By Clayton Ledger in City Council — 15 Oct 2026

Clayton City Council — October 13: CenturyLink fiber deal renewed, Halloween lighting authorized, Citadel Prime approved

All seven members present as council renewed a CenturyLink fiber deal, authorized Halloween lighting for storm-darkened streets, and permitted Citadel Prime.

Listen: Clayton City Council — October 13: CenturyLink fiber deal renewed, Halloween lighting authorized, Citadel Prime approved

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What happened

The Clayton City Council convened on October 13, 2026, with all seven members present. The council held a public hearing and approved a conditional use permit for Citadel Prime, a new restaurant at 105 Carondelet Plaza; it adopted Bill No. 7179 renewing the city's fiber-optic agreement with CenturyLink and the Clayton School District; and it authorized temporary propane lighting for tornado-darkened neighborhoods on Halloween night.

What the council decided

Citadel Prime conditional use permit — the council approved Resolution No. 2026-31, granting a conditional use permit for the restaurant at 105 Carondelet Plaza, by a 7–0 roll-call vote.
CenturyLink / School District fiber agreement — the council adopted Bill No. 7179 on both first and second reading the same evening, with unanimous consent granted, approving a new license for CenturyLink to use city rights-of-way and a companion agreement with the school district to share fiber-optic connections, by a 7–0 roll-call vote.
Consent agenda — the council approved the remaining items by a 7–0 roll-call vote, after pulling the proposed 2027 meeting schedule for separate discussion.
2027 meeting schedule — the council approved the 2027 schedule as amended, including rescheduling the strategic planning session from June 18 to June 11, by voice vote.
November 24 meeting cancellation — the council voted to cancel the November 24, 2026 meeting by voice vote, leaving one meeting in November.
Halloween temporary lighting — the council authorized temporary lighting for trick-or-treating on October 31, with conditions of up to 15 propane-powered lights, a total cost not to exceed $7,000, placement at intersections with outages, and a 9:30 p.m. shutoff, by voice vote.

Who was there

All seven members were present at roll call: Council Members Susan Buse, Becky Patel, Gary Feder, Jeffery Yorg, Kami Waldman, and Betsy Meyland-Smith, and Mayor Bridget McAndrew. City Manager David Gipson and City Attorney Kevin O'Keefe were also in attendance.

What they debated

The longest discussion of the evening centered on whether and how to provide temporary lighting for neighborhoods still without working streetlight circuits following tornado damage.

City Manager David Gipson explained that staff had received a Ward 1 request to light Wydown Boulevard for Halloween and, after expanding the scope, found that Wydown and large portions of the Moorlands — including Byron, Parkdale, and Audubon — remained without operating streetlight circuits. A full-coverage solution would require 30 to 35 portable lights at an estimated cost of $13,500 to $15,000, an unbudgeted expense. Staff described two light types: quiet propane and louder gas units.

Council members quickly converged on a scaled-back, intersection-focused approach. Several expressed a strong preference for propane over gas, citing generator-noise concerns for residents and children trying to sleep. One member noted that the lights would not be shielded and would penetrate windows, but acknowledged covering key intersections was the priority.

The sharpest debate was over the cutoff time. Some members favored 9:00 p.m., arguing most children are in bed by then. Others were willing to go to 10:00 p.m. if propane was used. The council settled on 9:30 p.m. as a compromise.

Gipson proposed the final parameters — up to 15 propane lights, not to exceed $7,000 — and noted that if fewer propane units were available, staff would optimize placement with whatever number could be secured. Members also discussed creative alternatives, such as asking a local church to brighten its sign at the Wydown and University intersection to reduce the number of rented lights needed.

On the Citadel Prime permit, discussion focused on outdoor music hours. Staff explained that the city's noise ordinance prohibits outdoor music after 10:00 p.m. within 500 feet of a residential district, and that the permit was drafted to reflect that limit. One member raised the possibility of a 9:00 p.m. cutoff for outdoor music, citing concern for nearby condo residents. Others felt 10:00 p.m. was not particularly late for an urban corner. The permit was approved with the 10:00 p.m. limit as proposed.

On the CenturyLink renewal, Gipson presented the agreement as a mutually beneficial renewal: the city receives fiber-optic connections between its buildings at no annual cost, and in return grants CenturyLink a license to use city rights-of-way at no annual cost, with the School District of Clayton participating under a companion agreement. No council members raised questions, and Council Member Buse moved to introduce the bill.

On the meeting schedule, the council pulled the 2027 calendar from consent to discuss the June 18 strategic planning session, which falls on a city employee holiday, and agreed to move it to June 11. Members then weighed canceling the November 24 and December 22 meetings, noting that November looks light on business and that the Tuesday before Thanksgiving is difficult for many people. They canceled November 24 and agreed to monitor December 22 before deciding.

Also at the meeting

During the roundtable, Mayor McAndrew reported that Clayton hosted a Cool Cities presentation on trees as critical infrastructure, with city staff presenting alongside county representatives, and praised Council Members Buse and Waldman for filling last-minute speaker cancellations.

Council Member Waldman reported on a successful Economic Development subcommittee meeting, ward coffees, and attendance at the county municipal league's legislative committee.

Council Member Feder noted that the Citizen Finance Committee had recently covered city incentives in depth and would hold a second dedicated meeting on the topic. The Parks and Recreation Committee had also completed a survey of the city's roughly 13 statues to assess maintenance needs.

Council Member Meyland-Smith noted a ribbon cutting for the Vivian, described as the city's newest residential building, and praised staff for a packed Jazz Festival. Gipson noted an upcoming busy weekend including homecoming, Party in the Patch, a 5K, and the Sababa Jewish Arts & Culture Festival.

In context

The CenturyLink renewal has roots going back roughly 30 years. The most recent prior agreement was approved by the council in October 2016 and entered into effect as a 10-year term. At that time, the city formalized what had previously been a verbal arrangement with the school district into a written agreement.

The streetlight outages driving the Halloween discussion have been a recurring concern for more than a year. As early as October 2025, council members raised safety concerns about darkened Wydown. Staff explained in November 2025 that many failed circuits involve direct-burial lines that age and fail and cannot be easily replaced. By April 2026, staff were still working through timelines, noting 12-to-16-week lead times for light standards and fixtures.

The Flock camera topic raised in public comment has appeared at multiple prior meetings. Residents and council members have debated data custody and surveillance policy since at least April 2026. The council reviewed the police department's Flock policies in July 2026, with some residents supporting continued use and others raising concerns. As recently as September 2026, a commenter again urged reconsideration.

Public comments

One public comment card was submitted before the meeting. Natalie Dowd, a Ward 2 resident, spoke during the public requests and petitions period on the subject of Flock cameras and AI surveillance.

Dowd argued that the cameras take a photo every three seconds around the clock and that the resulting data is physically held on servers owned and controlled by the surveillance company, not the city. She further contended that Flock sells the data to data brokers who may resell it, and that no federal legislation clearly governs such sales.