Agenda Packets - 2006/06/26 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Item No: 8E Meeting Date: June 26, 2006 Type of Business: Council Business City of Mounds View Staff Report To: Honorable Mayor and City Council From: Kurt Ulrich, City Administrator Item Title/Subject: Resolution 6855 Approving Contract for Legal Services with Kennedy & Graven Introduction: At the work session on May 1, 2006, the Council discussed the pending expiration of the legal contract with Kennedy and Graven that is due to expire on July 14, 2006. The consensus of the Council was to authorize an extension of the Attorney’s contract. A draft contract was reviewed at the work session on June 5th, and one change was made to designate only Mr. Riggs and Mr. Vose as City Attorneys (Mr. Alsop’s name was removed). Previous modifications to the contract in 2003 included language regarding training and regular communications, response time, and a requirement that the City Attorney be present only at one meeting per month. At that time, the reduction in the monthly retainer was $500 to have the attorney attend only one of the Council’s regular meetings. These modifications have been in place for the previous three years (i.e., two-year contract, plus one year extension) and have generally worked well and to the City’s expectations, and remain in the proposed contract. The Attorney has only been attending one meeting per month unless, due to issues that are on the agenda, the Council or City Administrator, requests his attendance. Discussion: The attached retainer agreement is essentially the same as the one the City currently has in place. All retainer rates and most fees for services to the City remain the same. Only the external billing rates (i.e., reimbursable rates charged to a third party such as a developer) and TIF project rates as in Section 2.04b. have been increased from $170 to $180 per hour. Additionally, a charge for color copies was added and the mileage rate was adjusted. No other modifications are proposed. The term of the contract is proposed for three years. The previous contract was for two years with a one-year extension. Staff supports a longer term due to the fact that it locks in current rates and minimizes administration. Importantly, it is also provided that the Agreement may be terminated by the City at any time or by the City Attorney upon 30 days written notice, if the City determines it desires to change legal services for whatever reason. Recommendation: It is recommended that the City Council adopt the attached Resolution 6855 Approving Contract for Legal Services with Kennedy & Graven.