Kemah official on apparent lack of decorum at council meetings: 'We had a meeting where a gavel was thrown across the room'

A Wednesday city council meeting in the northern Galveston County town of Kemah teetered on the edge of chaos as the mayor and the city council sparred on certain agenda items, Houston-based media outlets reported.

Houston ABC affiliate KTRK reported that Mayor Carl Joiner clashed with councilmembers over topics such as social media, firearms and finances. 

The station reported that Joiner repeatedly placed controversial items on the agenda for the city council to vote them down.

According to Houston NBC affiliate KPRC, the councilmembers took issue with Joiner’s request to scrub negative social media posts about Kemah, which is home to approximately 2,100 people and is located 33 miles south of Houston.

Asserting Kemah “is a great place,” the station reported, Joiner demanded that city employees refrain from shedding “a negative light on our city.”

“It just hurts me so bad,” the mayor said, per KPRC. “They’re proud of the fact that we have this trashy reputation.”

Kemah's tourism-based economy is anchored by the Kemah Boardwalk.

Houston CBS affiliate KHOU reported that City Council Position 5 Member Isaac Saldaña pointed out that civility and decorum have been lacking at city council meetings to where it became an agenda item.

“We had a meeting where a gavel was thrown across the room,” Saldaña said, KHOU reported.

On the issue of social media, the councilman claimed Joiner paid someone to record social media videos that take shots at other council members, per the station.

KTRK reported that Joiner received additional pushback on guns at city hall, the power to sign city checks and the creation of more ad hoc committees.

Councilmembers argued that his social media request runs afoul of the First Amendment, according to the station.

The mayor expressed concern that the city council will bar him from getting things done, per KTRK.