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HomeMy WebLinkAboutJuly 21, 2005, Charter Commission Minutes OFFICIAL MINUTES OF THE CHARTER COMMISSION THURSDAY, JULY 21, 2005 7:00 P.M. GAUVITTE ROOM MURZYN HALL Call to Order The meeting was called to order by President Joseph Sturdevant at 7:02 p.m. Roll Call Members present: Bob Buboltz, Nicole Druckrey, Barb Gertsema, Mike Hartel, Nancy King, Carolyn Laine, Mike Patiuk, Lori Ritzko, Joseph Sturdevant Members absent and excused: Jim Johnson, Katy Korday, Scott Kyseth, Joe Sturdevant, Dan Vogtman Members absent and unexcused: Clare Schmidt Council Liaison, Mayor Gary Peterson, was not present, as he was out of town. Also present: Mark Ruff, Ehlers and Associates; Jim Hoeft, City Attorney; Carole Blowers, Recording Secretary Approval of Minutes of April 21, 2005 Motion by Commissioner Hartel, seconded by Commissioner Buboltz, to approve the minutes as submitted for the April 21, 2005, meeting. Motion passed unanimously. Correspondence The Recording Secretary reported the following correspondence since April 21, 2005: ?? Charter updates were sent to the Mayor/Council, DivisionHeads, and school libraries ?? The signed oath of Robert Buboltz for reappointment was sent to the Chief Judge ?? A request was made to the League for information on “bonds” ?? A request was made to our Public Works GIS area for two maps showing population by quadrant ?? The information requested by commission members in April was mailed to all Charter Commission members on May 12, 2005 ?? Request was made to Finance Director, Bill Elrite, to have Mark Ruff attend the July meeting ?? Confirmation was received from Mark Ruff that he will be able to attend July meeting ?? Tonight’s meeting agenda was prepared and mailed out July 13, 2005, to commission members and Mark Ruff Status of Membership of the Commission The commission has its full complement of 15 members at this time. Old Business Discussion on Chapter 3, Section 19 and Chapter 7, Section 72 Mark, Ehlers and Associates, was present at tonight’s meeting per this commission’s request to answer any questions commission members may have about the bonding issue. Per request of the Charter Commission members in October, in January the City Attorney put together some new language which is stated below. He stated that after receiving this issue and the city charter, he feels that this change could be addressed simply by adding a sentence in the last paragraph of Chapter Charter Commission July 21, 2005 Page 1 7, Section 72 of the city charter. The Charter Commission passed, on their first reading in January of 2005, that the last paragraph of Chapter 7, Section 72 should read as follows: Before any bonds are sold, there shall be a four-fifths vote of the council authorizing the issuance of the bonds by ordinance. However, bonds to be sold for the refinancing of any existing bonds shall be authorized by four-fifths vote of the council by resolution. Following its passage, the ordinance shall be published at least once by publication in a legal newspaper having general circulation in the city. The registered voters of the city shall have thirty days from the date of publication to initiate a referendum on the ordinance authorizing the issuance. Subsequent to the passage of the authorizing ordinance, its publication, and the thirty-day period, the bond sale shall occur within sixty days. During said sixty day period, the City Manager shall have the authority to establish a special meeting upon at least seventy-two (72) hours advance notice to each member of the council. At that special meeting, the City Manager is authorized to receive the actual bid(s) or sale of the bonds to be negotiated. The actual award or sale of the bonds shall be approved by a resolution passed by a four-fifths vote of the council. The Recording Secretary had contacted the Research Department at the League of Minnesota Cities to learn how other cities word this section on their city charters, and to obtain any further information they may have regarding this issue. Once the information was received, it wa maild out to commission members in May for their review before tonight’s meeting. Mark Ruff from Ehlers and Associates gave a brief presentation. He stated that he has been doing business with Columbia Heights for the past 15 years. He has worked on all our redevelopment projects. He stated Ehlers represents 150 cities, and that he himself works with 40 cities. Mark stated that the wording (the 30 day wait period) in our charter is unusual. He stated that Columbia Heights does not have a lot of debt, and bonding/refinancing does not come up very often. Mark prepared a chart which he passed out to Charter Commission members. The chartshowed the revenue bond index and bond buyer index from December 2003 to July 18, 2005. Mark reiterated that what triggered this discussion was the redevelopment bonds for Parkview Villa the end of 2004. Because of the 30-day wait period, Mark stated the city realized $10,000 less in savings on this particular situation. President Sturdevant asked if there is a certain percentage that makes refinancing worthwhile. Mark stated that was a good question and indicated that a good rule of thumb is that rates should drop at least 1.5% to make it worthwhile. His company “watches” the various city’s portfolios and makes suggestions for changes. Then Ehlers and Associates assists cities with bond sales/refinancing bygetting larger firms to bid for the bonds. They usually charge 1.5 to 2% in fees. Commission Hartel asked if changing the charter language would allow for misuse in refinancing. The City Attorney stated that by changing the language as proposed, it requires a 4/5 vote to pass by the Council. Therefore, the majority of the council must feel it’s a good move. Charter Commission July 21, 2005 Page 2 Motion by Commisioner Buboltz, seconded by Commissioner Hartel to approve the second