Malden City Hall

215 Pleasant Street

Malden, MA 02148

City of Malden

Meeting Minutes - Final

Community Engagement & Inclusion

Committee

Councillor Colon Hayes, Chair

Councillor McDonald, Vice-Chair

Councillor O'Malley

Tuesday, January 20, 2026

6:00 PM

City Hall, Room 105

215 Pleasant Street

Malden, MA 02148

Watch the meeting with Teams: https://tinyurl.com/46s6kz5p

Roll Call

3 - Karen Colon Hayes, Carey McDonald and Ryan O'Malley

Present:

Also Present: Council President Linehan, Councillors Winslow, Crowe,

Condon, Simonelli

Christopher Mooney-Assistant City Solicitor

Zaheer Samee-Assistant City Solicitor

Carol Ann Desiderio-City Clerk

Councillor Colon Hayes called the meeting to order at 6:02 PM.

There will be audio and video of this meeting via TEAMS,

Minutes to be Approved

37-26

Minutes of August 12, 2025 to be approved.

A motion was made by Councillor McDonald, seconded by Councillor Colon

Hayes, that the Committee Minutes of August 12, 2025 be approved. The motion

carried by a unanimous vote.

Business

The CEIC will meet for an update on what has been done the

past year and Malden Youth Council organization for 2026.

Councillor Colon Hayes explained the CEIC met with the MYC and decided they

wanted to go in a different route. The fear was having the youth be opened to OML

violations against them. We have asked the City Solicitors office to look into what

would be helpful whether being an advisory committee was a better way to go. She

referred to Christopher Mooney, Assistant City Solicitor to read what the findings were.

Chris does not have a full report but if you got the authority to create a sub-committee

you also have the right to disband it. If you want to create an advisory committee you

have the right to do that. Basically they would perform the same type of roles without

the pressures of being a public body.

Councillor Colon Hayes said that is fantastic news. We would love to go down that

road. The youth are anxious to do some work. They could follow the OML to have

practice in it however, not being put in a position to have an OML filed against them.

She said she spoke to different cities and they function as an advisory committee not a

public body.

Chris read the proposed order from Zaheer: ORDER: That the Malden Youth Council,

established by paper 13-22 as an ad hoc subcommittee of the Community Engagement

and Inclusion Committee (CEIC), is hereby discharged pursuant to Malden City Council

Rule 8.01 (2023) and Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised §36:9 (12th ed. 2020).

The CEIC is authorized to establish an advisory youth council, which shall not be a

public body within the meaning of the Open Meeting Law. The CEIC may specify in its

discretion the purpose and function of the advisory youth council, and may establish

and amend from time to time guidelines and rules for the advisory youth council’s

membership, operation, and participation in the work of the CEIC.

(Please note it was brought to the Clerk of Committees attention there was a typo with

Paper # 13-22 mentioned in the proposed order above which should read Paper

#138-22 when the MYC was establised. It which has been corrected.)

Councillor O'Malley explained if he remembers correctly is that originally you wanted to

do an advisory committee and it became an AdHoc Committee the advise we received

from Legal at the was that it was a public body. He reached out to the AG's office

asking if we change it to an advisory committee would not be a public body. At that

time the AG's office said it would still be a public body and he contacted the Legal

Department and they said it would still be a public body also. He would like to see the

law cited and/or an opinion from the AG's Office in writing that says if we make it an

advisory committee it would not be subject to the OML As much as he trusts the

consistency of legal advise we get he would like to make sure we know what is going

on. He feels we are getting opposite feedback that if we characterize it as an advisory

committee now and is looking for a determination from the AG's Office so that we do

not go through this whole process again thinking they are not a public body. We've

been down this road before and he doesn't want to go down it again.

Councillor Colon Hayes said she agrees nobody wants to put the youth or the City

Council in a position that is doing something we are not able to. When she read the

information from the state it is a public body because they are a sub committee off a

committee but if we do what you are suggesting we would be safe like that. We have

had advisory committees before.

Councillor O'Malley said when he reached out to the AG office the materials obtained

from the website was that the Malden Youth Council would be subject to OML.

Councillor Colon Hayes said when she and Councillor Winslow set this up it was a sub

committee and that is the AG was making their report for us. She feels if we disband

what we have restart again that's how it would be different with the same mission but

not being their own public body. We could get in writing she would like that also.

Councillor Winslow said we wanted to be clear that this committee was under the City

Council not the Mayor. It was explained that the purpose of this committee was to

advise the City Council. He as Council President set this committee up so he feels that

question would be can the City Council set up an advisory committee.

