Several weeks ago a volunteer board member for the Community Redevelopment Agency in Ft. Walton Beach expressed discomfort about a tradition at the group's meeting.

The woman, who is a Canadian citizen, said she didn't feel comfortable praying or saying the Pledge of Allegiance at the CRA meeting.

The Fort Walton Beach City Council met Tuesday evening to decide weather a pledge and prayer should be mandatory at every meeting.

The wall clearly states in God we trust, but that's not the message the Fort Walton Beach City Council gave Tuesday when they voted against a motion to make a moment of silence or an invocation mandatory at any meeting conducting city business.

Councilman Mike Minich said, "I don't think we should legislate anymore that you have to pray anymore than we should tell you that you can't pray."

The council was split on the decision to do away with prayer 3-3. The city's mayor, Mike Anderson, broke the tie by voting against a mandatory moment of silence.

As for requiring a mandatory Pledge of Allegiance, with all participants required to stand, the board passed that unanimously. Many of the audience members were pleased with that decision.

"The pledge, being standardized, if it's not already in all city meetings I think to do otherwise we set ourselves up for a fall."

Tuesday night's vote was strictly informational. From here the board will instruct the city's attorney to draw up the legal ordinance, and then move forward from there.