome to all of them uh to our fire department.

Uh a few retirements, some of these were long-term employees also.

Roger Parity, um, water sewer uh uh meter uh uh expert in our public works department, uh James Ward, our GES my manager in a public works department, uh Lester Perry, a highway worker, also a public works.

Uh then we have a number of promotions also.

Richard uh Lutz um was promoted to mechanic uh in our public works department, uh Caden Sozier, uh youth aid detective at PD.

Uh Brian Burgoyne uh promoted to sergeant at PD.

Uh Michael Dumont, a lieutenant uh PD, and Zachary Provost promoted to sergeant at PD.

So congrats to all of them, wish them the best of luck in their new positions here with the city, and of course, thank them for all of their years of service.

Um we just heard a bit of this from public comment, but I want to thank everyone who came out not only to the Great Falls Forum to join uh Chief Conn and I last Thursday, but also um at IFCA Community Services.

Uh it was a really great turnout.

Thank you uh to everyone for being there.

Really appreciate the dialogue, really appreciate the great attendance.

Um, and we'll be doing uh more of these, I hope, in the near future.

Um, I think it's really important for us to get out into the community to receive this feedback to show up uh when we say we're gonna show up.

I thought it was a really great event and look forward to to more dialogue and collaboration in the future.

So thank you uh for that.

Uh city reval process.

Um I've uh mentioned this, but we have an insert.

Um it's a two-page front and back insert uh talking about the reval process, why it's happening, and what residents and property taxpayers may expect.

That's going out into all of the property tax bills the next round as well as water and sewer bills.

We're trying to get uh something in front of everyone as best we can uh before these new assessments um do land in the April to May uh time frame.

Uh lastly, I just want to mention we have uh revamped and brought back the employee of the month program uh in our city staff development category.

Our first recipient uh for January was Shelley Godbaugh in our planning and code enforcement department.

So congrats to Shelley.

Uh and we'll be doing this monthly uh in the future.

Thank you.

Administrator Kenra, thank you very much for your service.

Uh Madam Clerk, I think we're ready to start our agenda uh based on the attendance.

Unless there's strong objection from the council, I would like to move to uh move nine move item nine up to now.

I think the council is in agreement with that.

Um thank you, counselors.

Uh Madam Clerk, item number nine.

Thank you, Mr.

Mayor.

Item nine, appointment to fill the current vacancy in the ward five city council position.

There are a couple items for requested action.

The first item is to review the applications submitted for the ward five city council vacancy and to determine a course of action uh thank you.

So uh you know I want to acknowledge for everyone here, we're kind of in uh uncharted territory.

So uh, you know, my plan is to uh our to talk amongst ourselves, develop some sort of a process, and then uh proceed with that process as as orderly uh as possible.

Um what I suggest to the council is um the applicants who are here allow them to adjust the council uh uh for three to five minutes and then uh ask questions uh and then um you know deliberate uh discuss amongst ourselves, head to public comment, and then back to us for uh for a vote.

But that's how I'm envisioning things.

But yes, um feedback on those ideas.

Counselor Chitam, yes.

Mr.

Mayor, thank you.

I certainly agree we're in uncharted territory here.

Uh there is a a debate.

Um I think that the council working out the details of the process, which is a completely foreign process to us, uh, is going to be messy.

We have been charged with being dysfunctional, being done unorganized, uh, not knowing what we're doing.

This is going to demonstrate that in spades.

The other option to us is to vote to go into executive session to discuss this privately.

The optics there are horrible as well, because the public perception is definitely going to be that we're cooking the books behind the scene.

So we're faced with an untenable situation here.

I would beg that the audience be patient with us as we try and muddle our way through figuring out how we seven people are going to replace the 7,000 people of Ward 5 to seat a counselor up here in the vacant seat.

So please bear with us and understand that we are trying to do the best that we can.

I appreciate that.

Thank you very much.

Further thoughts from counselors on the process forward.

Uh Counselor Martell.

Absolutely not.

We do it in front of the public.

This council has enough integrity and transparency issues that I will not suggest or vote for running to the back room.

We'll do this right here where everybody can see.

Uh Councilor Roy.

Thank you, Mr.

Mayor.

Um in full transparency, I do work with one of the um candidates that uh we are going to be voting on tonight.

I work within the agency.

We do not work together.

But I feel that I can make an unbiased opinion to decide who the best candidate is in this circumstance.

Uh further comments from counselors about the process.

Counselor Nagine, yes.

Thank you, Mr.

Mayor.

Just to reiterate, the process that's in front of us should not have been in front of us.

The um error, which was uh a clerical error, uh, that would have changed uh 206 C and 206D of the charter would have allowed for a election, uh special election to be held.

Um unfortunately, it is the opinion of corporation council that we must or may appoint, and the mayor must appoint this position.

So you're going to watch us create a process in this space right now that did not exist before.

I apologize for how this is going to look.

It's going to be ugly for sure.

Um normally when you vote, you don't have a three-minute conversation beforehand.

Um we're gonna hear a good 150 of those.

So thank you all for coming out though.

Uh thank you, counselor.

Uh yes, Councilor Herman.

Thank you.

Well, I wonder, so I echo the concerns of Councillor Najene.

Um, so that the Charter Review Committee in their report included changes to sections 2.06 C and D of the Charter, which would have replaced the language that says the next regularly scheduled election or regular municipal election with the end of the term.

The heading of the agenda item that the council voted on at the time also included those changes, but then the body of that, due to somebody not copying and pasting, um, didn't include those changes.

So we really should not be in this position.

And now that we've had a little more time, more than 15 minutes to think about it, um, I wonder if there is any appetite on the council to have a special election to get another legal opinion.

Um I realize our attorney was you know had to produce an opinion very quickly back uh a couple weeks ago.

And I just wonder if there's any appetite on the council for for having a special election as the charter intends, and which would be the most democratic way to fill this position.

Counselor Chitum, yes.

Uh thank you, Councilor Harriman.

Uh I initially proposed that we quote do the right thing.

I was castigated for that.

The problem with entertaining the thought of having a special election now, which I think we all feel is the most democratic and fairest thing to do, is that if we do that, we have already eaten into the 30-day allowance that the council has to make an appointment.

If we do go down the special election road, that 30-day window is gone, and there will be a very strong opportunity for anyone to argue that the remaining provision of that aspect of the charter be honored and that the mayor would then have the sole authority to appoint a counselor to ward 5.

If there's anything worse than having seven people select a representative for ward five, it's having one person select a representative for ward five.

So as much as I am encouraged by Councillor Harriman's thoughts that that we should do the right thing and call for a special election, I think we're too far down the road of 206 C and D uh to permit that to happen because I suspect very strongly that what would happen is that the mayor would then have the ultimate decision as to who to would sit to my right.

So thank you, Councillor Harriman.

But I think the horses left the barn.

Uh it's up to us in a future meeting to shut the door.

Um but right now we're in a very unfortunate and uh uh untenable position where no decision that we make up here tonight uh or in the near very near future is going to go unpunished by a segment of this population, and that I very much regret.

Uh counselors, I appreciate uh trying to um you know rehash the past in some way.

We did uh we were advised the uh special election would be uh violating the charter.

We even took a vote on it uh last meeting.

Uh I think the path is set before us.

I definitely agree with everyone that special election would have been preferable, but that's not the hand that was dealt to us.

Um I would like to bring the conversation back to to process.

Does any member of the council have strong objection objections to having uh uh the applicants uh speak now and opportunity to uh ask questions and then go from there?

Do we want to give uh the applicants um three or five minutes?

Counselor Chitham.

Mr.

Mayor, I suggest that we give each applicant five minutes in alphabetical order by last name.

Uh sounds agreeable to me.

Counselors, uh does that sound sound okay.

Uh Madam Clerk, it does appear that you have uh uh put these names in alphabetical order by last name.

Is that correct?

Yes, yes, sir.

Excellent.

Uh so I think uh counselors, uh, we should let them speak for five minutes if they so choose to speak that long.

And then after that time, um we will be able to ask questions um which would not eat into their to their five minutes.

Does that make sense?

Uh Mr.

Adam Buckley, have you joined us this evening?

Excellent.

Um yeah, I guess uh let's uh take a seat right up here.

Yep, yep.

Step right up, sir.

And then hopefully uh they are turning on the mics again for us.

Do we have a five-minute timer?

Um Deputy Administrator.

I only can do three out of the well, we'll do three and then we'll we'll stop at two.

Okay.

We have a plan.

Uh please introduce yourself and uh yes, start.

Thank you.

Yes, hello, good evening.

Uh Mayor Shaleen, uh Counselors, everybody.

Uh my name is Adam Buckley, and I'm a resident of Ward 5.

Uh father of four, and I work full-time as the club manager for Planet Fitness and all of the maybe just move the mic a little closer to you.

Move that out of the way.

Uh a father of four, a veteran of the United States military.

Um the Army to be exact.

Uh I'm honored to apply for this seat and serve our community with the same dedication I have s I had serving our great nation.

Early on in my time in the Army, seven core values were instilled in myself, and to this day are still a huge part of my life.

Those are loyalty, duty, respect, selfless service, honor, integrity, and personal courage.

The Army likes to use acronyms, and when you put those together, it's spelled leadership.

I'm looking to bring my dedicated service, leadership experience, and discipline to this council.

Fully supporting key public safety initiatives, a cleaner downtown, family focused policies.

Our great public library that my kids love so much.

And one of the more serious issues in our city, housing and then need for more affordable housing.

I share your commitments to veterans and recovery like you, Council Rinroy.

Community events like Council Counselor Longchamps.

Youth and families like Councilor Martell.

Sustainable growth like Counselor Chitham.

And a revitalization like Mayor Shaleen.

As the only veteran applicant, I'd add a unique voice to a collaborative solutions.

In closing, I would like to thank you for this opportunity to speak.

I'd be grateful for your vote to fill this vacancy and hit the ground running, representing Ward 5 in our city.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Forgive me if you said it.

Uh what did you do in uh in the Army?

Uh originally as part of the US Army Corps of Engineers, serving with the 133rd Engineering Battalion and the 136th Engineer Company, out of Lewiston and Scout Hegan.

Uh during my 16 years in the Army, I also performed 800 military services, funeral services throughout the state of Maine to include high profile KIA, repatriated remains, and two governors' inaugurations.

Thank you.

Further questions uh from Mr.

Buckley.

Uh Counselor Martell, yes.

First of all, thank you for your service.

I didn't really do anything.

Uh you spoke about the library.

What are your uh recommendations and plans would you like to see continue down there?

What's going well?

What would you like to see improved and changed?

Uh as a former uh employee of the library, uh definitely safety would be my number one thing for the library.

Um I do know that a lot of the stuff that happens in that library I don't want my kids to see or have to walk through and see it.

Um that and maybe some additional funding for those safety upgrades.

Uh Counselor Chidam.

Thank you, Mr.

Buckley.

Uh question about finances.

Um we have far more need for tax revenue than we have tax revenue.

Uh how do you approach resolving the dichotomy between what we need and what we can afford?

Try to bring up policies that would definitely bring in businesses.

Um I know the city just lost its opportunity on a data center, which would have brought a lot of revenue in.

Um so finding ways to do that between cutting some red tape for small businesses to provide growth or whatnot.

Um, but also definitely looking at the city budgets and seeing is this something we really need.

Like uh, for example, like I think the whole police take home program, I think it's a need.

Thank you.

Uh Counselor Roy.

Thank you, Mr.

Mayor.

Um Thank you for your service.

Uh appreciate everything you've done.

Um of the questions I've had, um, seeing you have some leadership skills and you are in management at an agent uh corporation right now.

Do you have budgeting skills?

Are you is that something that you do fluently?

So I used to manage a 1.5 million dollar budget for the funeral honors program for the state of Maine.

All right, thank you.

Uh more questions for Mr.

Buckley.

Going once.

I I guess that's it.

Well, I appreciate the opportunity, thank you.

Uh well, one second.

Counselor Shitham, did you have a thank you, Mr.

Mayor.

Again, a process.

Do we want to give the public an opportunity to ask questions of each individual applicant, or do we want to have the public make their comments during the public comment for this item?

I would strongly recommend the public can weigh in during public comment.

Thank you.

Mr.

Buckley, you think Counselor Najing, did you have something?

I was just going to say I would agree with that.

And also the process in which you apply for a uh counselor position in a five-day window doesn't really give uh people an opportunity to get to know anybody very well.

I was going to call you when I when I got your email.

And unfortunately I didn't have the opportunity to, so we haven't actually spoken until right now.

You know, and I think that's really challenging for a lot of people in the community because generally speaking we have a run-up uh to an election.

People get to know uh a candidate and uh and and we base votes off that, you know, and so I apologize that it this is such an awkward uh way to propose for for taking the seat.

Um I appreciate you you applying.

Oh thank you.

And I am an open book, just ask me anything.

Uh well, thank you very much, Mr.

Buckley.

Thank you for the opportunity.

Uh don't go far.

Uh do we have uh a Nicole Johnson here?

Please join us.

Ms.

Johnson, thank you so much.

Um we're uh please please start when you're ready.

Sure.

Uh my name is Nicole Johnson.

Uh I'm a resident of Word 5.

I don't have like a uh large speech prepared.

Uh you know, it's kind of last minute um being asked to speak.

But I have lived and worked in this community for much.

Sorry, can you just move the mic a little closer to you for our folks at home and in the hall?

Um I've lived and worked in this community for much of my life.

Uh run for city council is something that I have been considering for several years, uh, but I missed the application deadline for this last term.

Uh the reason that I'm running for city council is because I believe civic duty is something that you do, not just something that you talk about.

And I want to be part of the change I hope to see in Lewiston.

Because of that, I'm stepping up because too often I felt I haven't felt fully represented in my own city.

While I don't come from a political background, I see that as a strength.

I'm raising my family here.

I live the day-to-day realities of this community, and I care deeply about the direction of our city our city is heading.

I'm committed to listening first, thinking critically, welcoming different viewpoints, and making thoughtful practical decisions that strengthen our neighborhoods and benefit our community as a whole.

Uh thank you very much.

Uh if you're comfortable um uh Sharon, can you tell us uh what you do for work or prior experience or industry even?

Yeah, I mean I work at Maine Solar in Freeport.

Uh I've been there for the last six years.

Um before that, I've worked in a couple different jobs, banking.

I worked at TD Bank right over here for many years before that.

Thank you very much.

Counselor Roy.

Thank you, Mr.

Mayor.

Um this, I hate to put you on the spot, but we don't have a whole lot of time.

If if you had to pick one of the major problems in the city, what would you pick?

