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City of Stewart will consult with attorney on validity of vote

Submitted by admin on Wed, 09/16/2015 - 10:02am
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Was the Stewart City Council’s vote to adopt a rental inspection ordinance legal?
 
That’s the question it will pose to its city attorney after the ordinance continued to be a bone of contention among Council members Monday night.
 
The City Council tabled two requests regarding the ordinance until it can clarify whether it legally adopted an ordinance over a year ago.
Mayor Jason Peirce, who is a rental property owner, said he “still questions whether that was a valid vote.”
 
Peirce said the Council voted 4-0 to adopt the ordinance. Because he owns rental property, Peirce abstained from the vote. Peirce also contends that another Council member should have abstained, because that person “was a renter.”
 
According to Peirce, it takes a fourth-fifths majority to adopt an ordinance. If the other Council member had abstained, the vote would have been 3-0, not enough to carry the required four-fifths majority.
 
For more see the Sept. 16 print edition of The Chronicle.