09-01-1993 Charter Agenda - Laserfiche WebLink

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SUMMARY of CHARTER FOR LINO LAKES The Charter was drafted by a commission organized under a procedure provided by Minnesota statute 410. The Lino Lakes Home-Rule Charter Commission was formally created by 'a court order signed by Chief Judge James T. Knutson as a result of a petition to the court. This charter closely followed a model charter provided by the League of Minnesota Cities with ideas and thoughts tailored to the unique needs of the citizens of our community, Lino Lakes. A draft was submitted to the League of Minnesota Cities and the Lino Lakes City Council for comments. A summary of the charters twelve chapters follows. Chapter 1: This chapter designates the boundaries and powers of the City as allowed under Minnesota law. It is the same boundaries as exists in Lino today. Chapter 2: This chapter on the form of government is the same as Lino Lakes has today. Chapter 3: This chapter details the general Council procedure in order for it to operate in an effective manner. Chapter 4: Covers nominations and elections for council office. The major change from current practice is that a vacancy in the City Council would be filled by a special election rather than appointment by the City Council if the term of the vacant office has more than one year to run. Chapter 5: This chapter contains the new rights of Initiative, Referendum and Recall that the voters will have under the new charter. Initiative is the right of citizens to petition for new ordinances. Referendum is the right to petition for a vote on an ordinance passed by the City Council to either support or suspend the ordinance. Recall is the right to petition for recall of an elected official for misconduct in office. CHAPTER 6: Covers the administration of the city. The Council has the overall responsibility with the City Administrator _appointed to act for the Council in the day-to-day activities. This is the current method of operation in the city. CHAPTER 7: This important part of the charter calls for a long term (five year) financial plan for the city. The League of Minnesota Cities suggests a plan of this type. This plan will help the council and concerned residents formulate a desireable direction of growth for the city. The plan will be published annually.