I mean that you know, looking at the current climate, right now it's you know protecting our our immigrant population.

Thank you for your answer.

Uh Counselor Chitum, yes.

Uh thank you.

Uh Ms.

Johnson, uh full disclosure.

I've spoken with you and all of the other candidates except Mr.

Buckley.

I tried, we tried, uh, but didn't make the connection.

So we have spoken before.

You mentioned during your brief comments that you'd like to see changes in the city.

Can you elaborate on that?

I mean, you know, there's a lot.

Uh I I drive through the city every day.

I see the people walking down the streets.

I, you know, it it's not lost on any of us, I think, the challenges that we have.

The there's a huge addiction crisis and the need to clean up our streets.

I don't have all the answers, but I want the opportunity to work with my or the fellow counselors to try to find those solutions.

Thank you.

If you did all the have all the answers, you'd be sitting here.

Because we all have the answers.

Um you uh indicate that you don't feel that as a resident of ward five you've been fully represented.

Can you elaborate on that?

I mean the people that I've seen in this position, not necessarily in in my word, but in some of the wards, they don't I haven't seen a lot of the viewpoints and stuff that I share.

Uh or or things that are that I've seen worked on uh are things that I think are the most important.

Thank you very much.

Uh further questions uh from counselors.

I uh I guess we're set for now.

Thank you very much for joining us, Ms.

Johnson.

Uh Karen and Majoris Collins.

Please uh come join us.

Please uh proceed when you are ready.

Sure.

If you uh you'll probably need to move the mic closer to you.

Thank you.

Um good evening, Mayor Shaleen um and members of the Lewiston City Council.

Uh thank you for your service to Lewiston and for your efforts in conducting this process under difficult circumstances.

Like many of you, perhaps even all of you, I believe this decision is best left in the hands of the voters, and I fully support a special election in Ward 5.

Stemming from the same place, I would encourage you when you do eventually go to public comment to prioritize the voices of the people who will be represented by whoever is um appointed this evening and give Ward 5 voters um and residents first priority to speak.

Uh thank you as well to my fellow uh applicants for your desire to serve the city.

And uh most of all, uh thank you so much to the people who came out tonight to make their voices heard despite the cold and the danger.

My name is Kiernan Majoris Collins.

I'm a lawyer here in Lewiston.

Before I talk about my qualifications and what I hope to bring to the city council, let me take a moment to tell you about my day.

This morning I worked with a young man who fled his home country after violent attacks and death threats from his government because he dared to object to corruption.

He is asking the United States to follow the law and grant him asylum.

Later, I received a frantic call from a family member of a woman in Lewiston abducted this afternoon by unidentified men with guns.

She has broken no laws in her many years in our community.

But as of this evening, her children still have no idea what has happened to her.

And just before this meeting, I advised a man who told me ICE was looking for him in Lewiston, despite his compliance with immigration law and operation of a successful small business in our city.

Now I am here carrying their stories and so many more.

Our city is in a moment of crisis, and we must rise to the occasion together.

As a lawyer serving our city's most vulnerable, I am ready and able to meet this moment.

Hopefully, this time of danger will eventually pass.

And when it does, Lewiston will still face many of the same challenges we have had we we have faced since I first came here to attend Bates College in 2014.

We will face the challenge of crime and gun violence and drug addiction.

We will face the challenge of responsible budgeting at a time when Lewiston residents are struggling with affordability.

And we will face the challenge of economic development, of finding ways to make it easier to open and grow a business in our community.

I am ready and able to meet these challenges, and to do so in a spirit of collaboration and cooperation.

Before law school, I worked in the Anderscragan County District Attorney's Office.

And during my time at Boston University School of Law, I worked as a student prosecutor on drug and gun cases in Greater Boston.

After law school, I worked as a law clerk to the Honorable Stephanie Seymour of the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit, where I handled complex federal criminal appeals.

The opinions I helped draft are now binding law across a large portion of the country.

These experiences, along with my current work as an attorney, give me a useful and nuanced perspective on the issue of crime, and public safety will be my number one priority as a city councilor.

Together with all stakeholders represented, we can and will make Lewiston a safer place to live for everyone.

I know the City Council is about to enter budget season, when the city must balance supporting public services with keeping taxes as low as possible.

I'm familiar with this work too, having previously gone through two budgets as a member of the Lewiston School Committee and two budgets as a member of the Anderscoggin County Budget Committee.

In what would be my fifth budget season, I will bring that experience to bear in working with you all to crasp to craft a fiscally responsible budget for our city.

The task of crafting such a budget will be easier in the years to come if we grow our tax base now.

I am a small business owner in our downtown, but I also have a growing number of legal clients who are current or future business owners.

I understand the challenges involved in getting a business off the ground and of growing it over time.

As a city counselor, I want to work on making it easier for entrepreneurs to start businesses in Lewiston, strengthening our local economy, creating jobs, and reducing the tax burden on seniors and working families.

Strengthening our local economy, creating jobs, and reducing the tax burden on seniors and working families.

I appreciate you taking the time to listen to me tonight, and I look forward to the opportunity to work with each one of you to bring Lewiston together and to move our city forward.

Thank you.

Questions for uh uh Mr.

Mr.

Collins or Mr.

Majoris Collins.

Majoris Collins.

Uh thank you.

Yes.

Questions for Mr.

Majores Collins.

Counselor Chittham.

Thank you, Mr.

Mayor.

Uh Mr.

Majoris Collins.

Uh first of all, I'd like to thank you for your work on behalf of the immigrant community.

Um it's valuable work.

And that leads to my first question is how will you continue that if you're devoting full-time efforts to sitting on the city council?

Um my understanding is that many city councillors um have a full-time job.

Um the Lewis and City Council, while a demanding position is is not a full-time job and certainly doesn't pay like one.

Um, I think that just as um you know many of you are able to balance your responsibilities um as professionals, um your work responsibilities, um, so too would I be able to balance um my legal responsibilities and my council responsibilities.

I will also say that one of the good things about owning your own law practice is that you can scale your um uh workload up or down depending upon how much time you have.

So I imagine I may not uh be able to take on as many clients during budget season and can take on more later if I'm for serving on the council.

Thank you.

Did you have uh more questions, Counselor Chidham?

Uh I do, but I want to yield to to another counselor.

Uh okay.

Uh counselor uh counselor Martell, yes.

Thank you, Ms.

Mayor.

Um good evening.

I would like to ask uh Lewiston government is nonpartisan by design.

Uh you have quite the history of partisan behaviors and politicking.

Uh would you like to address some of the videos that I've seen on line recently of you uh harassing at his home a former uh candidate for this city council and maybe explain some of your behavior outside of his home for over half an hour with the other current uh the current city council candidate at the time that you've supported um it's been well circulated, and I'm just curious if that represents how you intend to deal with your colleagues going forward.

Uh Counselor Marshall, I have no idea what you're talking about.

Um, if the council chambers could please uh refrain from um uh making noise.

Um please continue.

Well, what I would say is that uh during my time on the Lewiston School Committee and my time on the Indus Gargan budget uh county budget committee, um I regularly worked with people with whom I strongly disagreed um uh to pass policy that was in the interest of our schools and our county respectively.

So it's your testimony here in front of us you don't recall going to his house and harassing him, and you have no idea that there's any recordings of such circulating on the internet.

Again, um I have no idea what you're talking about.

Um is this something that purportedly happened to you?

I'm I'm confused.

No, no, it was um the candidate running against Sophia Khalid a few years ago.

It was a fellow Democrat.

I believe you showed up with her at his residence.

He had just gotten out of uh surgery, and there's video of you pounding on his windows and his doors and harassing him from outside his home for over 30 minutes.

That's categorically untrue.

Any video to that effect would be uh absolutely false and and subject to defamation.

Interesting.

I do have another question.

So I do I believe that everybody uh deserves an attorney and the right to representation.

And I know that you recently represented uh the city counselor, the prior city counselor that stepped down.

So I'm asking you to separate your legal standing from uh your personal one.

Uh is it still your belief that uh that individual is the person that rightfully belongs up here?

You advocated strongly on his behalf.

As I do with all my clients, but um I think that um the prior city counselor uh made the decision to resign, so I don't see any reason why he would continue to be on the council if he had resigned.

I'm confused by your question.

Okay.

That's it for now.

That's all for now, Mr.

Mayor.

Uh thank you, Councillor Martell.

Uh further questions for uh Mr.

Majuris Collins.

Uh Counselor Nagine, yes.

I just want to put out thank you, Mr.

Mayor.

I just want to put a point of clarification.

I actually spoke to Walter Hill on my way in today.

Um he called me on the way uh two council meetings, uh two council meeting, and he said that if anything came up concerning him, any one of the counselors can talk to him directly, but he did not want anyone to be speaking for him here.

So thank you.

Was that everything, Counselor Nijene?

Yeah, that's it.

It's just the the conversation uh concerning Walter Hill should probably be had with Walter Hill if you have a question about what happened.

Thank you.

Yes, Counselor Martel.

I would just like to clarify that I wasn't trying to speak for Mr.

Hill.

I was asking for um Mr.

Mandreus Collins uh testimony on the video that I saw associated with his behavior.

Uh counselors, if I may, we're not gonna go back and forth.

We're here to ask uh applicants questions.

Um counselor Chitam, did you have further questions that you did not get answered?

Uh no, thank you, Mr.

Mayor.

Uh further questions uh for the applicants.

Thank you very much.

My pleasure.

Thank you.

Uh is Chrissy Noble here.

Thank you for coming.

Please join us.

Hi, thank you for hearing me out.

If we can just move the mic uh closer to you.

Uh perfect.

Is that better?

Yeah, that's excellent, actually.

Thank you.

Uh yes, please introduce yourself and uh take it away.

Okay.

My name is Chrissy Noble.

Um, a little bit about me.

I was born um to great-great grandfather.

Well, my great-great-grandfather was a Canadian immigrant.

Um I've lived in Lewiston for 20 plus years.

Ten of those years have been in in the downtown area.

Um my children have attended Lewiston Public Schools, and now my grandson is started kindergarten in Lewiston Public Schools.

Um I work at New Beginnings as a youth worker.

I've been there for 17 years.

Um I'm trained as a family conflict mediator.

I have multiple trainings in harm reduction, crisis intervention, conflict resolution, trauma-informed care, homelessness, and substance abuse disorder.

Sorry, I'm a little nervous.

Um the reason that I uh presented uh application was I feel like our ward has been underrepresented.

Um we have a lot of members from the African community in our ward.

Um, and I feel that they need to be protected right now.

Um I feel that my experience in conflict resolution does help me to see all the sides of a situation and to be able to find some sort of middle ground to be able to work on solutions.

I'm not gonna pretend that I'm political or that I'm a master of policy, um, but I have a really big heart.

I've lived in the city a really long time, and I have a good understanding of the people who live here also.

Um I guess that's it.

Thank you so much.

Um Counselor Counselor Longchamps.

Yes.

Hi, Chrissy.

Hi.

Uh thank you for your application.

Um I know you personally, and um I think you do great work.

Um you're a great person.

Thank you.

Uh the only question that I have for you tonight um is I'm just confused because you had pulled your application.

And then at the ninth hour, decided to put it back in.

Uh for me that's hard because uh I I just don't know why someone would do that.

So if you could just help me understand.

So initially I had um, you know, wanted to maybe try and see if this was something that I could do.

Um I was worried about I work at in the evenings, I work four to midnight.

So I was worried about being able to um, you know, be present and be here and be effective.

Um since then I did speak to um you know some friends who helped me to kind of like, you know, hey, I think you can do this.

I spoke with my director um at New Beginnings, and they have assured me that they would accommodate um my schedule here so that I would be able to, you know, be present, be effective, and hopefully help.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

I was gonna say four to midnight.

Those uh sometimes mayor hour hours.

Further comments, questions from counselors.

Uh counselor Longchamps, did you have anything else?

No, thank you.

Oh uh Counselor uh Chitam.

Yes, uh thank you, Ms.

Noble.

Uh I appreciate there.

I have spoken with you on the phone as well.

Um I'm gonna ask you the same question I asked another applicant.

Uh how do you reconcile the needs of the city with the ability to pay for those needs?

Um, well, like I said, I'm not a you know, I'm not big on policy, I don't know a lot of stuff, but I do understand grants, I understand budgeting, um, you know, from my own personal household to the agency I work for.

Um I would hope that we could find grants and funding to do some of the things that the city needs as far as like you know, cleaning it up, you know, getting harm reduction strategies in place, maybe hopefully.

Um stuff along that line.

Thank you.

I heard you mention harm reduction strategies.

Could you elaborate on that a little bit?

Um, I guess just like the basic thing about harm reduction is it's the idea that we cannot stop people from using substances or doing things that are harmful to them, but what we can do is teach them and educate them how to do those things in a safer way.

Um there's been I know that it's a touchy subject, and a lot of people get you know real heated about it, and I understand I'm passionate about it too.

Um, but there is you know a lot of um you know articles and data to back up harm reduction and the effectiveness of it as far as substance abuse disorder is involved.

Thank you.

I appreciate that.

I did not mean to put you on the spot, but this position entails being put on the spot a lot.

So uh if you are selected, you need to get used to that.

I appreciate your being here, and thank you for your willingness to submit an application for this increasingly difficult job.

Thank you.

Uh Counselor Roy, did you have questions?

Thank you, Mr.

Mayor.

Hey, Chrissy.

Hi.

Um of the things that you had already elaborated a little bit on was um work and counsel.

During budget season, there's a time where we may be here to maybe three nights a week.

So is that something that your employer will be understanding of?

Um I'm lucky that I've been there a long time, so I do have some the ability to be able to move my schedule a little a little bit here and there.

So I can pick up day shifts, I could do overnight shifts, I can I can move my schedule however I need it to be in order to still be doing my job and be effective here, I believe.

All right, thank you.

Uh can I maybe this was already covered?

What do you do at New Beginnings if I may ask?

Excuse me.

What do you do at New Beginnings?

Um, I'm the lead youth worker, and I specialize in family conflict mediation and uh conflict resolution.

So I I work with direct care with youth, but I also do side missions kind of where I'm um working with families and with the preventative piece of you know homelessness, youth homelessness.

Gotcha.

Thank you.

Further questions uh for Ms.

Noble.

Uh thank you so much for joining us.

Thank you.

Uh the honorable uh Rinsewell.

Uh two years, Mr.

Mayor.

Soul.

So I apologize.

Uh thank you for joining us.

Please start when you are ready.

Just move the mic closer to you.

Let me pull the chair closer.

Okay.

Okay.

So Honorable Council and Mr.