Councillor McDonald said that we have advisory committees throughout the City but the

question is does the function of the MYC qualify as an advisory group and is that an

appropriate form of that. Councillor McDonald noted Reading through the April 9, 2025

minutes Zaheer asked if this committee was advisory or are they able to make

decisions and Councillor Colon Hayes said it is just advisory no votes. We were not

told by legal to have to make it a public body it was an intentionally choice to make it a

public body for a number of reasons. The question is that they do not want to be in a

situation like this and the MYC is to isolated to the City Council and only one of this

committee could come to their meetings. The concern is making an advisory group so

that they can advise the Council with information and we can be present.

Councillor O'Malley asked Zaheer, Assist. City Solicitor why he thinks calling it an

advisory committee it is not a public body

Zaheer said if all the committee or youth group only has discussions and doesn't take

any votes that binds the City Council it is not a public body. One of the definitions of a

public body is that it has decision making authority under state law or local law but this

body doesn't have authority other than recommendations. He suggests saying the

MYC is a advisory committee to the City Council and then you would not be violating

the OML where a discussion would take place at their meetings if Councillors attended

their meetings.

Guillianah, member of the MYC asked if we can't be an advisory group what can we be.

Councillor Colon Hayes does not want to give her thoughts on that but suggested the

MYC think about ideas they have on that. She said we will not stop here but asked

them to be thinking about that also.

Councillor Simonelli asked if legal could answer that question if they are still interested

in this group

Zaheer said we are not talking about labels here you could come up with dozens of

names the question is what is their function or purpose are they going to serve.

Councillor Simonelli said maybe it could be a committee helping with community events

and the community can they do that.

The committee discussed the possibility of setting flexible, non-binding guidelines for

the Youth Council, allowing the group to operate independently and adjust its rules as

needed, with the City Council providing support and oversight.

Be it ordained by the Malden City Council that the Code of the

City of Malden (MCC) 12.12 USE REGULATIONS is hereby

amended to add 12.32.030.E CERTIFICATE OF REGISTRATION FOR

SHORT TERM RENTALS

307-25

Sponsors:

Karen Colon Hayes

Attachments:

PROPOSED SHORT TERM RENTAL ORDINANCE CITY OF

MALDEN.pdf

STR Info Nelson Miller Bldg Dir

Councillor Colon Hayes mentioned plans to schedule public meetings to gather

feedback on short-term rentals, noting that the issue was not urgent and could be

addressed at a later date.

A motion was made by Councillor McDonald, seconded by

Councillor Colon Hayes, that the Ordinance be tabled. The

motion carried by a unanimous vote.

Other Business

Tabled Papers

331-25

Minutes of June 17, 2025 to be approved.

Motion was made to take Paper 331-25 off the table by Councillor O'Malley and

seconded by Councillor McDonald. All were in favor.

A motion was made by Councillor McDonald, seconded by Councillor O'Malley,

that the Committee Minutes of June 17, 2025 be approved. The motion carried by

a unanimous vote.

Minutes of April 9, 2024 to be approved.

Motion to take Paper 277-24 off the table was made by Councillor O'Malley and

seconded by Councillor McDonald. All were in favor.

A motion was made by Councillor McDonald, seconded by Councillor O'Malley,

that the Committee Minutes of April 9, 2024 be approved. The motion carried by a

unanimous vote.

Minutes of June 12, 2024 to be approved.

Motion was made to take Paper 279-24 off the table by Councillor O'Malley and

seconded by Councillor McDonald. All were in favor.

A motion was made by Councillor McDonald, seconded by Councillor O'Malley,

that the Committee Minutes of June 12, 2024 be approved. The motion carried by

a unanimous vote.

Minutes of June 18, 2024 to be approved.

Motion to take Paper 306-24 off the table was made by Councillor O'Malley seconded

by Councillor McDonald. All were in favor.

A motion was made by Councillor McDonald, seconded by Councillor O'Malley,

that the Committee Minutes of June 18, 2024 be approved. The motion carried by

a unanimous vote.

Minutes of December 11, 2024 to be approved.

Motion to take Paper #485-24 off the table by Councillor O'Malley and seconded by

Councillor McDonald. All were in favor.

A motion was made by Councillor McDonald, seconded by Councillor O'Malley,

that the Committee Minutes of October 16, 2024 be approved as amended to

redact personal information. The motion carried by a unanimous vote.

Minutes of October 16, 2024 to be approved.

398-24

Motion to take Paper 398-24 off the table was made by Councillor O'Malley and

seconded by Councillor McDonald. All were in favor.

A motion was made by Councillor McDonald, seconded by Councillor O'Malley,

that the Committee Minutes of October 16, 2024 be approved as amended to

redact personal information. The motion carried by a unanimous vote.

Adjournment

A motion was made by Councillor McDonald, seconded by Councillor O'Malley,

that this meeting be adjourned at 6:39 PM. The motion carried unanimously.

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