04-14-2005 Charter Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

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Charter Commission April 14, 2005 Page 2 APPROVED Council. Council Member Carlson questioned coming tonight,but felt the City Council left their meeting with a plan. She was also concerned about the open meeting laws. She thought she would attend rather than take a chance. Chair Trehus asked if Council Member Carlson was just an observer tonight. Council Member Carlson stated she was confused at this point. She wondered if it was wrong for the Commission to talk to the City Council this evening. Commissioner Bor stated she did not know the history of joint meetings and asked for clarification. Chair Trehus stated joint meetings between the Charter Commission and the City Council had been going on for 10 years that he has been aware of. He noted there was a quorum of the Council present. Chair Trehus stated Mr. Heitke indicated there would not be a joint meeting. He noted there was a quorum of the City Council present tonight. Council Member Stoltz stated he had been in Alexandria all day. He felt he had walked in here fully prepared to have a joint meeting. He noted the Council Members had a training session. He was a little puzzled procedurally. Council Member Stoltz indicated is a big advocate about working with professionals and suggested there be a joint meeting in July. Council Member Carlson stated it was hard for her to say what should be done. There were definitely concerns expressed during the training. Commissioner Vacha asked if a decision was made after the April 6th work session, then why was the Charter Commission informed eight days later. He assumed an opinion was formulated after that meeting. There was plenty of time to inform the Commission. Commissioner Warren stated it appeared to her that the City Council received some training. The Charter Commissioners should also have the same training to get a clear idea of what each body's role was. Since the two groups had not had an opportunity to talk with each other, assumptions were being made on what the Charter Commission is trying to do. It appears to be an adversarial sense, which is not the Charter Commission's intention. The Charter Commission desires to have a sensible road construction and maintenance plan. The Charter Commission intends to be an aid in that process. Yet, it appears this is getting adversarial for no reason except for a lack of communication. Rather than waiting until July, she proposed the Charter Commission have a special training issue. Then there could be a special meeting to iron out any issues so that the July meeting could be a productive one. A road referendum was an important issue. 2