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HomeMy WebLinkAbout10-10-19.CharterCharter Commission October 10, 2019 Page 1 1 APPROVED 1 CITY OF LINO LAKES 2 CHARTER COMMISSION 3 4 5 DATE October 10, 2019 6 TIME STARTED 6:30 p.m. 7 TIME ENDED 7:49 p.m. 8 MEMBERS PRESENT Bretoi, Dahl, Damiani, Davis, Juni, Lyden, Poehling, 9 Stanek, Trehus, and Vanderpoel 10 MEMBERS EXCUSED Aldentaler 11 MEMBERS UNEXCUSED Devaney 12 STAFF MEMBERS PRESENT City Clerk Julie Bartell 13 OTHERS PRESENT: none 14 15 16 CALL TO ORDER AND ROLL CALL 17 Chair Dahl convened the meeting of the Lino Lakes Charter Commission at 6:30 pm on October 18 10, 2019. 19 20 PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE 21 Chair Dahl lead the Pledge of Allegiance. 22 23 SETTING THE AGENDA 24 Chair Dahl requested to add discussion of the Five-Year Plan under New Business. 25 26 Agenda was accepted as presented without additions 27 28 OPEN MIC/PUBLIC COMMENT 29 No one present opted to speak for the open mic. 30 31 OLD BUSINESS 32 33 A.Approval of May 9, 2019 Minutes 34 MOTION by Commissioner Juni, seconded by Commissioner Poehling, approving the meeting 35 minutes of May 9, 2019. 36 37 Motion passed unanimously. 38 39 B.Petitions with City Clerk and City Attorney 40 City Clerk Bartell referenced the discussion the Commission had at the May 9th meeting which 41 left some open-ended questions. She explained that due to the number and types of varying 42 petitions, it would be difficult to provide a template petition. She reviewed some of the different 43 petitions that she has received in the past. She explained that each petition is very different in its 44 regulations and therefore a template could make it more difficult as it would not be accurate. She 45 Charter Commission October 10, 2019 Page 2 2 stated that the most successful method would be for residents to check with City staff or legal 46 counsel related to the necessary information for a petition. 47 48 Commissioner Lyden commented that it appears it would be difficult to formulate a template and 49 perhaps it would be better to include language on the City website that residents can contact City 50 staff for more information on what would be required for a particular petition. He explained that 51 his concern is making the information accessible and user friendly. 52 53 City Clerk Bartell stated that perhaps blurbs could be placed under the City Charter and 54 Administration portions of the website which would make it easily searchable. 55 56 Chair Dahl provided an example of a petition that circulated her neighborhood and was 57 successful to gain additional streetlights. 58 59 Commissioner Trehus stated that the discussion at the last meeting was related to the petitions 60 available under the two sections of the Charter. He stated that he has heard in the past that 61 residents have reached out about potential petitions and were assisted by City staff. He asked for 62 additional details on the assistance that City staff is able to provide, as he would want to ensure 63 that the petition process is an easy and open process. 64 65 City Clerk Bartell agreed that she also likes to ensure that the process is as easy and open as 66 possible. She provided an example where she recently spoke with a resident about a petition that 67 was not clear. She stated that in that case it was clear to her that the resident should speak to 68 legal counsel on how best to proceed. She stated that the petition was ultimately rejected by the 69 City Council. 70 71 Commissioner Trehus stated that he has submitted a petition in the past and used the statute for 72 guidance. He asked if a form was created for the petition against the extension of water in a 73 neighborhood. 74 75 City Clerk Bartell confirmed that the City Attorney assisted in creating that form, based on 76 direction from City staff. She explained that there was a need for the Council to know how many 77 people supported water/sewer in that neighborhood. She noted that the decision from City staff 78 to request assistance from the City Attorney would be based on the circumstances. She stated 79 that she would hope that residents would not see a petition form as the only method of 80 communicating or requesting something they would like to discuss. She noted that she will help 81 to the extent of her knowledge and power when asked. 82 83 Commissioner Lyden stated that in getting it right, sometimes a legal opinion is needed. 84 85 City Clerk Bartell stated that in some instances the City Attorney could review that. She noted 86 that she does not refer anything directly as the City Attorney conducts work under a legal 87 contract and therefore any potential referrals would need to go through the City Administrator. 88 89 C. Legal Representation 90 Charter Commission October 10, 2019 Page 3 3 Chair Dahl stated that she reached out to Kennedy and Graven, following the last discussion. 