Tuesday night's Sylacauga City Council meeting threatened to devolve into total animosity on a range of topics from the human resources department, the role of the mayor and council, the status of Boys' Little League and the way the council president says the Pledge of Allegiance.

The first disagreement occurred during the work session preceding the meeting, when Council President Tiffany Nix called on Human Resource Director Jayne McGee to report on an agreement with IMVIZE to make legally required adjustments to the city's time keeping system in line with state tax law and public safety overtime requirements. Since McGee was not at the meeting, Mayor Jim Heigl sent his assistant to discuss the contract. Nix said the council would wait and hear from McGee and moved on to the next item of business, over Heigl's protest.