East Wenatchee Council prepares for big crowd, relocates meeting on banner display policy

EAST WENATCHEE — The City Council voted to relocate its Oct. 21 meeting to the Eastmont Junior High School auditorium, citing space and safety concerns tied to an expected large turnout for the banner-display policy. The motion by Councilmember Matthew Hepner, seconded by Councilmember Ken Arnold, passed with one “no”  from Councilmember Ettore Castellente and one abstention by Councilmember Taylor Stimmel.

City Clerk Laura Leon presented the venue change, apologizing for a premature notice two weeks earlier and stressing the decision was the council’s. Leon said Council Chambers seats 82 people (including the dais and staff), while the rotunda can hold roughly 190 standing but suffers from poor acoustics. She said the junior high auditorium meets ADA, parking, and technology needs; the city and school successfully tested Zoom there.

Debate focused on crowd size, fire code, and decorum. Castellente emphasized safety, noting Chambers has “one means of ingress,” a phrase he likely used often during his 50-year career in fire service. He added, “Schools are not the safest buildings in the country anymore.” He also referenced, without any details, “an aggressive attitude towards this council [that] was uncalled for.”

Hepner, who had already repeatedly made references to the benefits of citizen participation, asked what penalty the city faces if capacity is exceeded. East Wenatchee Police Chief Rick Johnson, who was also present for the special meeting, said there’s no fine — that Fire Chief Brian Brett would simply shut the meeting down.

Councilmember Shayne Magdoff prioritized resident input, and noted that council members had asked citizens to be more involved in the democratic process, which drew agreement from Mayor Jerrilea Crawford: “I love that our community is passionate and wants to show up … we have the responsibility to meet them where they’re at,” she said.

Crawford said she will not tolerate outbursts, cheering, or booing, and would recess the meeting if necessary. Councilmember Christine Johnson, favoring the opportunity for civic engagement, framed the pressure as part of public service: “This is what we signed up for.”

Stimmel abstained, explaining he will attend by Zoom and, if safety is decisive, didn’t want his vote to determine the outcome since he won’t be physically present. He also raised a participation concern, saying he believes some attendees are being brought in from outside East Wenatchee alongside local residents. That point fed a brief discussion about possibly hearing city residents first during public comment.

Leon said police presence is planned regardless of venue. Remote participation by Zoom or phone remains available.

The council limited Tuesday’s vote to location; the date and start time (October 21 at 6 p.m.) are unchanged. Parameters for public comment — potential two-minute limits, whether to prioritize East Wenatchee residents, and how long to keep the comment period open before the 9 p.m. meeting cutoff — will come back at the next session for direction. That means that these things will be determined at the outset of the actual meeting, not beforehand. Staff will finalize the Eastmont Junior High setup and post updated location details for Oct. 21.

Andrew Simpson: 509-433-7626 or andrew@ward.media