91 She stated that the firm currently represents the City on bond and development matters and 92 therefore cannot represent the Charter Commission. She noted that two additional referrals were 93 provided that have knowledge on municipal law but noted that neither option had any experience 94 with charters. She stated that she is at a loss of what else she could do to research potential legal 95 representation. 96 97 Commissioner Bretoi asked if Kennedy and Graven provided a reason for not wanting to assist 98 the Charter Commission. 99 100 Chair Dahl explained that the reason provided was a potential conflict as the firm currently 101 represents the City on bonding and development issues. 102 103 Commissioner Trehus agreed that there could be a potential conflict if that firm represents the 104 City on bonding and development issues. 105 106 Commissioner Poehling asked if a specific issue was mentioned in the email to the firm, as there 107 could be a difference in a potential conflict dependent upon the issue needing assistance. 108 109 Chair Dahl read aloud the communication she sent to the firm, which was vague in the possible 110 representation. She stated that at this time there is not a specific issue the Commission needs 111 assistance with. She explained that is why she kept the request general as there is not a specific 112 request needing assistance. 113 114 Commissioner Poehling stated that if there is a specific issue that arises, perhaps the Commission 115 could reach out to the firm and there could be clearance provided for that firm to assist the 116 Commission if there is not a conflict. 117 118 Commissioner Bretoi stated that this issue has been ongoing for some time with no resolution 119 and perhaps it would be time to move on. 120 121 Commissioner Trehus referenced the outdated list that Chair Dahl mentioned and asked for more 122 information. 123 124 Chair Dahl stated that she has a list from the League of Minnesota Cities of other charter cities 125 and the related contacts. She noted that the contacts listed have most likely become outdated, 126 which would equate to the lack of responses. She stated that she did request an updated list but 127 was told there would be a very high hourly charge to provide that information. She stated that 128 she would be willing to reach out to additional cities. 129 130 City Clerk Bartell stated that perhaps the contact be limited to the metro area to narrow down the 131 list. 132 133 Charter Commission October 10, 2019 Page 4 4 Commissioner Damiani stated that she completed a Google search of charter cities within the 134 state of Minnesota which provided immediate results. She noted that may be a source to provide 135 updated contact information. 136 137 Chair Dahl noted that some charter cities replied that they do not have their own representation 138 and simply utilize their City Attorney with questions. 139 140 D.Open Positions on Charter Commission 141 City Clerk Bartell stated that the Chair typically invites the members with expiring terms to 142 reapply if desired and reviewed the different methods to reapply. She explained the process that 143 is followed once applications are received. She stated that the City has been advertising for the 144 open positions on the Commission through multiple formats. She stated that the City has not yet 145 received any applications for the three open positions. 146 147 NEW BUSINESS 148 149 A.Odd Year Elections 150 City Clerk Bartell hoped that the Commissioners were able to review the report which includes 151 the background information going back to 2010. She explained that in 2010 the Council brought 152 forward the idea of switching to even year elections, as Lino Lakes is one of only two cities in 153 Anoka County that complete local elections in odd years. She stated that a driving force to 154 change to even years is the cost savings to the city budget as well as staff time. She explained 155 that both the City Clerk and Deputy City Clerk devote much of their time in a year to election 156 administration, along with the time of the election judges. She stated that the requirement of an 157 odd year election is included in the Charter and therefore, in 2010, the question of change to an 158 even year was sent to the Charter Commission. 159 160 Chair Dahl recalled that the Mayor was opposed to a change. She found it helpful to have that 161 opinion expressed. 162 163 City Clerk Bartell noted that the topic was added to the Charter Commission now at the request 164 of the Chair. She noted that the cost budgeted for election administration this year is $18,000. 165 She confirmed that $4,000 to $5,000 of that cost is capital improvements for equipment that 166 wouldn’t be saved. 167 168 Commissioner Poehling asked if the Council is currently discussing this topic. 169 170 City Clerk Bartell said no. 171 172 Chair Dahl stated that she placed the item on the agenda at the request of a Commission member. 173 174 Commissioner Poehling stated that he would favor even year elections. He recognized the cost 175 savings but noted that there would also be higher voter turnout. 