Mayor.

Thank you for the opportunity to speak today.

I respectfully ask for the consideration for appointment to the ward five city council seat.

For the past two years, I have had the privilege of serving as the ward five city counselor.

And it has truly been an honor.

Ward five is where I live, it's where I know my neighbors, it's where my roots are.

But my responsibility as a counselor has always been the entire city of Lewiston.

Every decision we make affects us all.

I have worked hard to represent not just one ward, but every resident who calls this city home.

A divided city will never thrive.

I have served with honesty, integrity, and a deep love for Lewiston.

I care deeply about the people who live here, the people who work here.

In the future we are building together.

Diversity is not a weakness, it is strength.

Ward five is a community rich in culture, backgrounds, perspectives, and I value every one of them.

Recently, I have had meaningful conversations with residents who want to feel more connected and more represented, including members of our immigrant community.

And I am grateful for those conversations.

They have reminded me that good leadership starts with listening, with humility, with the willingness to grow.

I am committed to continuing that work, strengthening communication, building trust and ensuring that every voice feels heard, respected, and included.

My service on the Lewiston Youth Advisory Committee has furthered opened my eyes to the strength of our broader community.

One that supports one another, has deep roots here in Lewiston.

It reinforced my belief that we must honor our city's history while also welcoming thoughtful, positive change that moves us forward together.

At the heart of this, my goal is simple to make Lewiston a place where everyone feels they belong, that they feel safe, and it is a place that we are all proud to call home.

If appointed, I give you my word that I will continue the work to work hard for all of Lewiston, remain fiscally responsible, and be an accessible engaged and council counselor who listens and advocates for the people I serve.

I say this often, and I will continue to say it.

I love this city and I love serving the people who I who call it home.

So thank you for your time.

Thank you for being here.

Counselor Chitham.

I think I know uh Ren Sol fairly well, having worked very closely with her despite some ideological differences over the past two years.

Um I commend her for enduring this grueling operation, and I thank you for your continued interest in serving uh on the council.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Yes, thank you.

Uh yes, Counselor Longchamps.

Yes, I'm I would just like to uh thank you.

Uh mainly for working so well with us.

Um I don't always uh do that so well, but you have always no matter what the situation was uh you weren't um so into leaning to the right or the left.

You really thought about what was best for the whole city of Lewiston, and again, I haven't always done that, but you have a really great talent with that and a gift that not all of us have.

Um what I heard from you was that there's room for improvement to um make sure that all of your constituents are heard and that you represent all of them, and without a doubt, you will do that.

Um there were times that you called me, well, you sent me a mess asking me um if you could volunteer at my store because it is right on Pine Street, and I have a wide variety of customers that I love.

Um, but you knew that was a place that you could go and uh uh hopefully mingle with some of the people that you don't see all of the time.

I'm sorry that I wasn't able to make that happen.

But that told me how much you were willing to uh engage and with everyone in your community.

I believe that you are the right person to sit there.

I appreciate all the of the other applicants.

Um, but you have shown integrity up here, you have served honestly, and I believe that you would continue to do that, and it would be uh a shame, in my opinion, if you were not appointed that seat back.

And I would encourage the other applicants uh next time around to uh get out there and and take a run for it.

But for now, I think that you are the right person to sit there.

So I don't really have any questions, but okay.

Thank you.

Thank you, counselor.

Uh thank you.

And I would like to remind counselors that we will have time for uh discussion and deliberation.

Uh but now is the time for questions.

Uh Counselor Martel.

Uh semi-local government faces transparency and integrity issues right now.

During your uh term, did you ever face reprimand or uh punishment of any kind for your behaviors?

No.

And could you tell us a little bit about the uh the ordinances that you were able to pass and why they were important to you and some of the process that you had to go through with your fellow counselors in order to bring those to fruition.

Uh well, the first ordinance was the um the curfew ordinance.

I petitioned to change it so that it would be 10 p.m.

seven nights a week.

Um, and that stemmed from um a lot of the gun violence that we were seeing in reports that it was minors.

So um I just wanted to give the LPD another tool to hopefully take some more weapons off the streets, and hopefully maybe the parents, something that they could use to get their little ones home on time and not out on the street, because well, nothing good happens after 10 p.m.

So another ordinance that I worked on was the needle ordinance.

And that was a very long process.

It wasn't everything I wanted in it, but um I still think that as a group we created a really good piece of um city policy.

And uh probably my last question will be can you just tell us a little bit more about your time on the youth advisory committee and how that's uh affected your views and um feelings about the city and the youth of the city and where Lewiston is going and the importance of those uh individuals.

Uh it's really open my eyes up um to just how fantastic the youth are in this city.

Um they they're unstoppable.

We have um done youth festivals to um out in Samar Park where you but they were booths to get the um the residents involved so that the youth could show them, you know, this is what we're interested in, this is what we're doing, this is what we need.

Um it's just been really fantastic to see um just how much they they want to be out in the community and get the rest of the youth involved.

So it's it's been pretty great.

Thank you for everything you've done for Lewis soon in your term and what I'm confident you'll continue to do whether you're appointed tonight or not.

Thank you.

Uh further comments or or sorry, further further questions for Ms.

Sol.

Uh Counselor Roy.

Thank you, Mr.

Mayor.

Hi.

Hi, Ren.

Um I didn't know you before you uh got on the council uh two years ago, and I just want to say, you know, I consider you a friend.

Um I've seen you grow.

I've seen you find your voice, and I really appreciate that about you.

Um but I do have a couple of questions for you.

How would you or how did you separate your beliefs and feelings with constituents that do not share the beliefs that you do?

Um that's a tough question because I put it into a little context, but um I can give you a little context if you want to.

I've never pushed my beliefs on anyone else ever.

I never sat in that seat as a Republican.

I sat in that seat as a city counselor.

So um I'm always willing to to listen and be open to whatever somebody wants to say.

And one other question I've got.

Um there are a lot of people scared right now on the listing.

Um what would you say to comfort them?

I mean, there's there's a lot of people scared.

They don't even want to get out of the house.

Yeah, there is.

And um I I think it's it I think it's unfortunate that our community has to live in fear.

Um I don't think anyone should have to live in fear.

So um I do encourage people to know their rights.

Um I reach out to your neighbors, make sure that everybody's okay.

Thank you.

Further questions.

Thank you for joining us.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Madam Clerk, I believe that's all the applicants.

It is, yes, sir.

Uh discussion uh from counselors before uh uh we had the public comment.

Uh and I want to talk about public comment before we head to it, but uh questions first.

Counselor Nijing.

Comments, Mr.

Mayor?

Questions or comments?

Well, discussion amongst ourselves.

Okay, thank you.

But if yeah, I sorry if I may.

Um I think it's perfectly fine if um if a counselor was like, oh, I have a question now, we can invite an applicant up to the podium and get it answered.

So yeah, I appreciate that.

I just wanted to say thank you for all the applicants that came up.

Um this is a really weird uh way to interview for uh council position.

And so that took a lot of bravery for all of you, and I appreciate all of you to come to step up and and and speak in front of the council, especially considering that four of you have never even spoken in a situation like this before, I'm sure.

Um so thank you.

Uh Counselor Herman.

Thank you.

I just wanted to clarify the process we're going to use, and that can either be done now or it could be done after public comment, but um you know how how are we going to conduct the vote?

Is it going to be you know is it is it going to be ranked choice or is it going to be uh a plurality?

How many votes does it take to to prevail?

Um questions like that, but they can they can either be answered now or after public comment.

Uh I think we're okay to answer them now.

Thank you.

They're great questions.

Madam Clerk, your your thoughts on this matter before we uh start discussing up here about that?

Sure.

Thank you, Mr.

Mayor.

Under Robert's rules of order, they would be uh by majority vote, not plurality, but majority vote.

And in the past, um counselors, when we've had openings and applications, counselors would nominate someone from the list of um applications.

Under Robert's rules of order, a nomination does not have to be seconded because the group is going to be voting on it.

So one counselor can nominate uh one of the applicants.

Those applicant names will go sort of on the floor, if you will, and then we uh in past practice we would take a vote, and when you vote, you're not gonna say yes or no, but you're gonna say the name of the nominee.

Um, and then it would be majority vote who receives a majority of the votes cast, and then uh that would be sort of the selected nominee, and then the formal vote motion is item uh two in your book, which would be to appoint applicant X to fill the vacancy regarding the time frame and so forth.

Uh thank you, Madam Clerk.

Uh Council Herriman, yes.

Yes.

So I guess um with the the informal vote before the the motion, which is marked as number two, um if people if there's a tie, um then do we just have to work that out before we make that formal motion or how does that work?

Sure, a tie vote under Robert's rules of order fails because it doesn't receive passage one way or the other.

So a tie vote would fail.

Um so then you would need to basically keep revoting um unless someone wanted to withdraw a nomination in case the structure changes before you, uh, but you would keep revoting until um uh an um applicant is selected.

Uh councilor Herman, did you have further questions?

Yes, and then the the final vote um, you know, once once we come to a conclusion and then we have the formal vote at the end, does that require four votes for passage or is it just a majority?

Majority.

Okay.

And does that change if members abstain?

Does that change the calculation or anything?

Robert's rules of order says for majority vote, it's of the members present in voting.

So abstentions are uh basically um not a yes or a no vote.

They're basically not counted and calculated under Robert's rules of order.

So if um you know so if it ended up going, let's say let's say three people abstained and there were four people voting three to one, the person who got three would would still that vote would still carry, even though it's not four majority of the members present in voting is the language from Robert's rules, yes.

Okay, thank you.

Thank you, Madam Clerk, and thank you.

Thank you, Councillor Herman, for your questions.

Um yes, discussion on applicants before we talk about going to public comment.

Uh counselor Chitam.

Well, I was going to talk a little bit about process and ask questions about process.

Um is it my understanding that it would require four votes to uh secure a nomination, which would then go to a vote of the council as to whether to appoint that selected nominee?

Uh that is not my understanding that it would need four votes, it would be majority uh vote.

And you've just stated that an abstention is not a vote.

Correct.

An abstention is counted as a blank or a pass.

In some sense, in some instances, an abstention is counted as a no vote.

And I'm I'm very confused about the status of an abstention.

Now I don't know that any counselor is going to abstain, and I have spoken to each counselor uh asking that abstentions be avoided if at all possible, but each counselor makes up his or her own mind on that matter.

Uh my understanding is that if there are six votes and one abstention, then the only way that a majority can be held is with four people voting for the same nominee.

If three and three, that that's that's a failed vote.

And do we re-nominate the slate or do we continue voting on the same slate of people who have been nominated initially?

So if it's if it's a three and three, it's a tie vote, and so the motion doesn't doesn't pass, so then that's when the council would have to discuss what they want to do.

Do they want to re-vote again?

Is someone planning to change their vote?

Is someone planning to withdraw one of their nominations to again change the the dynamic?

Is someone planning to withdraw one of their nominations to again change the the dynamic it would be up to the council how they would want to proceed but we consulted with a professional parliamentarian today a a national parliamentarian today um and he confirmed that it would be re-voting um and at that point with the council again someone withdraw a nomination or um change their vote they can change their mind you're not locked into if you voted this way and you re-vote you could vote another way so it would really be up to the council to revote to keep revoting until the appointment is filled an another option would be to uh postpone to the next meeting as excuse me as a reminder uh you have 30 days which we determine from before uh ends uh February 7th which is a Saturday and we do have another meeting February 3rd if for some reason the council is deadlocked and we've revoted multiple times and there's no changes one option is to um continue the matter to the next meeting.

I'm not necessarily recommending that one way or the other I'm just saying as a way to clear the possible deadlock if we're not seeming to move forward that is a potential as well.

So to clarify we do not need to re-nominate we can simply take the slate that was initially nominated and revote and revote and revote until it becomes clear that and this is not what I'm projecting it's simply trying to explore the options because we're building this airplane as we're flying it.

I I told you folks this is not going to be a pleasant process.

So we continue to vote until there is some kind of consensus.

If we cannot reach consensus an option that you've uh suggested is to lay this on the table I am absolutely not in favor of this this band-aid needs to be ripped off and the sooner the better I would be very much opposed to uh tabling this and moving it to a later date I think uh this perhaps may be one of the most difficult decisions that the counselors up here have been asked to make uh and I I would much prefer for my own sanity if nothing else to make that decision tonight one way or another so again the order is nominations nominations will finally stop even if there are five nominees and then we'll begin voting and we vote by name candidate A, candidate I'm sorry I keep using that word.

It's applicant A, applicant B, and so on.

And we will require four votes absent any abstentions for an applicant to be forwarded to the final vote which is to make an appointment.

I don't believe four votes are required I believe it's a majority but I'm looking at the city attorney for clarification on that.

Yes it would be can you use your microphone too yes if if there's an abstention or look let's let's say um there's there's seven counselors um participating in the vote potentially so if uh one person abstains um and there's a tie vote then that would be defeated if two people abstained that would be and there was a three two vote then the three two vote would carry the day thank you um I accept that I disagree with it but I accept it I I suspect that we will end up with seven votes I certainly hope we will which would require a majority of four even with one extension exemption abstention I'm sorry uh we would still require four votes is that correct no it would well one abstention with a split vote would be a tie I'm not talking about that I'm talking about forwarding a an applicant to the final process with no abstentions or with one abstention that requires four votes with two abstentions it can be done with three votes correct yes thank you I disagree with that but I'll accept it thank you thank you counselor Trudum Counselor Nagine did you have something?

Just to clarify really quickly on that could I I just want to run the math down.

So if one person abstains one person is uh uh has three nominations one person has two and one person has one does the three nominations carry over for the vote or does it always have to be for the for the ultimate vote but for the nomination we would three two and one would not bring the three vote over not for the number because then it would be a nomin it would be the majority at that point right to please please use your mic uh good sir dot time for for I I I I think it's helpful to clarify the nominate you know the process for somebody some somebody moving to a vote but I don't believe there needs to be a minimum number of nominations in in order for the council to vote on a candidate.

I think it's helpful to clarify the nominate, you know, the process for somebody some somebody moving to a vote.

But I don't believe there needs to be a minimum number of nominations in in order for the council to vote on a candidate.

So my suggestion would be that you know you you vote on a can on a candidate until a candidate has a majority until there's a candidate that has a majority vote of those who do not who those who participate in the vote.

But that basically means if somebody carries three votes, somebody carries two and somebody carries one, the three vote then is the nominee.

Yeah, okay.

Yes, Councilor Harman.

Um could I just get clarification on that?

Because three out of six is not a majority, it's a plurality.

