City Council held a special meeting on April 5 to appoint a new first ward council member. Three candidates were interviewed during an executive session, and Bill Comerford was unanimously selected after the meeting reconvened.

Council first had four pieces of legislation on its agenda. Ord. 2016-14 repealed Chapter 769 of the Codified Ordinances, which sets regulations for tattoo businesses. The repeal aligns the city with state regulations. The third and final reading passed unanimously.

A second reading for Ord. 2016-20, which sought to create a deputy auditor position, failed with a 4-2 vote. There will therefore be no further consideration on this item of legislation. The position had been recommended by the State Auditor’s office to improve the functionality and continuity of the City Auditor’s office. However, several concerns were raised during discussion, including how the position was to be filled and a lack of Civil Service protection.

Ord. 2016-22 set the salary ranges for the deputy auditor position and the communications director. Council passed a motion to strike the deputy auditor salary range from the legislation, and then approved a second reading 5-1, with Councilwoman Susan Bean dissenting.

The final item was Res. 2016-8, a Then and Now certificate in the amount of $7,147 to pay the gas bill for the South Street Commerce Center. It unanimously passed as an emergency.