Mayor Steve Noble will deliver his third State of the City address on Tuesday, Jan. 9 when the Common Council convenes for its first meeting of 2018. The meeting will also feature a swearing ceremony for members of the Common Council. The ceremony is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. in council chambers at City Hall.
Among those sworn in will be four new members of the nine-member Common Council. Jeffrey Ventura Morrell (D-Ward 1), Rita Worthington (D-Ward 4), Patrick O’Reilly (Ward 7) and Andrea Shaut (D-Ward 9) were elected to their first two-year terms in November. O’Reilly is not enrolled in any political party and ran on both the Democratic and Republican Party lines.
For the first time in modern memory the council will convene without a single registered Republican member. O’Reilly, who ran on the City of Kingston Republican Committee’s “Restore Kingston Pride” ticket, may seek the post of minority leader previously held by Republican Deborah Brown. The minority leader’s post comes with an annual $500 stipend, a vote on all council committees and the privilege of making an annual State of the City speech, traditionally one month after the mayor’s address. Common Council President Jim Noble has said previously that he would discuss the matter with O’Reilly before seeking to amend council rules that require the minority leader to be a member of a political party.
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