So is is three if the vote breakdown was three, two, and one, the three is not a majority, but it is still the most.

So does that move them along or does that not?

Do they have to have a majority of the people voting or do they have to have a plurality?

I mean my suggestion would be that the council vote on the on the candidate with the most nominations among the group first.

And if that candidate does not receive a majority vote, then you move on to the candidates with the the next most number of nominations from counselors.

Okay.

And then for the next, you know, the formal vote, which is marked as number two, um, does it not does the section of the charter um 2.11 where it says that any action of the council has to have a minimum of four affirmative votes?

Does that not apply on this?

That does not apply because there's a specific exception in that section for the 2.06 D process.

Okay.

I see.

Okay.

Thank you.

Uh I think we're uh well, Councilor Chitham, did you have another question about this?

I do for uh the city attorney.

Um one second.

Uh I understand this is taking a while, but if you can please refrain from speaking, uh so we can have it quiet in the council chambers.

If you need to talk, uh text each other ahead of the hall.

Thank you.

Counselor Chitham, please proceed.

Thank you, Mr.

Mayor.

Uh 211 D, if I'm not mistaken, makes an exception for 2.06 C.

I'm sorry, D.

Or C.

Uh but it doesn't explain why and what the majority would be.

It says all council actions to be effective need four votes, except for when we're voting on seating a counselor, but it gives no instruction as to what that requires.

Correct.

And that and that's where we turn to Robert's rules of order in section 44.1, it defines what a majority vote is.

And if I could just follow up, counselor, our the council rules state that we will follow Robert's rules of order as our parliamentary authority.

So that's the backup and the justification for using Robert's rules because the council rules state that that is our parliamentary governing authority.

Thank you.

Uh counselors, I would like to discuss how we're going to public comment.

Um I propose the following that uh we humbly request Ward 5 residents speak first.

Uh they're allowed their full three minutes, uh, followed by Lewiston residents uh for them from the rest of the wards.

Uh and then given the amount of people here and uh I would suggest that they get one minute and then followed by uh everybody else who doesn't live in Lewiston, should they um choose to speak, we can get a show of hands at that point and then determine the time for them.

Uh thoughts on this?

Um Counselor Chitam.

Uh to recap, to recap Ward 5 residents have a three-minute time limit and are asked to proceed first.

Uh all others are given a one-minute time limit and are asked to follow Ward 5.

If a Ward 5 resident wants to get up after non-Ward 5 residents have spoken, will they be given the three minutes?

Uh I I would say yes, but um you know we uh well we should try to stay in the word five section at the beginning.

I'm comfortable with that if the remaining counselors feel that uh Ward 5 residents who are being were we're being asked to represent them up here, uh be given the full three minutes and that if you're not in Ward 5, you have one minute.

And if you're in ward five and want to come up at the tail end because you've something has dawned on you, then you you have your three minutes.

Is that comfortable with the counselors?

Yeah.

Uh counselor Nathan, your thoughts.

Uh I absolutely support um uh centering the ward five residents first, um, for sure.

I would just point out that there have been uh several complaints about freedom of speech.

Uh uh curtailing f freedom of speech within uh municipal uh functions, and so limiting uh other residents to or other commenters to just one minute does seem uh uh I mean this is gonna be an ugly and long process no matter how we look at it, but I don't want to disenfranchise anybody is is all I'm putting out there.

No, and understood.

We're also um my goal is to finish before uh one a.m.

Uh councillor Martell, did you have thoughts?

I saw your hand up.

Thank you, Mr.

Mayor.

Yeah.

Uh I have similar sentiments.

Uh the standard is three minutes for public comment.

I understand it looks like that could be a little bit tenuous this evening, but I don't think we need to keep changing the rules for our own personal benefit and on a whim.

I think that public comment is three minutes, and the people that take the time to come down here and speak regardless of what word they're from, should it get the three minutes to speak.

Do other counselors want to chime in?

Counselor Long Champs, did you uh want to say something?

Yeah, I think we should give them uh the three minutes that is allotted for public comment.

Like everyone should get three minutes.

Everyone should get three minutes.

Uh I'm uh yeah, I'm I can be flexible.

Uh uh Counselor Chidam.

Yeah, thank you, Councillor Martell, Councillor Longshamp.

Um in order for us to limit anybody to one minute, we would have to vote by a supermajority to change the council rules.

So thank you for reminding me of that, Councillor Martell.

Um so I I'm I'm going to advocate then that uh as long as it may drag this meeting out that that all speakers get a full three minutes.

Uh yeah, no, we will proceed in that fashion.

Um I anticipate uh most of the attendees will speak, but uh maybe not all.

We we're about to find out.

Um but yes, I am asking uh so we're gonna start public comment for this.

You get three minutes and three minutes only, and uh ward five first, followed by people in Lewiston, and uh and and then we'll and then everybody else.

Um sorry?

Do you want her to translate?

Uh I do Madam Clerk, uh were there considerations about translating we were talking before I believe the uh recommendation of the um advice offer, I'm sorry, that was the word I wanted.

The offer was to translate your instructions about speaking at the podium.

Oh, okay.

Yes, thank you.

If you could uh uh Ifra or Sophia, if one of you could could translate that, that'd be great.

Um we also want to translate that ward five residents.

Is that still the plan can get up first?

Yes, yes.

No, we're in a we're all in agreement about that.

Mr.

Mayor.

Uh yeah, sorry, uh Counselor Chitham.

This this then necessitates that a ward five resident who is not speaking in English would have three minutes to present and then presumably a three minute translation period.

Is that correct?

Uh I was thinking that translation would be included in their three minutes, but how does the rest of the council feel?

Uh counselor Herman.

No, it's not fair to limit people to three minutes including translation.

Uh if they if people have three minutes to speak, they should be able to speak for three minutes.

Thank you.

Uh Counselor Chittam.

Yes, and I would ask that that not be abused, and if the speaker can speak English, um that that be done.

Uh if if another language is the principal and or sole language, then I'm advocating that we have a basically a doubling of the initial speak period, whether it's three minutes or two and a half minutes or whatever.

Further uh further comments from the council.

So just to re recap, we will have uh ward five go first, uh followed by Lucent residents, followed by everybody else.

If somebody um cannot speak English uh to the degree that uh they can be understood by us, uh then they will use their their you know the up to three minutes and then up to three minutes for translation.

Is that what I'm hearing?

Yes.

Okay.

Uh Ifra, can you please translate that?

Salaam alaykum talabata man that so malido into joke too.

We had the hand dot code down to word five dagen uh coogi hat layan had the machal shenankof um how application ca so bursa they markas had the heravan ivinkredina into also deep teen said the khaka teen la kinkasaba said the had the khotan into had a sheen we he of dean aha uh shakeen to juan any I need to an i fatlan kofko odya had the high ha than word five mark airda mayan lewis and resident dot colois and daggin a hat layan cabat dinet dot call lewis and udegnanin or dig meta called again uh mark has for sat lessina of siana kin so Marka Koat Harawan dot ka word five dagen in Tehatlan Mahat Senate uh means thank you.

Uh okay, I think uh I think we're ready for public comment.

First uh word five first.

Please step right up.

Hallo Bilau.

Well so is Tai Kirteen.

Don't be shy, form a line so we can uh keep uh keep moving here.

Oh shit.

And could both uh both the uh the person speaking and the translator both speak into the microphone, please.

She will speak in English.

Oh, well, okay.

Please proceed.

Hi, everybody.

My name is Habibo.

I'm not speak English very well.

I'm sorry, where do you live?

But I have I uh section word five.

Uh uh, yes, of course.

Thank you.

Sorry.

But I have here.

I live in word five.

I sub Karen.

Thank you.

Everybody should be quiet.

Uh if the audience could please uh please be respectful and and be quiet during public speaking, thank you.

My name is Zahra and I live in Ward Five.

Will come.

I am supporting Kenan.

That's it.

If we can keep the aisles clear so that way uh people who want to um uh come to the podium have a clear path to do so.

Please continue, sir.

Okay.

My name is uh Abdullah M.

Abdullah.

I live in Ward Five, and I am voting uh if is there's a vote tonight, Karen Kernan for Sit Council.

Thank you.

My name is Habib Salada.

Guru Guru.

I live in word five.

Isha I am supporting um I forgot how to pronounce his name.

So that would have uh the white lawyer.

If if the audience could please refrain, uh could please please be quiet in the audience.

Thank you, thank you.

Please be quiet.

Thank you.

No, for real.

Please be quiet.

Thank you.

Hi.

My name is Hasna Omar.

I live in Ward 5.

I support Kenan.

I hope I know hello.

He's a good person, and I hope he gets he gets it.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Ward 5 residents, please step right up.

My name is Jamilo.

I live in Ward 5, and I'm voting for Kennan.

Hello.

My name is Nicola May, and I'm a proud resident of Ward 5.

I'm also the executive director of a non-profit organization that supports youth in this community.

I usually watch these meetings from home.

But I just felt like really compelled to come in person.

As a lot of my community is afraid to come.

And I'm so proud of everybody that is here because that made me really happy.

Now more than ever, we need a city councilor who will represent and advocate for all of their constituents.

Should have a deep respect for all of the people who live in their ward.

Now more than ever, we need a counselor that is not afraid to stand up to injustice.

Each morning I walk my dog chants past the local bus stop.

And the neighborhood children love him.

They all give them a quick pat and say hello.

Right?

Having fun, playing ball, whatever.

Well, last Friday, there's a lot of little kids missing.

Sorry.

No one in our community should be afraid to go to school.

There's this one little girl.

She um is quite fond of me.

We bonded over school and bracelets.

She's made me about 40 of them.

Um people often speak about Ward 5 in particular, but Lewison in a very negative way.

And Lewison has been through so much over the past few years.

And I worry that the trauma and the damage that ICE will cause is really going to harm this community.

The harm that ICE brings already has shown in the fear that's on the children's faces.

Each of you has been called to leadership.

And with that comes a big responsibility.

That responsibility to stand when others choose to sit.

And I ask you to ensure that the people of Ward 5 have somebody that will stand up for them.

When they're in danger.

Hi everybody.

So we've just been seeing a lot of things happen in this community, a lot of scary things, and we want to move past that.

We want somebody in the city council that is gonna be a strong asset and a strong person to advocate not just for the immigrant community, but everybody in Lewiston, because um, I usually this morning I woke up and I asked myself, um, should my daughter go to school?

And that was out of fear because um, and that should be a question that I should never ask myself as a person that has been a citizen for over 15 years, and considers Luiston Auburn my home.

It has always been my home.

I don't know anything else, I don't recall anything else.

So it is a shame to wake up and ask myself in the morning, should my daughter go to school?

So I want someone on the city council that is gonna bring that change.

For I didn't even know we were doing anything like this.

I didn't know what the meeting was about.

I just showed up.

But I am here for whoever is gonna be on the city council.

I want them to be there for the people.

I want them to um really represent us, advocate for us, and show us that they care.

That is all we're looking for in a member on the city council, and we wish that whoever is elected today is able to really step up and bring that change forward, be there for us, hear us out, not tell us, you know, don't put a band-aid over something that is a big rat, big wound.

We don't want band-aid, we want a solution, and we want the problem to be solved.

So I am here for whoever is willing to bring that change, and whoever is willing to advocate for the community, for anybody for the children that do live in Lewiston, that do call Lewiston a home, because to us, Lucent is not the dirty Lou.

To us, Luiston is not something that is um that is not respected.

We respect Lucent and we respect everybody that is in Lewiston.

And um, this is a place we work, this is a place we have to shop, this is a place our children need to grow up and experience a livelihood.

We don't want to be the next Ain Frank.

We don't want to be hiding away, we don't want to get locked away.

We want solution, and I hope the next city council can bring that forward for us.

Thank you.

Please uh thank you.

Yes.

Uh next ward five residents, step right up.

Hello, my name is Medina.

I have also lived in Lewiston as long as my twin sister.

Um, yes.

So we are um I am a citizen of Ward 5.

And I just wanted to say that I did not agree with uh Rin when she said that she supported everybody and that she's not biased.

Um, because there are a lot of posts that we've been seeing on social media, just like how you questioned Kieran about um harassing people.

We see that on social media that she's just been doing exactly that.

Yes, it's freedom of speech, but we can all see that it's not, she's not for everybody in Lewiston, and comments like making comments like of course they have something to hide, and um from the bottom of my tip top, Jenna Mills, what you're gonna do now, um, seems the head of the snake has become a bit large to hide.

Comments like that do not bring people together.

Comments like that are comments that divide people, and that is not what Luiston is about.

Lewiston is strong, Luiston is about unity, and Luiston is about coming together as a community, and I just absolutely do not agree that these comments um translate community, these comments translate unity, and these comments translate a strong leader, and I that's just something that I have to say.

Um I've never had to face fear like this in my life.

Um, I've never had to wake up every day and say, Is it safe for me to walk out my front door?

Is it safe for me to go to work?

Is it safe for me to go to the gas station to put gas in my car?

I've never had to say anything like that before, and comments like these fuel hate.

Comments like these are injustice, comments like these do not bring anybody together.

Comments like these are not a solution.

And we want someone, regardless of who it is, we want someone that's gonna bring change, and we want someone that's gonna be a part of the solution and not bring division to our Lewiston.

That is what we need.

Thank you.

Uh thank you.

And I'm 100% in support of Kiernan.

Thank you.

If the council could please uh be quiet, that'd be great.

Uh, next Ward Five residents, step right up.

I guess, and if uh one second, if the people are not Ward Five residents, if you just move out of the way just for a little bit, just so we can like expedite this process.

Uh please continue.

Zoe Lidstrom, Ward 5.

Uh, like the previous commenter, um, I have been very disappointed and disillusioned by um some of the comments on social media from the former counselor for Ward 5 that do demonstrate that um she does not necessarily have everyone uh in Ward 5's best interests at heart, and indeed uh perhaps uh feel some open hostility towards some members of the ward.

Um at a time when so many of the residents of Lewiston are facing um just terrible consequences for trying to live their lives.

Uh we need someone who can stand up for them and who can truly represent them.

Um these are communities who have struggled to find good representation in our city, despite um for some of them having lived here for decades, having grandchildren who have been born here.

Um, and for that reason I support Kiernan Majaris Collins, who does have a track record of being a strong ally to uh this community, and um his allyship to this community, I think does not uh detract from his ability to represent uh my needs and desires as a ward five resident who is nevertheless not a member of an immigrant uh community.

Thank you.

Good evening, Jay Zimmerman Ward 5.

I like everyone wish we had a chance to vote for the candidates or applicants, but I'm glad we got a chance to hear from them tonight.

