Victory Baptist Church members filled the first floor conference room of city hall tonight as council met for its monthly work session.

The crowd was so large that Fire Chief Gary Corbet had to ask many to step outside to trim the audience to 65.

While there is no public forum during the work session, Michael Jones, pastor of the church, said after the meeting church members have concerns about a fence the city has required the church to erect as part of its family life center it is building off Bolling Road. “The city required us to put up an 8 foot fence,” he said, explaining it is something the church was reluctant to do.

A week ago the church was told the fence needs to be moved 3 feet to 4 feet because it is not on the property line.

Moving the fence would cost the church an extra $20,000 to $30,000, Jones said.

Mayor Emery Doughtie told the parishioners before the meeting began he understood the matter was being worked out.

In other matters tonight:

Council met in closed session but took no action afterward.

Council voted that acts coming to the theater do not have to come to council for approval. This was after council approved a dance recital to be held at the venue in May.

The vote was 4-1, with Councilman Ed Liverman voting against the measure. “We’re taking a $21.5 million venue and turning it into a civic center,” he said. “We should weigh each option closely.”