Agenda Packets - 2003/10/13 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Mounds View City Council September 22, 2003 Regular Meeting Page 7 1 Council Member Quick indicated he could back up what he says with statistics that the only way 2 to get the most accurate reading of what the community wants and feels and not what the small 3 minority wants is by doing a professional survey and that is why this company has been used in 4 the past and he supports the survey. 5 6 Naja Werner 2765 of Sherwood Road indicated she thoroughly disagrees and does not think you 7 get a representative feeling of what the community thinks when you only send questionnaires out 8 to 400 or so residents in a City of 12,700. She then said that she thinks this is wasting a lot of 9 money when all the other municipalities are cutting expenses and their tax increase is lower than 10 here. She further commented that this City seems to keep doing things that cost money and the 11 City does not have to spend the $7,500 that is budgeted for it. 12 13 Ms. Werner indicated that, as a citizen, she has objections to a lot of stupid stuff that is 14 happening here and she shakes her head and rolls her eyes in despair at the stuff that is happening 15 as it is disgusting. 16 17 Mayor Linke indicated that you do not get from a written survey what you get from an oral 18 survey because the surveyor follows up questions with another question based on how the person 19 answers the question. He also commented that the City has discovered in the past that a vast 20 majority of residents do not mail the surveys back. 21 22 Council Member Stigney indicated that the questions would need to be refined before the 23 questions go out and he does not think the phone survey is the way to go. He then said he would 24 like to refine the questions list and put something in Mounds View Matters. He further 25 commented that he hears there is a real budget crunch but he does not see it the way things are 26 happening so he is opposed to the phone survey. 27 28 Council Member Quick commented that the last time the City tried to do a survey it was on 29 moving the compost site and the City sent out a questionnaire and it turns out that the individual 30 there taking care of the compost site copied and handed out surveys to those that used it as he did 31 not want it moved and that is who the City heard from on surveys. 32 33 Council Member Stigney said that is part of the democratic process telling others what you 34 support. 35 36 Council Member Gunn indicated that a lot of people complain about the Council not listening 37 and sometimes it is hard to hear what everyone has to say all at once and a survey with questions 38 from all of the departments is a good way to hear what the people have to say. 39 40 Mayor Linke indicated there is consensus to move forward with some type of survey but would 41 like other feedback and further research into how to do the survey and formulate the questions. 42 43 Council Member Marty indicated he questions whether this is the time to do this the survey and 44 spend the money. He then commented that the surveys do provide a wealth of information and 45