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Tensions were elevated by the end of Wednesday’s Houghton City Council meeting. Member Brian Irizarry sought to add a subcommittee focusing on mental health. Each subcommittee consists of three councilors, the city manager, and perhaps an additional member with relevant expertise as necessary.
Chief John Donnelly devoted a majority of his report to the council on the subject. Donnelly discussed the efforts in place to better educate officers about how to respond to calls where mental illness is a potential root cause. He also said that in all but the most extreme circumstances law enforcement’s hands are tied.
Manager Eric Waara reminded the council that traditionally subcommittees are used in an as-needed capacity. Some, like the parking deck or Master Plan, have met often in the past year. Others have not convened once. Waara says it depends on whether he feels he needs to gauge the pulse of councilors before deciding whether or not to bring a topic before the body.
Irizarry’s proposal seemed to be trying to set up a subcommittee under a different premise, one that would be more active in helping to craft city policy. Waara said it would be best to bring in experts from the area for a presentation on what is currently being done before agreeing to form the group. They will attempt to hear from Kevin Store of the Portage Health Foundation at the February 23rd meeting.
Four other proposals were brought last minute to the council. Discussion was started on them, but after talking about the first further conversations were tabled. The only subject that received a forum was the idea of bringing back an online recording of council meetings through Zoom, Microsoft Teams, or a similar hosting site, and allow interactive public comment through the virtual format. That was put in place during the pandemic, then pulled last spring as society reopened. Several municipalities across the state have brought it back in the face of the omicron surge.