176 177 Commissioner Lyden asked if there is information on the turnout for even and odd year elections. 178 Charter Commission October 10, 2019 Page 5 5 179 City Clerk Bartell commented that in Presidential years the voter turnout rate is in the 90 percent 180 range, whereas typical odd year turnouts range from about 15 to 30 percent. 181 182 Commissioner Trehus asked if special referendum elections could still fall on odd years. 183 184 City Clerk Bartell confirmed that those elections could occur on odd years if necessary. She 185 provided additional information on the administration of elections and the related costs. 186 187 Commissioner Bretoi asked if it would be appropriate to bring the topic back to the City Council 188 following the election this year. 189 190 Chair Dahl agreed that would be a good idea. 191 192 Commissioner Juni stated that he remembered when this discussion occurred in 2010. He stated 193 that it seemed that the Charter Commission at that time followed the opinion of the Mayor to not 194 change that element of the Charter. 195 196 City Clerk Bartell noted that Charter amendments that don’t go to ballot require a unanimous 197 vote of the Council. 198 199 Commissioner Trehus stated that the reason the change was not supported in the past is because 200 the visibility of the local candidates often becomes lost during even year elections because of the 201 elections at the state and federal levels occurring at that time. He stated that even though there is 202 a lesser voter turnout on odd years, the people voting are often more informed. 203 204 Commissioner Bretoi noted that there is nothing that requires a voter to vote for every position. 205 He noted that people can simply skip items that they are not informed on. He stated that there is 206 a much smaller voter turnout for odd election years. 207 208 Commissioner Trehus commented that those are more informed voters. 209 210 Commissioner Bretoi commented that is just a personal opinion. 211 212 Commissioner Juni stated that he would like to wait to continue the discussion after the elections 213 this year. He stated that even if half of the even year election turnout votes on local elections, 214 that is still more than the turnout on odd years. 215 216 Commissioner Trehus stated that it his opinion that the ability to focus on local election matters 217 is compromised by the larger elections occurring on even number years. 218 219 Commissioner Poehling stated that he pays attention to all those offices up for election when he 220 votes on even number years. 221 222 Charter Commission October 10, 2019 Page 6 6 MOTION by Commissioner Bretoi, seconded by Commissioner Lyden, requesting to bring this 223 topic forward to the City Council after the election. 224 225 Further discussion: Commissioner Juni commented that this would be a good topic for joint 226 discussion between the Commission and City Council. 227 228 Commissioner Davis stated that it is a fairly common issue across the country with lower vote 229 participation in odd years. He stated that he believes in odd year elections as it provides local 230 candidates much more visibility but noted that education of the public would really be a driving 231 force in increasing voter participation. He stated that during even year elections the local 232 election candidates would most likely be placed on the back side of the form which is typically 233 considered “less important”. 234 235 Chair Dahl noted that the Commission could discuss this at its January meeting and then 236 something could be potentially sent to the City Council. 237 238 Commissioner Bretoi (maker of the motion on the floor) stated that he would agree to delaying 239 until after the Commission can discuss the topic again. 240 241 Commissioner Juni stated that he would also suggest that the Commission discuss the topic and 242 perhaps then in a joint format with the City Council to open that line of communication as this 243 would be a good topic to discuss jointly between the two groups. 244 245 Commissioner Bretoi agreed that this should be discussed under Old Business at the January 246 Charter Commission meeting and a specific time to discuss the topic with the Council could be 247 discussed at that time. 248 249 Motion passed unanimously. 250 251 B.Discussion of the Five-Year Plan 252 Chair Dahl stated that this element is required by the Charter but did not believe that the City 253 Council is doing a good job to ensuring this is completed. 254 255 MOTION by Commissioner Bretoi, seconded by Commissioner Trehus, ask the City Council 256 when it plans to update and publish the next Five-Year Plan as required by the City Charter. 257 258 Motion passed unanimously. 259 260 NEXT MEETING DATE 261 Chair Dahl noted the next meeting date is Thursday, January 9, 2020. 262 263 ADJOURN 264 265 The meeting adjourned at 7:49 p.m. Motion carried unanimously. 266 267 Charter Commission October 10, 2019 Page 7 7 Drafted by: Amanda Staple, TimeSaver Off Site Secretarial, Inc. 268