Sundown… (WMP&I and Google images)

SPRINGFIELD—The City Council wrapped up 2024 with a brief two-item agenda and its usual caucus to select the body’s officers for next year. With so little to consider there were few surprises. Free street parking for veterans achieved final passage. Council President Michael Fenton will have another year leading the body, though there will be a new Vice President.

One of the two items had been left over from the prior meeting. The Council had hit its hard stop at 10pm before it could vote on an item to give new hires two years to move into the city. They have one under current law. The legislation provoked objections the week before, but members reached a compromise on Monday. The new window will only last until 2026.

Councilors Malo Brown, Lavar Click-Bruce and Zaida Govan participated in the meeting remotely. Councilor Brian Santaniello transitioned from remote to in-person during the meeting.

Ward 6 Councilor Victor Davila had been shepherding free parking for vehicles with veteran plates for several months. Despite the simplicity of the concept, there were some technical details to sort out.

Davila: Thumbs up for Free Vets Parking. (WMP&I)

Indeed, on Monday, Davila advanced an amendment to clarify all the various veteran and military award plates that would qualify. The amendment and final step passed without dissent.

Calls for changes to the residency ordinance have arisen as city departments have claimed hiring has become difficult. Alternatively, non-resident individuals who take city jobs have found it difficult to secure housing in the city, in part due to low inventory and high demand.

However, some councilors questioned the need for a change and panned the attempt to rush the bill. Davila, also a lead sponsor of the residency change, acknowledged the “robust discussion” at the Council’s previous meeting.

At-large Councilor Jose Delgado had been among those resisting the two-year window the week before. He formally moved for the amendment adding the sunset clause. Delgado clarified it was his intent to have the three-year sunset clause count down from the ordinance’s retroactive start date of September 1, 2023. In other words, the amendment will expire on September 1, 2026.

The amendment prompted a debate about the implications for nonresident employees who, over the years, had resigned before hitting one year of service. It appeared that councilors were concerned that retroactively establishing a longer move-in window could expose the city to litigation.

Councilors also inquired about how this played into a court order on implementation of the residency ordinance. City Solicitor Stephen Buoniconti said that ruling turned on definitions of what residency is—one of the parties lived in a property that straddled Springfield’s border. In other words, the question was whether that person’s actual bedroom sat in Springfield or not.

However, Buoniconti assured that the court order had no impact on the Council’s ability to amend or change the residency ordinance.

“This amendment that’s being proposed this evening, whether it be on the first draft from last week or the amended version this evening, is not in violation of any prior Court decision,” he said. “It is still within the authority of the council to make the decision or not.”

Delgado: Sunrise; sunset. Swiftly fly the years, one residency period amending another. (courtesy Delgado campaign)

While there were still some objections to the sunset, councilors generally agreed with Delgado’s earlier observation that some of the recently identified issues with residency reflected “a snapshot in time.”

The amendment passed 11-2 with Councilor Brown and Maria Perez in dissent. First step passed the Council 10-3 with Councilors Perez, Sean Curran and Tracye Whitfield in dissent.

The Council concluded with nomination for offices in 2025. Traditionally, the body holds this vote at the last meeting, although its results are nonbinding.

Nevertheless, Ward 3 Councilor Melvin Edwards, the incumbent Council Veep, rose to decline any nomination for Vice President in 2025. Prior to his announcement Monday, there had been rumors he was seeking another turn as Veep. Edwards also indicated that Whitfield, an at-large councilor, had the votes. In the spirit of collegiality, he wanted to let Whitfield win the nomination unanimously.

Indeed, both she and Fenton would receive their nominations for their respective offices. They will become effective next month at the Council’s reorganizational meeting.

(WMP&I)

With that, the Council closed another year. For councilors, 2024 was something of a year of adjustment as prominent personalities departed in 2023. The body was not exactly an idle player in the city, but its members played bigger roles scrutinizing legislation than in the act of passing bills.

The result is somewhat lower legislative output than in some recent years. Whether that will suffice for Springfield and its population will be a key question as the city—and the country—hurtle back toward a known unknown next year.