Brainerd City Council Opts Not to Restrict Picketing

Brainerd City Council members weighed the pros and cons of residential picketing during a recent meeting.

Council President Kelly Bevans asked staff members to draft a proposed ordinance that would restrict picketing, but during the first reading, council members voted 4-3 to remove it from the agenda.

After further discussion, the council decided to make sure residents could invoke their First Amendment right to speech.

“In this instance, we’re dealing with an issue of people’s rights, both the right for someone to picket and the right for maybe a neighborhood individual to not have someone standing on their lawn,” said Brainerd Mayor Dave Badeaux. “And I think the city is going to fall in the direction of trying to protect people’s rights in terms of your freedom of expression.”

Councilors also voted 5-2 to not bring an ordinance restricting residential picketing back to the agenda in their meeting on June 17.