NW Valley Times

While Glendale continues to hold virtual meetings, allowing the public to participate online, mayor candidate Michelle Robertson said the city needed to "do the right thing" and criticized the city's policies. 

“The city council should do the right thing and postpone all meetings regarding ‘nonessential’ items until such time as the state and federal guidelines allow more than 10 people to attend, including the public,” Robertson said on Facebook, according to the Glendale Star. “Important city issues such as the west side housing development and Glen Lakes sales agreement should be postponed until proper public input can be obtained.”

According to Glendale's website, the city is following federal government guidelines by keeping city council meetings closed to the public during worships and city council voting meetings. These meetings will be closed until further notice, according to the Glendale Star.

“This action follows guidelines from the federal government stating that no more than 10 people should be gathered in a room at the same time," the city's website said. 

But Robertson said on Facebook that there were more than 10 people in the room during the virtual meeting held on March 24, which goes against the federal government's guidelines. 

"Watching the [March 24] meeting, you can count 12 people in the main shot and that doesn’t include the two camera operators. That’s 14 people and it's possible there are more outside of the cameras view. Fourteen is more than 10, which puts them well over the federal limit," Robertson said on Facebook. 

While the meetings are closed to the public, they can watch the meeting online and submit comments through email or voicemail, according to the Glendale Star. City Council meetings can be viewed online at glendaleaz.com. 

But during a meeting on March 24, several Glendale citizens said the policy enacted was violating state laws. Peoria, Goodyear and several other Arizona cities has also banned the public at city council meetings, the Glendale Star reports. 

Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich said the Open Meeting Law of Arizona allows for public meetings to be held virtually, according to the Glendale Star.

“All of our public meetings are being held consistent with the state’s open meeting law and in accordance with the Attorney General’s recent guidance,” Mat Droge, Glendale city spokesman, told the Glendale Star. “While the public is temporarily restricted from attending the meetings in person, due to COVID-19 CDC guidelines, we have provided multiple opportunities for the public to participate in the meetings.”