So here are some of my thoughts on what they said.

I liked what Chrissy had to say and her deep connections to Lewiston from her grandparents down through her grandchildren.

Um I think her experience in homelessness and with youth and with substance abuse disorder would bring valuable perspectives to addressing those issues in our community.

Um I'm also hopeful that as a conflict mediator, she could bring some respectful discourse to the council.

I also like what Kiernan had to say about his goals for the city.

And I'm optimistic that his experience in budgeting local governance and law would also be beneficial to the council and its business.

But regardless of which candidate you do choose, it is important to me that you do not choose Rin's Seoul.

I know from my own experience that she is not someone I trust to fill this seat with integrity and nonpartisanship.

Rin has been openly hostile to a great part of Ward 5, including in her last term during the debate on SSPs, when she repeatedly claimed to be representing our community against the drug addicts.

As if there were not any drug addicts in her ward that she was not equally duty-bound to represent, protect, and serve.

It's clear to me that Rin has very strong ideas about who counts as a member of Ward 5 and who does not.

We need a representative who will actually represent all of Ward 5, not just the people they approve of.

Uh resident.

What I saw in Rin Sewell, the candidate that had been holding the seat prior, was a disregard for the needs of a huge segment of our community.

I I heard her stand there during the discussion on the syringe service program ordinance and and say essentially this is not for the people you serve, the people you serve being people who suffer from substance abuse disorder.

And that to me says basically admits that certain parts of our community are prioritized over others.

So I voted for someone I thought would have everybody's interests at heart.

And it wasn't about the person, it was about the commitment to listening and accountability to the diversity of Ward 5, the immigrant community, as well as those struggling with homelessness with substance use disorder.

And I heard some great things from some of the candidates here tonight.

I heard great things from Kiernan about his commitment representing people who are being terrorized right now by uh enforcement agency that's out of control that's uh taking uh uh undemocratic and uh uh uh and evil uh uh approach to our to our country.

And uh I am confident in his experience.

I also really like and I'm I'm so sorry I'm not good with names.

Um the woman who works with New Beginnings who talked about harm reduction.

I think she'd bring a lot of good to uh the city and maybe could be involved in some way.

I I strongly first support Kiernan Majoris Collins, though, because I've seen his commitment to the community and in this time of chaos and fear, uh we need someone who will who uh can hit the ground running.

Uh and that's what I've heard from my neighbors, so that's who I'm supporting too.

Uh I just want to be clear too that you you are as counselors appointing after an election took place, and one of the candidates is someone voters already rejected.

So for you to appoint her is directly contradictory to the will of the voters.

Thank you.

Next Ward 5 resident.

Hello, my name's Dylan Newell.

I live in Ward 5, I'm uh landlord and I also live in the multi-unit I own, and I'm a small business owner.

Uh just want fair representation up here.

I think this isn't a democratic or republic election tonight.

Uh there's plenty of issues going on, but you know, there's uh a city to be run, and I think that you know, Councilwoman Sewell Sowell has not only been recommended by some of her peers, but they also touched on uh the earlier curfew to help with gun violence, which is very scary in our communities and is a real thing every single day.

That's kind of a pressing matter.

Uh the needle program, I mean, those are all very clear examples of what most people are echoing to be their main fears in the community.

So I think it's a pretty clear appointment.

It's already been going on for so long, and you guys have such a long agenda.

Um it's not necessarily a popularity contest or you're who can have so many people show up and and say something into her microphone tonight, but more of who's qualified to make proper decisions for the city.

And uh I mean, also she only lost by 30 votes, so she's technically second in line and should probably just have the seat anyway.

Uh of course you're in you know uncharted territories, as you say, so I can't imagine what she had to deal with and and figure out, but uh by popularity, I think it's a pretty clear choice, and I feel like you guys also have that same feeling, but we appreciate you going through and doing your due diligence and letting everyone say their piece.

So you know, of course, we definitely want a safe community, and we don't want anyone to you know be mistreated or anything like that, but we also want uh you know a city that's well managed.

I guess that's all.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Uh next Ward 5 resident should there uh be any still left.

Yes.

Uh good evening, ladies and gentlemen, everyone.

So my name is Abdul Kadri Adam.

I'm currently for Ward 5.

Uh actually I'm I'm um immigrant, that's a very important tea.

I uh I need to someone to understand immigration immigrant by coron.

So uh Karen, he's a lawyer.

He has a background uh education and he's good leader, that's what I see that so I need to vote for Kagaran.

Thank you.

Next for Ward Five resident, please.

Let's keep the the line moving.

Hello, my name is Valerie.

I'm a Ward 5 resident.

I strongly support Kiernan Majoris-Collins.

But more than that, I wanted to tell you that when I voted in the municipal election in November, I thought carefully about what it would mean to unseat an incumbent, particularly with such short terms.

Particularly with such short terms, I care about the idea of institutional knowledge.

But I was very troubled by her social media.

And I made a concrete choice to vote as much for the candidate that I voted for as against the candidate that I did not vote for.

I agree that this is not a popularity contest.

But I would encourage you to think carefully about the people who have spoken to you tonight from Ward 5, specifically from Ward 5, and consider what it took for them, the type of personal courage that it required to come and speak to you in this public setting.

If there was ever a place for privacy in our political system, it has traditionally been in how we cast our votes.

Thank you for your time.

Tonight I really feel um I know that the council and corporation council has made a decision and has arrived at a um a conclusion regarding the charter.

Um to me it brings grave and deep concern um of our city's democratic process.

Um in March of 21, the Charter Um then Mayor Kerr established a charter review committee.

This committee was tasked with reviewing the city charter and providing recommendations at the August 3rd, 2021 council meeting, the Charter Commission uh committee shared their recommendations.

This committee recommended that the charter be amended in part to modify the language present in Section 201, sorry, 2.06 C and D.

Um and the recommended change for that lingo language modified the next regular municipal election to be replaced with the expiration of the elected officials' term.

This change was in line with the other recommendations made by the committee on the same date due to the staggered election cycle the city was moving to.

Uh the recommendated uh the recommended modifications provided by then city administrator Ed Birrett reflected this change as well.

However, at the council meeting on the 17th of August 2021, the proposed changes were not present in the documents presented to the council and the public.

It is clear that the intent of the Charter Review Committee, the city administrator at the time, and the council was to modify the technical wording of the charter to reflect the material changes made to the charter.

Should that change have been made, we would not be here today.

As a clearly the intent of the committee, the council in the community, and the charter would unequivocally state that a special election was to be held.

As a Ward 5 voter, it is disturbing that my vote can be tossed aside due to a clerical error.

If we as Ward 5 voters voted in another counselor, it would be the will of the people.

Anything short of a special election is a disenfranchising of the voters.

Anything short of um anything short of returning the seat to the voters by way of a special election is patently unacceptable.

Thank you all for your time.

Can someone check in the hall if there's any word five voters in the hall.

What's your last name, Mohammed and where do you live?

Mohammed Tyr uh Ward 5.

Um I just wanna say like people from Ward 5, they already speak when they vote against some of the candidates who are now who didn't get to run.

Uh which I think um it's going to be uh unfortunate if uh such uh person or such people agreement another chance again.

So that means um so I don't know why uh if the community already have spoke uh unvoted against the candidates and I can see now those candidates are still here looking some again votes.

So therefore um as a commended member from Ward 5, um I'm going to request from you counselors to vote for canon.

Thank you very much.

We're approaching final call for Ward 5 residents.

Hi, my name is Shriq Said.

I am a resident of Ward 5.

Um today I've done something that I haven't done yet.

Today I took out my passport, and everyone in my family is now carrying their passports with them due to the events that happened today.

One of the former representatives shows me what it's like to look like me.

I will not allow someone who comes here and tells us they are for everybody, they are for the community, but says differently online.

I will not have someone who tells me that I am for my country, not for America.

When I don't even know anything from I have been in America for as long as I can remember, I have been in Lewisden for all I can remember, and for me to even pull out my passport today to prove I can get pulled over whenever.

Anything can happen to me, and for me to have to remind everybody in my family that they need to carry on them, says a lot, and I do not think one of the electives will not, they don't carry the best interest for people who look like me.

And that's why we are all going for Kieran.

Thank you.

Any word five residents left.

It's go time.

Okay, thank you.

My name is Saineb.

Yeah, I'm going to stand through Kamara.

She has lived in Lewiston for 22 years, but word at the end.

Yeah, I could shake this out of the store.

She's a farmer.

If possible, if she could also speak into the mic.

Oh.

Maybe.

Okay.

Okay, mashallah.

Okay.

Okay, my gaga is saying that what I'm saying.

My name is Zaina Baran.

Yeah, I'm a leave looking year to when it's a loss on the contact word five.

Uh yes.

Okay, I live in Ward 5.

I've lived in Lewiston for 22 years.

I'm a farmer.

I'm standing here today.

Um, and um all of us in a group, we are united to support because we are strong Lewiston.

And I support this person.

Thank you.

Any Ward 5 residents left in in the hall or the back room or here.

Yakala Ward 5 Raba Into Hatla.

Do we think that's everyone?

All right.

Okay.

Uh, we are now opening it up.

Do we have somebody else that's word five or no?

It's looking no.

All right.

So we are uh we're now opening up to residents of Lewiston.

Uh step right up.

Ready?

Yeah.

Okay.

Hi everybody.

Uh my name is Amran.

I am Ward 3, but I grew up in Ward 5.

My whole family is in Ward 5, all my siblings live in Ward 5.

And I've been in Lewiston since I was in preschool, and I am as American as anybody else in this room.

So the fact that people are looking at people that look like me that grew up here, people who don't even know what back home is.

This is our country.

We are citizens, we are Americans, and we belong here.

And to look at us and we look at the council and we see no representation.

We're having people here running to represent us, and they have said things on social media like if 20 million illegal aliens can help our economy.

Why didn't they help their own economy?

If guns can kill people, I guess forks make people fat.

People who post things, not because of someone did something, but they pinpoint the fact that we're Somali, and they take the fact that one person did something and they make a whole community.

We can't have somebody represent our community like that.

We are all American, we deserve representation up there.

We deserve somebody who's gonna speak up for us.

We need somebody who is not gonna look at us as others.

We are, we belong here.

We have lived here, we pay taxes, and we are not gonna stand here, and we're not gonna be in this community and be othered.

I have been told to die.

I've been told to go back to my country.

This is my country.

This is the only country I know.

And I am I the representation that we need is Kiernan.

He is there for our community.

He has walked with us.

And as city counselors up there who say they represent our community, who represent all of Lewiston, Maine.

You need to start listening to your constituents.

You need to start listening to the people here.

How many Ward 5 members have come up here and said they need Kiernan?

They have said that he listens to them.

They have said that he represents them.

You guys are here to represent us.

This community has put you guys in these positions.

You need to start listening to our community.

Everybody in Lewiston, Maine.

And we are citizens, and we are this community.

So you guys need to start listening to us.

That's all I'm gonna say.

Thank you.

If the audience uh members could please refrain from speaking so we can all hear, thank you.

Hi, I'm not a I'm not a fan of public speaking, but I've lived here my whole life.

My parents.

If you could please uh tell us your name, please.

Oh, I'm sorry, Cheryl Lacass, Ward 4.

I've spoken with my counselor, Michael.

Um my grandparents were here, they're immigrants too.

Okay.

Uh we don't we don't have, we're not here for war, we're here for peace like everybody else.

Um my mom and dad, my mom grew up in Auburn, my dad grew up at St.

Tom's.

They shut St.

Dom's right down, right?

That had nothing to do with us, right?

So I'm here for Aaron, Mrs.

Sowell.

I think she has fairly represented the drug addiction situation.

I've had experiences in my own life.

I was a mil I was military for a little bit.

I served honorably, and I had to go through hell to stay here.

And I'm phoning for you.

So sorry.

I'm not sorry.

It's okay.

If the audience, there's a lot of chatter.

If we can just have it quiet, please.

Like everyone.

Thank you.

Okay.

Okay.

Hi.

Quiet, please.

Thank you.

Thank you.

All right, please proceed.

Hi, my name is Sophia.

I'm from Ward 3, so I'm directly speaking to Councilman Scott Harriman and any other counselor who may listen to me.

Kiernan has consistently shown up for the immigrant community in Lewiston, not when it was convenient or politically advantageous, but because he believes in building genuine relationships and is standing with people during difficult times.

During his work as an attorney and as a community member, he has supported individuals navigating complex legal systems, attended mos gatherings, and taken the time to listen, to learn, and build trust with each and every one of us.

These actions matter, especially in Ward 5, where many immigrants' families are experiencing fear, uncertainty, and high-end scrutiny.

Ward five deserves a representative who reflects the will, the values, and the lived realities of its residents.

Kiernan has earned the trust of this community through consistency, respect, and presence.

Representation should not be imposed on a community but chosen by it.

In this moment, when immigrant communities are under attack nationally and locally, it is critical that the city council appoint someone who will be a true advocate, not a source of division like Ren.

I urge the council to respect the voices of each count um if each resident in Ward 5 and vote to appoint Kieran.

Thank you.

Hi, my name is Ephrah Said Esa.

Um I have lived in Lewiston for over 20 years.

I live in Ward 2 right now, but I also have lived in Ward 3, 4, and 5.

For most of that time, I never had to explain that I am a human being, that I belong here, and that I am a resident of the city.

Today I feel that burning constantly.

Families who have lived here for years now walk with fear, fear of being stopped, watched, and taken.

I have watched all the candidates.

Um some of the candidates I do not know, and I don't know their social media presence.

But I do want to talk about the person I do support.

Kieran has shown our community belonging and dignity.

He has been there for us when our safety is at risk.

He has shown us humanity, compassion, and accountability on social media.

He stood up for the immigrant community.

He has requested propaganda media to correct false narratives.

He does not see us as immigrants.

He sees us as his friends, his neighbor, and as a human being.

And he definitely does not see us as a burden to Lewiston.

Many community members feel comfortable with him because he engages with us.

He comes to our events, he knocks on our doors, he asks us questions and values our feedback.

Actions speak louder than words.

The other members, the other applicants, I have not um known them, and therefore I have not seen, but that's what I support Kenan, and he has shown us leadership.

Um the other thing I want to say is um many people already have said it, but um our ex-counselor Rin Sol has repeatedly failed to represent the immigrant community and all the residents who who believe that leadership should be rooted in humanity, compassion, and accountability.

She has referred to ethnic community-based organizations as NGOs.

She has referred to the immigrants that they all are the same, and she repeats the um same toxic narrative that um some of the people like the main wire is spreading.

Um, therefore, I do not support her.

