Galesburg City Council traded barbs, raised their voices, and then narrowly decided on Monday night not to conduct a public hearing on the location of a community center.
The motion failed on a 3-3 vote, with Mayor Peter Schwartzman and Alderwoman Sarah Davis not in attendance and Deputy Mayor Larry Cox presiding over the meeting.
The three council members present that are in favor of Churchill voted against the hearing; Jaclyn Smith-Esters, Dwight White, and Kevin Wallace.
Larry Cox, Bradley Hix and Wayne Dennis voted in favor.
First, they voted on tabling the motion; which was defeated by a 2-3-1 vote.
The resolution reads that the hearing would be to give information and receive input on community center locations. It was clarified that more than just the four locations studied by the Farnsworth Group could be discussed.
Alderman Bradley Hix wants a 5th location considered on East 5th Street, which the city already owns.
Alderman Dwight White says the public has had their input and a hearing would just be another way to “kick the can down the road.”
White says the council already decided, and the minority side just wants resident input because they lost.
Hix said that the citizens have never gotten to have a say on the location, also adding they prioritized city streets.
Smith-Esters repeated herself from last week, saying that she was open to a hearing but that the council was already decided on Churchill.
Smith-Esters says citizens have gotten their chance to speak on Churchill as a location, through public comment or contacting aldermen.
Alderman Kevin Wallace downplayed the importance of a public hearing saying that only 20 percent of the residents at best would show up.
