7.14.2026 City Council

The Fall River City Council meeting consisted of a public hearing, a Committee on Finance meeting, and a full council session. The public hearing addressed several routine curb removal requests and a license for a secondhand trading card store. The Committee on Finance meeting began with a citation presented by Councilor Peckham to Jeffrey Sarnecki for his volunteer work supporting veterans. During citizens' input, Ian Tompkins discussed his proposal to rezone a neighborhood to A-2 to allow for a 5-family home at 450 Cambridge Street, while Alex Silva of the Preservation Society raised concerns about the city bypassing its own ordinances in the emergency demolition of the historic Central Police Station at 158 Bedford Street. A lengthy discussion was held on the city's residential solid waste and recycling contract, focusing on the administration's decision for a short-term two-year contract, the estimated $5.086 million collection cost, and a proposed ordinance to cease collection for properties with more than four units. The committee tabled the resolution for further information.

The main event of the full council meeting was the contentious debate over the July continuing appropriation budget. The council first rejected and withdrew an old $1.4 million appropriation for fire salaries, replacing it with a new one funded from unexpended departmental balances. The council then rejected the revised July continuing budget in a series of votes (failing 4-4, then passing 6-2 after reconsideration) due to the administration's and Corporation Counsel's opinion that the school department's budget was already funded, despite the council having previously voted for a $0 appropriation. Councilors argued this left the school department without a legal budget. The council also referred a controversial zoning amendment petition to the planning board, which failed on a 4-4 vote, and referred an ordinance on solid waste collection back to committee for amendments. Several other ordinances, appointments, and resolutions were passed, including a $6.88 million loan order for the 3rd Street parking garage which was referred to finance.

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