I do support Kieran, and I hope the counselors sitting today's very, very difficult decision, but I hope you um do listen to all of us and um hope you pick the one that represents the people and the voices.

Thank you.

Hello, my name is Hannah Sadler, and I am a Ward 4 voter.

Um I'm speaking to address my counselor as well as the rest of the city council.

Um I'm asking my counselor to not only vote in favor of Kiernan Majoris Collins, but also vote against appointing Rin Sole for the vacant Ward 5 seat.

The most recent city council election was meaningful.

Counselor Sowell ran for re-election and was not returned to office.

In Lewiston, incumbency is not guaranteed, and voters have repeatedly shown they're willing to make deliberate choices about representation.

When voters decide not to re-elect an incumbent, that decision matters.

Appointing a recently defeated counselor back into office would effectively override the will of the voters in Ward 5.

For many residents, it would feel like their voices were discounted after the election.

Appointments should ensure continuity, not undue election outcomes.

This is not a personal concern, but a matter of democratic process and public trust.

As a word for voter, I urge my counselor to respect the results of the election and vote against this appointment.

In closing, I did also want to say that I find it very, very rich that the Word Seven counselor has some audacity to bring up behavior online.

Thank you.

Someone who understands what justice looks like in real life, not just on paper.

Someone who has fought for civil rights, defended immigrants, and made it their career to protect people who need it the most.

That's why I believe in Kiernan.

What really makes me trust him is his commitment to the community.

When he served on the Lucent School Committee, he didn't just hold the position, he showed up.

He spoke up for racial justice and pushed for more investment in our schools because he truly believes every child deserves a fair chance.

He doesn't just care about policies, he cares about people.

I believe he is the leader this moment calls for.

And when we're asked who stood up for our community, who chose people over politics, and who helped move Luiston forward, I want the answer to be clear.

It was Kiernan.

Thank you.

Hello, my name is Nairs Abdullahi.

I am a resident of Ward 1.

And I am supporting Kiernan.

Kiernan Majores Collins believes that everyone in Lewiston deserves to live with dignity, safety, and freedom, no matter where they come from, what they look like, or how long their family has been here.

His work as an immigration and civil rights attorney isn't just a job.

It's a commitment to protecting people who are too often unheard, unseen, or pushed aside.

Kiernan has stood alongside families, immigrants.

Excuse me.

Excuse me, uh please stop talking.

Thank you.

And working people when they needed someone in their corner.

As a member of the Lewiston School Committee, he fought for racial justice and educational equity because he believes our children's future should never be limited by their zip code, income, or background.

He understands that leadership isn't about power, it's about responsibility.

It's about listening before speaking, showing up even when it's hard, making decisions that reflect compassion and fairness.

Kiernan believes freedom means having a real voice in your community and knowing your leaders will stand up for you.

As the next city counselor, Kiernan will lead with heart, integrity, and courage.

He's committed to building a Lewiston where everyone belongs, where justice is lived, not just promised, and where hope feels possible for every family.

Kiernan Majores isn't just running for office, he's running to serve.

And before I leave the podium, I do want to inform the council of an applicant who has been spreading divisive propaganda.

Thank you.

I've been asking how many zero to the council.

Hello, uh, I'm a local business owner.

And uh I don't come to these meetings all the time.

I'm sorry, your name, sir.

Jake.

Jake Jake McLaughlin.

Uh I don't come to these meetings all the time.

I'm sorry, do you live in Lewiston?

I do.

Yeah, I live in Ward 7.

Um I felt compelled to come up here because I feel like not everyone is sharing their opinion tonight, um, or else they would have showed up if they knew that we were gonna be viewing applicants for ward five on a matter of five minutes of a conversation.

So I see this as really unorthodox and something that's unique in character.

But I will say that the problem that we have tonight is transparency.

And we want to give everyone a fair chance.

If the audience could please refrain from speaking, thank you.

We want to give everyone a fair chance.

We want to make everyone feel like they're being included, right?

And I think we did that with the last ward five candidate that we had, but there was transparency issues there.

Um even very basic things like the war that he lived in or the charges that he's been brought up against.

So now here we are in a very unorthodox way of viewing the next applicant.

So I'm looking at rules of thumb there.

What is the experience?

What is the ability for this next candidate to work in the best possible way, the most efficient way with the council.

And I think that would be Aaron Sol.

Um I help, you know, multiple, multiple demographics obtain financing for mortgages, and especially asylum and green card.

I get it.

It's really tough, it's really hard, but at the same time, we need to work together, we need to figure out where our tax paired tax paying dollars are going to.

And when we have issues where you know you have the money that's supposed to go to gun victim families going to NGOs or nonprofits, whatever you want to call them.

I mean, that's transparency issues in the nature of fraud.

So we have a very big problem here, and we can't just go to a friendly face.

It's more than that.

It's based on experience and it's based on how well that person's gonna work with the council that's gonna serve Lewiston.

And I think that's gonna be Aaron Sol.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Uh further public comment from Lewiston.

My name is Beth Matthews.

I live in Ward 3, and I'm actually here.

I I was not gonna say anything tonight until Counselor Martell brought up the Kiernan Majoris Collins videos, because I'm the one that made them.

And the reason that I made them, I was a staunch Democrat, and Ed Hill gave me these audio recordings.

And I was Word 3.

I believe that Kiernan was actually on the school committee at the time.

And he knew I was a Democrat.

He had been to my house, he had brought me paperwork, he had brought me, you know, I think a bumper sticker, a Hillary Clinton bumper sticker.

And gives me these audio recordings and says, Beth, I'm giving them to you because everyone knows that you're a Democrat.

And I actually want to thank Kiernan because his behavior is the reason why I am no longer a Democrat.

And I've been listening to all these scripted, emotionally charged conversations, and you know, I have a lot of lived experience in Ward 3.

Rin has helped me because the street behind me is technically Word 5.

I can't go to Ward 3 Scott Harriman because he doesn't like people that look like me.

He doesn't like people that you know don't align with his political agenda.

And I found it so interesting that Joshua said that we could only speak to Ed about that because this was a lived experience for myself and the other woman that was maligned in the press, Andrew Rice, the Sun Journal, National AP News, it went viral.

And we were maligned as Republicans, we were both Democrats, and that changed my trajectory.

I actually took a live audio recording of Kiernan to compare the audio of the audio that Ed gave me and the audio of Kiernan's live.

And I honestly would love to this day to hear or see that verified that it was in fact his voice.

So he doesn't remember.

He doesn't know what he's talking about.

But um, you know, the Sun Journal did when they were maligning us.

So I just want to say that Rin has been absolutely fantastic.

When I have issues, I go to Rin as Ward 3.

And um, and I think that she really represents Lewiston.

She also has helped uh a neighbor of mine on Jefferson that is really big into rescue with animals, and I know that she voted and emailed, so I'm here for Rin, and I'm not here for Kiernan.

Uh Lewiston uh public commenters, please step right up.

Good evening, Bob McCarthy Ward 2.

I'm here in support of Rin Sowell.

Uh everyone on that council that worked with Rin for two years.

One second.

If we can have it quiet in the chambers, please.

Thank you.

Please continue, sir.

You need to think about those past two years and all the hard work that Rin has done, and that she worked with every single one of you.

She didn't always agree with you.

You didn't always agree with her, but she was always fair and she would always listen, and she was always there.

She put in the time, she put in the effort.

She's the only one of the five candidates that is actually tried to get elected to win this council seat.

She knocked on doors, she campaigned, she met with people.

None of the other four candidates did.

All they did was put their application in and hope they can avoid the hard work to get elected.

Um amazed.

Well, I won't say amazed, but it amazes me that Kernan Collins would be committed would be considered for this position.

Um the lawyer for the previous counselor, and the previous counselor drops out, and then his name is up there.

If that isn't the epitome of quid pro quo, I don't know what is.

And the last thing that this city council needs is another black eye because of how they vote.

Uh the other thing that amazes me is Kern Collins sitting at that chair, not only denying that it was him in that audio recording, I've heard it.

I believe 100% it was him, and I've talked to enough people that know about the situation that believe 100% it was him.

And for him to sit there, look you in the eye, and say, not only is it not him, but he knew nothing about it.

It's been out there for six or seven years, and to say to your face, I know nothing about it.

That tells a lot about his character, and that tells you a lot about how he's going to serve.

So the other the other part that I wanted to mention is look at the makeup of the council.

You've got six men sitting up there.

You've got one woman.

You put another man up there, a man that isn't as qualified as the woman you're overlooking.

What's that say to the 50% of the population of this city that only deserve 12 and a half percent of the representation?

What's that say to them?

How should they feel?

So you look into that camera when you vote, and you tell the women in the city of Lewiston, if you vote against Ren, that you don't believe they should be represented.

Thank you.

Matthew Egrand, Ward 4.

I truly don't envy your position up there tonight.

If it can please be quiet in the council chambers, thank you.

Please continue, sir.

As the seven of you have to take and vote for an entire ward, and none of you live in it.

This is a heavy weight that you all have to bear.

But I also recall when to the school committee member Osmond was appointed to a two-year term because that's what our charter allowed, there was no great debate about it being a bad thing.

I think it was, but let's be honest, the real reason we're all here tonight is because the charter is flawed, and many of you, including some of you up there have spoken on it, and it needs work.

Because as I said to all of you in my letter on the 8th, I expected there to be a special election for this seat.

Now I'm not here to speak on behalf of any of the candidates that are asked to fill the seat.

I am speaking in opposition to Mr.

Collins filling the ward five seat because I fear the chaos he will bring to you guys.

Very recently he was on public record at meetings, threatening members of the public with possible legal action for asking public questions as a citizen of this city, as someone who's here, as you all know, almost every meeting.

I'm concerned will he if he's up there, decide to take threatening me or any of us out here with legal action if he disagrees with what we have to say.

And can you guarantee he won't?

No, none of you can.

But if you wish to silence opposition to what's being brought before you, that's a damn good way for you to do it.

I also require, recall on his time on the school committee, when he spread obvious misinformation about what our school SROs do while trying to remove them from our school system, which led to former police chief Brian O'Malley, who's now our deputy administrator, where he had to publicly contradict his claims about student safety and truly and explain the true role of the SRO presidents within our school system.

Finally, this is the man who just recently had to sue his own political party to try to get them to do what he wanted them to do in his primary versus our current councilor Herrmann.

I really hate to see that future council actions could end up before a court because he may disagree with your interpretation of the rules.

Good luck, guys.

I wish you the best at this.

Further public comment uh from Lewis and uh residents uh again uh Matt Roy Ward six.

Well, I'm gonna take a different approach.

Uh which is well, there is precedent in the state of Maine, as Mr.

Mayor, the city clerk is probably aware of back in 2020 on the school committee for SAD 75, which is Topsum Harpsville, Boatingham and Bowdoin, a member had to resign one of the seats in Bowdoin, because he moved out of the town.

So there is precedent under home rule, which is a long-standing legal tradition, constitutional legal uh tradition here in the state of Maine.

So again, the intent of the charter is to hope in a case where the seat is vacated so soon into the term, where a special election is would be called for, notwithstanding the interpretation, which only serves this corporation of the city of Lewiston as their attorney.

Well, the corporation attorney is waged only to serve your own purposes.

And again, as stated before, as I've stated for many years now, a charter a charter commission is needed, and hopefully the city administrator will put that on the agenda for you all to vote for in the next meeting in February.

Thank you.

Further public comment from uh Lewiston residents.

Step right up.

Let's keep things moving.

Thank you.

Hi, my name is Lisa Jones.

Um I feel better that I sound I'm struggling with my voice.

I do live in Ward 2.

Um I thought briefly that I was going to have to claim to live at 210 Blake Street to get my full three minutes tonight.

Um but thank you guys.

Um people keep bringing up that a flaw with the charter is the reason that we're here.

And the charter is flawed.

Um, but that's not why we're here.

We're here because an ineligible candidate was allowed on the ballot in the first place.

People keep saying that people voted against Rin, but that's not true.

234 people voted for Rin.

Um there have been a lot of people coming out tonight speaking against Rin with clearly prepared packets of paper.

Um I'm curious if they were paid.

Um because there are 200 um payments given to organizers on Kierdan's last community organizing, um uh his last um campaign um finance report.

Um I don't know of anybody who's come out and spoken in support of Rin that was paid to do so.

Um I know that you've gotten a lot of beautiful emails about her.

I know that the police union and the firefighters union are supporting her.

Um the fact that her votes reflected the greater city of Lewiston's wanting less needles and did not reflect the small portion of Lewiston that is a drug addict.

Um speaks to what she said about representing the entire city and not just her ward.

Um I I did not come prepared to say any of that tonight.

I'm feeling disorganized because I didn't have a pen to take notes as you guys were talking um to add to my comment.

I mostly came out tonight um to say that one of the candidates that is in front of you, one of the applicants, has a very, very long history um of scandal in our city.

Um the audio that he was talking or that he doesn't remember was was pulled up on my phone.

I don't have it right this second.

Um but I will send it to each and every one of you tonight if you so desire.

Um the room burst out in laughter when he claimed he didn't remember it because most of this room has heard it.

Um so he lied right to your faces.

If you would like to work with him, that's um a choice that I wouldn't recommend, but uh you guys disappoint me with most of your votes.

Um it was very hard to sit out in the hall silently and a listen to the mayor constantly admonish the public for not being able to behave and be quiet in here, and B listen to people spread outright lies about my friend.

Um but uh you have five applicants to choose from tonight.

One of them is a completely horrid, rotten, absolutely that's time, thank you.

If the audience could please be quiet, thank you.

Uh and before we have the next application or sorry, the next public comment, um Don uh Dan Stockford.

Hello, yes, okay.

So uh it looks like some things have been passed around to or given to the clerk to pass around to us.

What is uh is that uh appropriate, is it not?

What are your thoughts on that?

Um please you please speak into the mic.

My apologies.

Um there's nothing to prohibit you from considering written materials that are submitted.

Okay.

I think you can decide whether you think that's fair to all the applicants.

Um that's you know, it's certainly permissible for you to consider written materials.

Okay, thank you.

Uh please continue, sir.

Thank you.

Uh Tyler Tracy, World Ward 6.

Um I've lived in Lewiston for 10 years, and we my wife and I haven't really been involved in politics much.

Um but we started considering it more deeply since uh this past year.

We had a SWAT team show up in our neighborhood and there were snipers in our backyard.

Um so there's certainly been some negative impacts on the city.

Uh and anybody that has a record for public safety with gun violence and with drug uh drug addiction in this community has our support, so we please um consider uh Rin School tonight.

Thank you.

