The Montesano City Council is starting off 2019 on the wrong foot.

A council retreat planned for 9 a.m. today, was canceled after The Vidette pointed out to city officials that proper notice, required by state law, was not given. Under the revised code of Washington, a 24-hour public notice to newspapers and other media notice is needed, along with a posted agenda and other requirements.

During a December council meeting, Mayor Vini Samuel asked to hold a council retreat in early January.

As of 9 a.m. Friday, Jan. 4, no notice had been posted.

The first official notice the newspaper received was in an email (received around 1:15 p.m. Friday) detailing the change of venue from a county Public Utilities District office in Hoquiam to a Montesano business. Within the next half hour, the city posted notice of the then-pending meeting.

After a reporter pointed out the problem to officials, and officials discussed the situation, the meeting was canceled.

A new time and venue for the meeting will be discussed at Tuesday’s council meeting.

According to the agenda, the council hopes to set goals for 2019 and discuss interactions with the public and with each other.