About 20 Annapolitans came out to the Annapolis Bookstore on Maryland Avenue Tuesday morning to have breakfast, sip on coffee and listen to Mayor Josh Cohen address some of the biggest issues on residents' minds.

Cohen started facilitating community meetings, called "Coffee with the Mayor" last month, with the first one kicking off at b.b. Bistro in West Annapolis. He is also slated to host two others in February.

During Tuesday's meeting, there were initially a handful of chairs for attendees in the bookstore laden with striking old books and other treats. However, as the event progressed, more people came inside to hear what the mayor had to say and to offer him their own ideas and ask questions.

On the mayor's blog, the sessions are billed as part of the, "mayor's barnstorming mission."

One of the topics broached by Cohen was the familiar-to-many topic of the Market House at City Dock. According the city's web site, a Market House has been at City Dock since 1788.

Today, city leaders, residents and business owners might not see eye-to-eye regarding the city's old landmark, but Cohen said he wants people who frequent it to have a nice experience and it should emphasize local food and items.

Cohen said he advocates using Baltimore-based Gone to Market, LLC to help improve the Market House in many ways.

In reference to downtown, the mayor said he wants downtown Annapolis to have a good mix of businesses and he plans to make landlords aware of reasonable rent prices to charge business owners or those seeking to open a business.

During the meeting, residents expressed concerns about people partying late at night downtown. One man suggested an increased presence of police officers in the area to improve matters.

"If you make it so there are people there, doing the proactive thing instead of the reactive thing, everyone will be happy," he said.

Cohen said the city is bolstering its efforts to improve relationships with bar owners, and he added that capping the number of bars in downtown is possible.

One woman in the room said, "I think we need more dialogue. We're in this together. We're going to sink or swim as a downtown."

Cohen also spoke about work being done on the new city budget. He said the city is obliged to have a balanced budget and he has had to lay off some employees to do this.

He said he has two main goals—to avoid further layoffs and to avoid raising property taxes.

"Overall, we're trying our best to provide services with the employees we have," he said.

Other community meetings the mayor is facilitating take place Feb. 9 at the Annapolis Walk Community Center, 1701 Belle Dr. (Ward 4), and Feb. 16, Bagels and..., 2019 West St. (Ward 3). The events begin at 8:30 a.m. and are held for 90 minutes.

The meetings are subject to change if schools and, or, government facilities are closed or scheduled to open later than usual, according to www.mayorcohen.com.

For more information, contact Hilary Raftovich at 410-263-7030 or hrraftovich.annapolis.gov.