Further comment from Lucen residents.

Hi, my name is Kasten Saban.

I live in Ward 2.

Uh I don't usually come to this event.

I have uh forkid's toys, but I came tonight because of what's gone on in our city.

I'm not voting or I'm not aligning with any party, either Democrat or Republican.

Uh I came here to listen, what people have to say, and the applicants who actually put the application in front of you.

Um I own a business and I do have some employees.

When I hire people, I look into some tools.

One of them is resumes and also their experience.

And when I looked at the five applicants who were you know submitted their application, I looked to one candidate specifically, Rain Sol.

She worked here for two years.

She knows what the work has been done.

She is also have a relationship with the counselors.

She also ran for the uh election for about a year ago, I believe.

And she became second place on that race.

And one of the candidates who are sitting right next to you guys, he was saying and I don't remember if it was news uh Sun Journal or I don't know which web, I don't know which news, but when the other candidate who was not right now with us, he was representative of that person, he said so and so is with the law and the facts with him.

And that was not true.

That was false.

So therefore uh brain, soul have a lot of experience for this position.

I think she will do a great job.

I'm a little bit disappointed the news about the social media that you have done.

And if she's been appointed for this position, this is big if I'm personal requesting her to apologize the whole community.

You know, she has to apologize if she's got selected for that.

And I wanted to say that because I I'm not big fan of social media.

I only have a Facebook, I don't have TikTok or Twitter or in Snapshot.

Whatever she wrote there, and people are horrified.

The audience could please be quiet, thank you.

Therefore, uh this is not about emotional stuff.

We need to be specific about who we choose in this.

And we did have a representation, but that representation that representative has failed us as a community as Somali, and we thought about that.

That's time, thank you.

Andrew Jones, Ward 2.

Um, you received some material uh passed out by the city clerk.

Um it uh contradicts something that one of your applicants said today uh about their participation in the harassment of the sorry one second.

Uh please be quiet.

Thank you.

Carl, can you just like start ejecting people at this point?

How many times have you said that?

Um please continue, sir.

Yeah.

So if you look at that, you'll see that there is a cease harassment order uh issued by the Lewiston Police Department uh towards Mr.

Majoris Collins.

So for him to go up there and say that he had nothing to do with it, had has no knowledge of that.

Uh he's lucky he's not under oath right there because he would have perjured himself, and if he doesn't like that, he can sue me.

Um and I also think it's very interesting that um you know Beth Matthews was here uh talking about the videos that she created uh back when that first happened.

I thought it was interesting that when she got up here to speak that Majoris Collins fled the room.

That man is a coward and has no business at City Council.

Thank you.

Further comments from uh Lucent residents.

Is there anyone out in the hall uh who wants to speak?

Hi everyone, can you guys hear me?

Sorry, it's been a long night for all of you, counselor.

And um I just want I just have a few things to say.

For me, I care about Luisten a lot.

My name is Shukrab Drahman, I live in Ward 7, and I am here to support Kiernan tonight.

Before you start side-eyeing me or whatever, I need to tell you guys why I support Kiernan.

I think Kiernan is a man who has proved himself in the community to be an ally, to respect the community, to come and listen to the community, and he is the person to do this job.

Aaron or Ren Sol has been saying some really disgusting stuff on social media, and you guys have all been passed uh there's packages that has been passed around to you guys, and that's evidence of her saying disgusting stuff.

Um and tonight I want to highlight mostly the Ward 5 speak uh the Ward 5 residents who have spoken and who have um spent this time just trying to make sure that someone that they care and want to be in this position gets elected.

So one person from Ward 5 spoke on behalf of Ren, while 15 people spoke on behalf of Kiernan.

That tells you a lot.

That's not just numbers speak for themselves, honestly.

So at the end of the day, we need to realize that we need to look at the numbers, we need to look at majority rules, we need to look at who's in the room tonight, and we need to be able to be representative of this community.

There's a lot of talk about other things that have been addressed here that I don't really want to get into, but I just encourage the councilman and the um I just encourage all of you on the council seat to be able to vote the right way, and that is voting for Kiernan tonight, because he is the one to do this job.

And if you guys want to vote for someone who wants to divide the community, that tells you a lot.

That tells the community a lot about who you are and who you represent.

We want Kiernan and we want you to vote for him, and we want you to encourage other people to give him a chance.

Yes, there's been a lot of talk and drama surrounding Kiernan, but at the end of the day, he is young, he is a lawyer, he is experienced, he has connections to Lewiston that go way back.

He has served at uh he went to base college, he's from the community, he is for the community, and he is person, he is a person who brings the community together.

Therefore, I think everyone should give Kiernan a chance.

There's just been way too much talk and drama about him, and I don't think he's been given a fair chance to be able to prove his leadership to prove the kind of integrity that he has.

So my councilman Ward 7, Mar uh Mr.

Martell, I encourage you to really vote right.

I heard earlier you say you said some stuff about videos.

I haven't never seen those kind of videos or anything like that.

But um, yes, I I'm a ward five res uh I am a ward seven resident and I am here to support Kiernan.

And I'm sorry that this is a long night.

My name is John Baslinet, and I'm a resident of Ward 3 in Lewiston, and I have no familiarity with any of those people that are being considered tonight.

But I do consider this that Ren lost her seat for 40 votes, and that means to me that there was people there that really wanted to see her in Ward 5.

And I think that it's a whole injustice, a travesty that's that's not even considered in filling the seat that was taken away from her.

Thank you.

So I I'm not as good as Ifra, but I will try my best.

Okay, my name is Marianne and I live in Ward 5.

I'm here to support Kieran.

Hi, Samana.

I'm here because he will do great job in Lewiston.

He will support the people of Lewiston, and um I support that.

And how Rajana and how saga is that?

Tonight, I am hoping that um you you guys appoint him and that he wins.

Um, the buttons on Anaga Sabod Garano call it.

So she said a lot, but um uh we we are only here to support him, and we are not apologetic of the the our support for Kiernan.

Thank you so much.

Further Lewiston residents.

Can someone check in the hall to see if anyone who hasn't spoken is from Lewiston and wants to come up.

I think we're I think we're uh all Lewiston has spoken at this point or Lewiston is here.

Wait.

Did you want to speak, sir?

No.

No.

Okay.

Anyone not from Lewiston wish to speak.

Well, it's a long night, huh?

Absolutely amazing.

My name is David Jones.

I'm uh from the town of Falmouth.

Please be quiet, thank you.

Please continue, sir.

I'm here tonight, you know.

I've been I've had a passion for Lewiston going back way to John Jenkins, he was a good friend of mine.

A lot of people in this room might know who he is, rest in peace.

Now he was a level-headed guy, and um I like to think of myself as that too.

And you know, I I see everything that's going on here in this in this chamber, and I I think that the biggest cause of this was at the beginning of the process when you allowed Ivan Osman to be on the on the ballot.

So whoever was responsible for that has caused all this calamity within your city.

So your actions they make a difference.

It really does.

It really does.

I mean, you think about this.

He never should have been on the ballot.

So that being said, Rin Sol is really the only person that should have been on the ballot.

The people in Ward 5 voted for.

Uh she's demonstrated to each and every one of you up there that she has the talent and the skills and the love and passion for the town.

Uh look, you're not gonna you're up there, you know this.

You're not gonna uh please all the people all the time.

You know it's not gonna happen.

You know darn good and well, you're gonna always have half the people to like what you have and the other people have to don't.

But you know, I I know her.

She's she's a great gal.

She cares.

And so and she has the qualifications.

Uh you know, uh you made a mistake one time.

You allowed Iman Osman on the ballot.

You allowed him and swore him in regardless of the fact that he wouldn't even give you his legal address and all the other background uh items that we all know about.

So I would just implore you guys to really think this through.

I mean, Lewiston doesn't need any more division.

Whoever allowed Iman Osman on the ballot caused the division.

And it's I don't know what part you all had in it.

But that's where the that's where the the guilt lies.

You know, these folks want represent representation.

Everybody wants representation.

But when you allow something to happen that never should have, and then you try and point fingers, just doesn't look good.

So please, uh you know, I care about Lewiston.

I love Lewiston, I think it's a great place.

The L L Umaine is uh, you know, is the future.

So don't make the same mistake twice.

This guy Kiernan, I'm sorry, I don't see it.

No, I don't see it working for you guys.

You put him up there, it's gonna cause you a lot of grief.

But this is your city, and you guys run it, and you make the decisions.

I'm just seeing from the view from the outside looking in.

I've studied it, and I think the best person for the job is Rinso.

Thank you very much.

Further public comment.

My name is uh Sherry Oliver Riley.

I am a retired pastor for the Methodist Church.

I'm not exactly sure how to start this.

I'm sorry, where do you live?

I live in Freeport.

Okay, please continue.

And I am not a resident here, but I follow the things that happen in Lewiston due to family being here and other things.

I care I care about a lot of communities.

But the thing that I'm hearing tonight is a lot of people coming up with papers reading from them when they don't even know the name of the person they've they're standing in proper line for.

I have known Rin Soul her whole life.

Spending her evenings instead of sitting home by the fire and making ourselves comfortable, going out and cooking and taking meals to the homeless.

Oh, going out on Saturday mornings and helping to feed breakfast in the homeless places.

This is about community, and she loves this community.

Now I don't know the other applicants, and I have no right to say anything because I don't.

But I do know that she worked hard for this election, and I really feel the right thing to do would be to honor the voters of Lewiston Ward 5.

Thank you.

Further public comment.

My name is Can you please uh can uh if I can you also speak into the mic?

Both of you need to.

My name is Madegure.

Uh our mesh and Rahuta.

Hi, and I'm Sibodguru.

I'm Andorto, and Grirah.

I am here tonight to vote for Kiernan.

Uh Salah Nantyon, what can I heat?

Um I have not much more to talk, so thank you all.

Mr.

Mayor.

Hold on one second.

Uh is that uh you're finished?

Okay.

Yes, finished.

Okay, thank you.

Uh Counselor Chitam, yes.

Oh, thank you.

Yes, I'm sorry.

What uh where does he live?

Where does he live?

22 Knox Street.

Okay, that's yeah, that's in Lewiston.

All right, thank you.

Thank you.

Glad we cleared that up.

Uh okay.

Uh if we can have a quiet, please.

Uh are there anybody else who would like to speak?

Um, because we're trying to uh yeah, step right up.

No.

My name is Hassan.

I live in Lewiston.

I just have a question for the mayor and the counsellors.

If somebody says a re-election was not done for fear of a preferred person was not or may have not been elected, what will you tell them?

Thank you.

Thank you.

Uh further public comment.

Good evening, counselors.

My name is Sherry Blumenthal.

I'm from Ward 7.

Thank you, everybody here for speaking your voice, for listening.

It's been a long night.

Um, and I've been taking it in and I just had some perspectives to share.

I appreciate everybody who's uh come up and spoken about the previous election and the voters who cast votes for the candidates then.

That was then, and this is now.

That was a moment in time and it was valid and it was important, and there is a very different moment in time.

And then in lieu of an election, you have many voices in this room speaking for a particular candidate.

Um, but what you also have is many voices having the opportunity to share the real concerns they may have for another, and I think that that needs to be heated.

You're not going to please everybody all the time, but there's a distinction between that and candidates who may unintentionally or intentionally actively undermine the safety of any one of our communities, and that's an important consideration at this moment.

And I think also in any other in any job interview, you're always evaluating soft skills and hard skills.

I've done many and they're hard.

I think the council also actually has an opportunity now to ask itself what hard skills would any one of these candidates bring at a critical moment in time that are missing.

Um it's always great to bring on somebody you're comfortable working with.

There is nothing more that you know feels better than a team that you've been in before and you've it's been successful then, and this is now, and we have to think about where we are at this very moment in time, and which somebody mentioned earlier is a crisis point on many levels.

And we need to ask ourselves both what are the hard skills and the soft skills the person we're bringing in are going to bring, and where can we move them both in hard skills or soft skills and move them to work for this city as a collective?

So thank you.

Thank you.

Uh further public comment.

Last last call here.

I think we're everyone who has spoken who wanted to speak.

Uh please step up to the podium, sir.

Sir?

Yeah, okay.

My name is Walter Hill from Tenluvia Avenue.

And um I came down here because I think uh my counselor misunderstood.

What I wanted to say was I wanted a special election.

I think that's the only way to go.

The only people that are afraid of elections were people that can't win them.

And my party has far too long been in the habit of doing back room deals.

I mean the other party does it.

They just do it for different special interests.

Corporations, you know, pharmaceutical companies, whatever, wheelers.

Um we do it for our special interest unions, immigrant communities, and it's not right, no matter who you're doing it for.

And um was asked point blank what happened, and he said he didn't do it.

Then he said he didn't remember.

Well, he must remember because I have another recorded call where he admitted to doing it.

And he knows that as well.

But I just want to say it's time our party stopped looking at, you know, trying to do this ventralistic interest and just got money out of politics.

Because as long as they're money in politics, these folks won't ever stop, you know, doing backroom deals to get positions because as a lawyer, you get position, you got connections, you're this, you're that.

You get more jobs, you're worth more money to the firm.

It's just not right.

And I ran for chair because Charlie Sewell went down and ran, and nobody was running against him.

So I um decided that that would be unfair to have a Republican, you know, running our party.

A thousand people were there from Obama, and they didn't know who was anyway.

I'll start out by saying I managed and own businesses for my entire life in this community.

And I left four years to go to New York City, where I was the only white person in the school and met and loved all my immigrant friends at school.

I just um that night that this happened, I just got home from surgery, and he knew I had gone through that, and he abused me.

I had talked to him several times about running for that C.

And I know that he was there and Owen was there, but Sophia, I saw her around the corner twenty minutes before.

But she never said a word.

Now, if I was a liar, I would just say I saw her there.

But I heard a third person walking on my stones where my garden is, and they were both on my front gar concrete stoop.

So needless to say, I think that if you can't trust him, uh that's time, thank you.

With his word, what's the point?

No, that that's time, thank you.

Any further public comment?

I think we uh I think we've exhausted I did speak.

I just wasn't.

Yeah, no, no, no.

We're we're not, nope, nope, not doing that.

Thanks.

All right.

Uh further public comment, going ones.

Yeah.

Um, do you want to offer a public comment?

Yeah, okay.

And go fair.

Yeah.

I'm on a little.

If you can uh just use the mic when you're speaking to he said he lives on Bay Street.

I'm not yeah.

He said I hold on.

He said I am here to support the lawyer.

Kieran.

Yes.

Yeah, that I support him.

So both get in.

Yes.

Yeah, I told them.

