050820 Press Release - Public Meetings Notification cOF FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
DENTON Ryan Adams • (940) 349-8565 • Ryan.Adams@cityofdenton.com
City Schedules Virtual Public Meetings for May 11, 12, and 14
City Council Meeting to Offer Virtual Public Commenting Options
DENTON, TX, May 8, 2020—To prevent the spread of COVID-19 (Coronavirus), the May I I
Public Utilities Board meeting, May 12 Denton City Council meeting, and May 14 Hotel
Occupancy Tax and Sponsorship Committee meeting will have a remote format through a video-
conferencing interface. All three meetings will use the new Rules of Procedure that were adopted
during the March 31 Council meeting. Residents can watch the meetings online at
www.cityofdenton.com/dtv, on the Denton Television cable channels, or on-demand.
Due to the remote format of the meetings, no in-person attendance at Denton City Hall will
be permitted. To accommodate and receive input on agenda items, citizens will be able to
participate in the May 12 Denton City Council meeting using the options listed below.
(NOTE: Except for public hearings, citizens may only comment once per agenda item and
cannot use both methods to comment on a single item. Additionally,public comments are not
held for work session reports):
• Virtual White Card—The meeting agendas are available online at
www.cityofdenton.com/publicmeeting_s. A link to the Virtual White Card, an online form,
has been made available under the main heading on the webpage. Within this comment
form, citizens may indicate support or opposition, and submit a brief comment about a
specific agenda item. Comments may be submitted up until the start of the meeting, at
which time, the Virtual White Card form will be closed. Similar to when a citizen
submits a physical white card to indicate their position on the item, these comment forms
will be sent directly to City Council members and recorded by the City Secretary. City
Council Members review comments received in advance of the meeting and take that
public input into consideration prior to voting on an agenda item. The Mayor will
announce the number of Comment Cards submitted in support or opposition to an item
during the public comment period, but comments will not be read during the meeting.
The City Secretary will reflect the number of comments submitted in favor/opposition to
an item, the registrant's name, address, and(summary of) comments within the Minutes
of the Meeting, as applicable.
OR
• By phone—Citizens wishing to speak to the Council on an agenda item over the phone,
may call(940) 349-7800 beginning 30 minutes prior to the start of the open session
portion of the meeting,until the agenda item is brought forward for discussion. When
the call is initially received, a staff member will receive the caller's information and
either: 1) offer to call the citizen back when it is time for them to speak on their requested
item, or 2) record the caller's information, support or opposition, and comment. If the
OUR CORE VALUES
Integrity•Fiscal Responsibility• Transparency• Outstanding Customer Service
ADA/EOE/ADEA www.cityofdenton.com TDD(800)735-2989
caller chooses to record their support or opposition, rather than speaking during the
meeting, the Mayor will announce the number of comments submitted in support or
opposition to the item. If the caller wishes to receive a call back, the voice of each caller
will be broadcast into the meeting during the public commenting time of their desired
agenda item. Individuals will be able to comment once per agenda item, no matter the
method.
The following apply only to the City Council:
• At regular meetings only, citizens can speak on any topic that is not on the agenda during
the"Open Microphone"portion of the agenda. Citizens may call (940) 349-7800, as
described above, and alert the call taker that they wish to speak under the Open
Microphone category.
• If a citizen would like to give a public report, they may register by noon the Thursday
before the scheduled meeting by contacting the City Secretary's Office at
citysecretary@cityofdenton.com or(940) 349-8309. On the day of the meeting, the
registrant will be called shortly before the meeting is called to order and will be placed
into the speaker's queue. When it is time for the registrant to speak, the call will be
activated live and the speaker asked to begin the presentation.
The City will continue to release updates at www.cityofdenton.com/coronavirus and the City's
social media channels.
Contact: Ryan Adams, (940) 349-8565,Ryan.Adams@cityofdenton.com
Visit www.cityofdenton.com for more news and to stay updated.
2