Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout07/19/2016LAUDERDALE CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES Lauderdale City Hall 1891 Walnut Street Lauderdale, MN 55113 Page 1 of 2 Roll Call Mayor Dains called the Special City Council meeting to order at 7:02 p.m. July 19, 2016 Councilors present: Mayor Jeff Dains, Mary Gaasch, Roxanne Grove, Denise Hawkinson, and Lara Mac Lean. Councilors absent: none. Staff present: Heather Butkowski, City Administrator; Jim Bownik, Assistant City Administrator; and Miles Cline, Deputy City Clerk. Mayor Dain said the meeting provided an opportunity to take comments from residents in this difficult time. The Mayor informed those in attendance that the City Council didn't have additional details or information about the investigation. The Mayor explained that residents would be speaking in the order in which they signed up and that each person would have three minutes to address the Council. Councilor Gaasch thanked everyone for coming and asked that residents be respectful of each other. Many of the residents that addressed the Council asked that the Council refrain from taking any action until the investigation was completed. Others expressed support for the St. Anthony Police Department by sharing personal experiences intended to demonstrate the quality of the service provided. Many asked the Council not to terminate the contract. Others in the room addressed the issue of racial profiling and race in America and what they have witnessed locally. Some people expressed concern over the number of traffic stops they have seen involving minorities. Others asked that the Council revisit the contract with St. Anthony to evaluate such things as whether the level of service being provided in relation to population size is too high, whether officers receive the required amount of training, requiring that St. Anthony track racial data during traffic stops, and requiring that St. Anthony officers wear body cameras. Mayor Dains and the Council expressed appreciation for how respectful everyone was to each other during the meeting and that the feedback was appreciated. Mayor Dains mentioned looking at some of the issues discussed with other cities and that he had contacted Police Equity to gather ideas. He noted that body cameras were in the budget for 2017 prior to the recent events. For those concerned about the contract, he said there were three public meetings before entering into the contract with St. Anthony and there would be at least that many before a change would be made. Mayor Dains announced the Council would take a short break before discussing whether to cancel Day in the Park due to the heat warnings issued. LAUDERDALE CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES Lauderdale City Hall 1891 Walnut Street Lauderdale, MN 55113 Page 2 of 2 July 19, 2016 Administrator Butkowski said Day in the Park was scheduled for July 21 but the heat index was expected to be 113 degrees. Staff was asking for direction on whether to proceed as planned or make other arrangements such as rescheduling for August. The Mayor expressed support for rescheduling the event for the same date and time as the August Farmers Market. The Council expressed support for moving the event to August. Councilor Gaasch moved and seconded by Councilor Hawkinson to move the July 21 Day in the Park even to August 18. Motion approved unanimously. Adjournment There being no further business on the council agenda, motion was made by Councilor Hawkinson and seconded by Councilor Mac Lean to adjourn the meeting at 8:27 p.m. Meeting adjourned. Respectfully submitted, d,/", Heather Butkowski City Administrator