On Tuesday, August 27th, 2024, the Palm Coast City Council held their morning business meeting, which would have normally been scheduled for August 20th but was moved to the following week due to August 20th being the Primary Election Day. The meeting included an agenda where discussions on the budget, and the appointment of Cathy Heighter’s council seat following her resignation, among other topics.
The business meeting started with a discussion on the dais about the appointment process, and careful examination of the city charter regarding vacancies on the council. The council discussed whether allowing candidates to file to run in the November election would be a feasible option, which they determined it would not be, due to candidates only having until September 6th, 2024 to qualify for the November ballot. City Council decided that due to the incredibly tight timeline, their only option to properly vet candidates was through the appointment process. The appointment timeline would include applications being open to the public by Tuesday, August 27th, 2024 until September 11th by 5 pm. Interviews would be held at a city council meeting on September 17th for the applications. The public can make their voices heard at the September 17th morning meeting and at the September 24th special workshop which will be held in the evening, before the official vote on the appointment on October 1st. The discussion on the dais was lengthy, with many points being made. The council voted unanimously to move forward with the appointment schedule.
During the discussion on public comment, Danko was unable to contain his opinions, leading to Mayor Alfin and Danko ending up in multiple screaming matches, and comments such as “You know where the door is”. Upon heated conversations cooling down, a motion was made by Danko to recall the chit charter amendment from the ballot; no other council member made a second to the motion, so the motion died, the city charter amendment will still be placed on the ballot for voters in November.