Yeah.

Final public comment.

So my name is Jason Paul.

I'm a longtime friend of Kieran Majoris Collins.

I am from Massachusetts.

Don't hold that against me.

Um the thing I would say about Kenan is that he fought so hard to bring representation to Lewiston.

And sort of the characterization of the conversation with Walter Hill that was, oh, he harassed him, he was mean to him, he was this to them.

No, the bottom line is that Walter Hill went back on his word and made it harder for a Somali counselor to get elected.

And Kieran was upset about that.

But there was no harassment, there was no broad thing.

And the bottom line is when you fight hard for a community, sometimes it's not always the prettiest it's ever gonna be.

But you have to fight for a community that needs to be fought for.

And that's what Kunan has done in his time in Lewiston.

That's why I'm so that's why I drive up.

That's why I'm so proud to be his friend.

And I think when you listen to the comments that so many of the other speakers who spoke on behalf of Rin said, there was absolutely an unceasing tinge about who counts and who doesn't.

And the comments that were made on social media that she has have been clear and overwhelming about who counts and who doesn't.

And that's really the question before the council in this election.

It will when this election.

It was a 14 to one group of people from Ward 5 who came up here and spoke in favor of Kiernan.

One person spoke in favor of Rin.

So if she had her 230-something votes who love her, where are they?

And the community clearly in Ward 5 wants Kiernan.

You can do what you want.

But the bottom line is the community, the people in Ward 5, they want Kiernan.

And you know, people talk about the election, you know.

You know, Osman was allowed on the ballot legally.

I know you don't like that.

I know you know that's not the law you want it to be, but that is what the law was.

It was completely what the law was.

And so I understand that when the more controversies came out, a decision to resign was the right one.

No one here is disputing that.

But the idea that the election should be overturned and basically ignore the fact that the warders of Ward 5 voted out Rin and in favor of Imam because of what basically amounts to paperwork snaffos.

That's just not right.

We know what the voters want.

We know what they wanted when they voted in November.

We know what the voters want who came to speak here tonight.

We know what the voters want.

Now you may not like what the voters want, but that's what they want.

And it's important in democracy to give the voters what they want when they want it, based on the fact of who they're supporting, who they didn't want to be their city counselor, and who they now do based on a 15-to-1 majority, want to be their city councilor.

That's all I have to say.

Thank you very much.

Uh can uh yeah, step forward, but uh director Morris.

Can you uh we're losing a lot of time by um by the can Lieutenant Uh Director Morez, can you see if there's anyone else in the hall who wants to speak?

Or no one else.

Okay, so if you want to speak, go uh go get behind uh Elizabeth Eames so that way we can uh not lose time.

Uh uh Miss Seams, please.

Uh Elizabeth Eames Ward 3.

I was told that there were papers that were Facebook posts, public posts from Facebook, that got to not every counselor.

So I I just wanted to make sure that the those public postings on Facebook were passed out to every counselor.

Thank you.

Anybody else uh would like to speak who have his who hasn't spoken?

Going once.

Going twice.

Public comment is now closed.

Counselors, do we uh want to take a brief recess?

Uh counselor long chaps.

I do just want to share with the public that uh can I put that on pause for one second.

Do we want to take a brief recess, Council?

I want to finish what I'm saying, please.

I I do think it's important.

Yeah, go ahead and then we'll take a brief recess.

Thank you.

Um someone stood at the podium and said that there were there was only one person that stood up in favor of Rinseau.

We have received a lot of emails, every one of us sitting here on council.

How many emails?

If I could get a little bit of help, because I can't remember the exact number that were in favor of Rin from Lewiston residents.

Uh counselors, only one counselor has been lowered.

But I have twenty emails that I'm holding that I'm going to read after the recess that are all in favor of Rin Soul, residents from Ward Five.

So it is not just one.

Okay, uh, we're back.

We're back.

Please take your seats or move your conversations out to the hall.

Hello, thank you.

Hey, thank you.

That's enough.

All right, uh, Madam Clerk, uh, are we uh are we ready to come back?

I think so.

You are on the air, so yes.

Yes, okay.

Uh, thank you all uh for coming back here for um uh home audience for joining us.

Um, I'm going to recognize you, uh Counselor Long Chaps.

You you were saying.

Thank you.

So as I said, I'm going to read some of the emails that came in um in favor of Mrs.

Seoul.

My wife and I voted for Rin Sol LeClair.

She should have won a po unopposed as Osmond's residency issue should have kept him off the ballot.

Um my name is I'm not gonna share the name.

Um, and I'm a ward five uh I live in ward five here in Lewiston.

I voted for Rin Soul in the last election, and would love to see her appointed to the ward five seat that is now vacant.

She spoke up on important issues, operated with integrity, and represented us well in her first term.

Rin is the only remaining individual who received votes for ward five residents in the most recent election, providing her with a clear and direct mandate from the um election.

She previously served her full term without reprimand or disciplinary action and fulfilled her responsibilities in a very professional and responsible manner.

She drafted an advanced ordinance that incorporated thoughtful public safety measures.

Dear members of the city council, I am writing to respectfully recommend Rinsoul for the ward uh five position.

Rin Sol has demonstrated a strong commitment to the Lewiston community and brings a thoughtful and engaged approach to local issues.

Her ability to listen, collaborate, and advocate for residents makes her well suited to represent ward five with integrity and care.

I am writing to urge all of you to unanimously vote tonight and appoint Rin Sol to her Ward 5 seat.

She has more than proved herself to be an asset to the City of Lewiston and has worked very hard to put to present for all the residents, not just Ward 5 constituents.

Let's see here.

With that said, I strongly believe that the two individuals who ran in the recent election should be the only candidates considered in this for this vacancy.

With the resignation of Mr.

Osman, the most appropriate and responsible decision is to return the seat to Rin Sol.

I have spoken with many residents.

I have heard clearly and repeatedly that community that the community supports Rin Sol and wants her back in that seat.

She has served not only Ward 5 with dedication, but the entire city as well.

That fact has become increasingly clear, not just to me, but to the residents throughout our area.

It is deeply concerning to many of us that the mayor appears to be operating with a political agenda aimed at securing his own re-election.

His initial appointment did not work, and now it appears he is willing to appoint an attorney who previously represented Mr.

Osman in order to secure votes that would benefit him politically.

I find this behavior appalling.

While residents like myself may not always have a platform, we are paying attention.

And we are tired of being disregarded.

We are tired of feeling taken advantage of.

And we expect our elected officials to do what is right, not what is politically convenient.

Mr.

Collins has repeatedly demonstrated an inability to work respectively with those who hold differing viewpoints.

And many residents are concerned with Ward 5, that Ward 5 will be deliberately filled by anyone other than Mrs.

Soule simply to satisfy a political demand tied to the mayor's re-election.

That is unacceptable.

It undermines trust in this council and disrespects the will of the voters.

I urge you to do the right thing and honor the voice of the constituents and restore Rin Sol from the Ward 5 seat.

This is not an anonymous letter.

Her name is on there and her address is on there too.

Council Aaron, or I'm sorry, uh Council Long Champs, were you finished?

For now, yes, thank you.

Council Airman.

Thank you.

So the council did receive a lot of emails uh regarding this appointment.

I will note that most of them did not come from Ward 5 residents.

Um I would also like to note that I appreciate everyone who contacts us, but a couple points that at least carry more weight with me.

One, if you sign your name to what you write, that carries more weight with me, and two, if you write your own thoughts and not copy and paste something that the applicant has uh put out there for you to copy and paste.

That carries a lot more weight with me.

Counselor Martell, did you have your hand up?

I did, Mr.

Mayor.

Thank you.

Um forgive me if my count isn't perfect.

I was tallying it as I got here today, but in this hand, I hold 61 emails to public comment for Rin Sol for this appointment seat.

Fifty-five from different individuals, most of which did sign their name and did put what word they're in.

And a very many that I did see that were from Ward 5.

Maybe not the majority, but a very many.

It also includes a recommendation from the Lewiston Police Patrol Union and the Firefighters Union.

In this hand, I hold the combined letters of support for every other applicant and every other letter that came in against Rin Sol.

Further public comment before we uh take nominations.

Or public whoa, sorry.

It's getting late.

Further further comments uh and discussion from the council.

Counselor Nagyen, yes.

So there was uh some paperwork that was dropped off at the clerk's desk uh that um uh was asked to be distributed amongst the council.

One of them is I believe uh statement from Aaron Gilchrist, who is running for um sabatis um uh commissioner, um and one of them is um I believe social media uh um shots um that people have asked them to be passed out, we would have to vote for that to make to make that decision.

So do we want to have that discussion?

Do we want to pass this the information that was given to the clerk out?

Uh I I appreciate that, Counselor Nagyen.

Um since we have uh Dan here at the at the ready, uh do we need to to vote or what is your recommendation here, Mr.

Stockford?

As far as whether to distribute the what was handed out.

Um I think if there's a lack of consensus on the council, it it would be appropriate to take a vote on whether to to entertain that those written submissions.

Um I guess at this point I I will let's just make it clear.

Uh do we have uh Madam Clerk?

Would that just be a motion to uh to enter that into the record as it were?

Uh I think the question is, and correct me if I'm wrong, Councilor Nadine, but to decide to distribute the material that was provided by members by speakers to the full council.

Is that the question?

Correct.

Yep.

Right.

So the city attorney is recommending that a the council would take a vote on that, whether they would distribute the material to themselves or not.

Yeah, I I think it's fair to for there to be either a consensus or a vote.

Um I I guess I'm amenable.

Um counselor Chitam, yes.

If there's no consensus, I will move that this material, which I have no knowledge of, be distributed so that we've got something that was submitted to the council in front of us.

Do we have a second?

Council from Word 2.

Yes.

Word three?

Yes.

Word four.

Yes.

Ward six?

Yes.

Ward seven?

Yes.

Ward one.

I know it is.

Ward one.

And this is the re Josh.

Just give them all to me, too.

Ward one.

Yes.

Mr.

Mayor.

Yes, yes, from me.

I haven't.

We got another one of these?

Another one in the same are they the same?

Uh no.

Oh no.

Okay.

So there's only two of these.

Yeah, there's not uh it appears there's only four packets.

Uh that one and I'll look at your own.

But the uh the statement from Aaron Gilchrist, everybody has, so it is uh all right.

Well, we're looking at the uh looking over uh these new uh documents.

Uh yes, Counselor Chidam.

Yes, I just look like to I'm sorry, I just like to clarify for the public that uh it appears what we're looking at are screenshots of social media posts.

I'm the least person, the least qualified person up here to identify them as such, but even I think they're social media posts.

Thank you.

Uh further comments from the council.

Uh Councilor Longchamps, did you have something?

I would just say, just on this front page.

The front page of what?

Okay.

This one here.

Um it appears that uh Mr.

Charles is talking about fraud.

And Rin Sol says, of course they have something to hide.

They all do.

Now after reading this, in my opinion, I think she's talking about people that are committing fraud.

That's my opinion.

I don't think she's singling out.

I think she's saying that people that are committing fraud.

That that's what I see on that first page.

Thank you.

Further com uh yes.

Um counselor Martell.

Thank you, Mr.

Mayor.

Um I recognize some of these screenshots to be videos, and without the video, I don't think we have the context as to what uh Ms.

Sole would have been responding to or commenting on.

And I don't think it's fair to make inferences or insinuations as to what she's saying without either the context of the video or uh at least some contextual um testimony on her own behalf.

Uh I would like to point out that when I called out another applicant, I at least provided the opportunity to defend himself against uh my accusations.

Thank you.

Uh yeah, and I just wanted to be clear for the public.

Uh I did not ask anyone to submit an application, nor did I ask anyone to not submit an application.

Further uh questions or comments or discussion from the council uh counselor Chittam.

Thank you.

I would like to thank everybody of all diverse opinions who took the time to come out here tonight and express your views.

Um we are faced with a very difficult decision up here, and I appreciate your willingness to put your face and your words forward so that we can hear them.

Uh it's obvious that no matter what this council does up here this evening, there are going to be some angry or upset or disappointed or sorrowful people.

Uh that cannot be helped because of the situation we're in, but I do want to express my appreciation to all the various views that have been heard.

Uh I have listened to all of them, uh and they have actually helped me uh in in a dilemma that I have been wrestling with for two weeks now.

Um this is not an easy situation, and I I appreciate your willingness to speak to us.

Uh thank you.

Uh questions, comments from the counselor or Madam Clerk, uh uh we we're ready to take nominations at any time.

Is that correct?

Yes, sir.

Okay.

Uh councillor uh counselor Chitam.

Uh I nominate Chrissy Noble.

Do we have other nominations?

Councilor Martell.

Rin Sole.

Do we have other nominations?

Going once.

Going twice.

Madam Clerk, have you recorded these nominations?

Uh yes, Councilor Chitam nominated, um applicant Sol and Counselor Martell nominated applicant I'm sorry, I apologize to the question.

I apologize.

Let me start again.

Councilor Chelsea.

Applicant Noble and Counselor Martell nominated counts uh repres uh applicant soul.

Does that sound right?

You two?

I know it's getting late, but those are the kind of mistakes I make, Madam Clerk.

Hey, Mr.

Mayor.

Uh do we have uh any other nominations before we put these nominations for vote?

Uh Counselor Chitam, yes.

Move we close nominations.

Yeah, okay.

Uh do we have a second for that?

Second.

Uh Madam Clerk, please um I guess vote.

Uh we're now um to close debate and then proceed with the next vote.

Sure.

So the motion would be to uh or the vote is to close nominations.

Counselor from Word 2.

Yes.

Word three?

Yes.

Word four?

Yes.

Word six?

Yes.

Word seven?

Yes.

Ward one?

Yes.

Uh Mr.

Mayor.

Yes.

Okay.

So motion uh nominations are now closed.

Are you ready for um Indeed we are?

Uh Counselor from Word 2 Rin Sol.

Word three?

Ms.

Noble.

Ward four.

Miss Noble.

Ward six?

Ms.

Noble.

Ward seven?

Aaron Sol.

Ward one.

Ms.

Noble.

Uh Mr.

Mayor.

Uh yes, Chrissy Noble.

So by a vote of five to two.

So uh Ms.

Noble received five.

And uh Rin Sole received two.

So then the motion before you is to appoint Christy Noble to fill the vacant Ward 5 position on the City Council set appointment to be effective January 1st, uh January 20th, 26th, and to expire January 3rd, 2028.

May I have a motion.

So move.

Uh one once again.

Did I interrupt you, Madam Clerk?

No.

No.

Okay.

Uh Counselor Chitam seconded by.

I'll second.