04/28/2003 Council Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

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COUNCIL MINUTES APRIL 28, 2003 APPROVED 97 98 Councilmember Carlson asked who had been appointed from the other three cities. City 99 Administrator Waite Smith indicated the mayors from all three cities have agreed, and one city has 100 two City Councilmembers interested, however they have conflicting schedules so the one appointed 101 would depend on the day the meetings took place. 102 103 Councilmember Carlson noted she has heard one city is appointing someone other than an elected 104 official. City Administrator Waite Smith confirmed that Lexington is looking at someone else; she 105 believes someone formally associated with the police commission. 106 107 Councilmember O'Donnell moved to further explore the possibility of forming a joint police 108 department with the cities of Centerville, Circle Pines and Lexington. Councilmember Reinert 109 seconded the motion. 110 111 Councilmember Carlson noted that as issues are brought up and things continue to change, she is no 112 longer sure how much money Lino Lakes will save. She understands the other three cities will save 113 money, since they will not have the cost of constructing a new facility, but she in unclear on the 114 savings to Lino Lakes. She stated that Lino Lakes' percentage will continue to grow, since they have 115 the area to grow, and Lino Lakes is not realizing the same savings as the other cities. She asked if 116 any of the other Councilmembers have had issues with this. 117 118 City Administrator Waite Smith indicated no one has contacted her. 119 Ah120 Councilmember Carlson asked if line one of the list of City Council concerns could be changed to say W21 `since' rather than 'if'. City Administrator Waite Smith indicated this list was an attempt to capture 122 issues discussed at the last work session. If the Council chooses to go forward, they will make it 123 more specific for whoever goes to the table. 124 125 Councilmember Carlson stated she understood the financial projections are rough estimates, but one 126 figure she is concerned with is the census figure, as she is aware they have 700 more homes since the 127 census, and the population is growing constantly and will change Lino Lakes' cost. She added she is 128 concerned the police presence will remain static, although the City has growth. She relayed her 129 concern about what will happen when the bonds are paid off as well. She stated she talked with nine 130 people about this, and while everyone is interested in saving money, the important thing is if they will 131 be getting the same coverage. There are also concerns about wanting to have Lino Lakes name on the 132 police department, and if/how it will affect insurance rates. 133 134 She read from a letter from a member of the Public Safety Citizen's Committee, which states: 135 1. If a merger takes place, they are concerned that it happen as fast as possible. Morale is low in 136 the department due to uncertainty of employment should this go through. The proposed time 137 schedule shows a merger taking the rest of this year, but for those wondering about job 138 security, that is too long. The best officers will leave and try for employment elsewhere, and 139 the Committee believes Lino Lakes has the best training and therefore the best officers. 140 Therefore, the merger needs to move forward quickly or be dropped. 141 2. For staff, decisions need to be fair and fast, with as much staff retained as possible from the 142 Chief on down. ilw43 3. The Committee desires to retain the Lino Lakes Police Department philosophy. Over the last 44 30 years they have seen the Lino Lakes Police Department go from one of little respect to one 3