reading on the proposed change to Chapter 7, Section 72 indicated above, and forward to the City Council for their action. Motion passed unanimously. Discussion on Districts/Wards This topic is ongoing from the past couple of commission meetings. In May, the Recording Secretary mailed commission members maps showing the population figures if the city was sectioned off in four th sections (with Central Avenue and 45 Avenues as dividing lines). This map was prepared by the Public Works GIS area and used the 2000 census data. Using this map, the population by quadrant is as follows: NW-3,667 NE-3,659 SW-5,744 and SE-5,450. th 44 The Recording Secretary also passed out at tonight’s meeting a map using Central Avenue and Avenue as dividing lines. This map was also prepared by the Public Works GIS area and used the 200 census data. Using this map, the population by quadrant would be as follows: NW-4,550 NE-4,115 SW-4,911 and SE-4,994. th The City Attorney stated that the map using Central Avenue and 44 Avenue brought the population th figures more into line for each quadrant. An additional map using Central Avenue and 44 Avenue as dividing lines was provided tonight also, which also indicated census block populations. Commissioner Patiuk asked how close in population does the quadrants have to be. The City Attorney stated he believed it is a certain percentage governed by state statutes. If the city would be divided into four quadrants, one councilmember would represent each quadrant, and the Mayor would run at large. It was also reiterated that there has been some discussion that two more councilmembers should be added. There was discussion on the fact that it would seem unrealistic to divide the city into more than four districts. So if and when any additional councilmembers were added, they would also be running at large. Commissioner Ritzko questioned what would happen if we did divided the city into four quadrants and no one decided to run in one of the quadrants. The City Attorney stated that there more than likely would be write-in candidates, and if not, the Council could appoint the person currently serving in that district or someone new, or decide to hold a special election. Commissioner Laine stated that with development in the SW quadrant (the Industrial Park area), an increase in population from very little to possibly many new residents could make a difference in that quadrant. The City Attorney stated that perhaps 200 units will be built there in the next few years, with a possibility of about 360 additional residents. Charter Commission July 21, 2005 Page 3 Commissioner Hartel stated that the population totals will also change for the NE quadrant due to the addition of The Lofts. It was estimated that an additional 380-400 residents could change the totals for that quadrant. The City Attorney also stated that other possible sites that could change quadrant totals are the redevelopment of Mady’s Bowling area (75-100 additional residents) and NEI. He also stated that at this time, there is nothing on the table for the NEI site. These are all good things to talk about in discussing this issue. The City Attorney stated that he could come up with proposed wording for the City Charter to reflect a change to wards or districts. There would also be parts of the existing charter that would have to be amended/modified relating to elections. The City Attorney reiterated the procedure on proposed changes to the city charter. There are two readings at the commission level, and two readings at the city council level. The city council has the option of passing the proposed revisions unanimously (which are done by ordinance) or returning them to the commission for possible modifications. The Charter Commission can make modifications to the amendments or place the item on the ballot for the voters to decide for themselves. This fall there will be a special election held on November 8 regarding the school district’s proposed levy. Commissioner Laine stated that dividing the city into wards/districts helps keep the costs down for mailing campaign literature and also allows that councilmember to focus on details of their own district, still keeping the good of the entire city in mind. The City Attorney suggested that the Charter Commission ask the City Manager to set up a joint meeting with the City Council to discuss the pros and cons of this issue and get a feel for how the council feels on this issue. Such a meeting could be held in the Council Chambers so it is large enough to hold everyone from this commission and the City Council. It was suggested that a packet of information be provided to everyone ahead of the meeting, and should include all the information that the Recording Secretary has already provided Charter Commission members to date and any other material that is put together by the Charter Commission and/or city staff. This meeting could be on a regularly scheduled work session date or a special meeting date. Motion by Commissioner Buboltz, seconded by Commissioner Hartel, to request a joint meeting with the City Council on this issue. Motion passed unanimously. The Recording Secretary will discuss this with the City Manager and report to all Charter Commission members when and where this meeting will take place. New Business Other Topics of Discussion Commissioner Hartel stated that in the absence of our Council Liaison tonight, it would have been informative to have someone else from the council present to hear the Charter Commission’s discussion on districts/wards, as well as the information Mr. Ruff presented tonight and the Charter Commission’s discussion on that issue. Commissioner Buboltz stated that when council liaisons cannot make commission/board meetings for which they are a liaison, they usually do not arrange for another councilmember to attend in their place. However, when there are significant items of discussion on the Charter Commission July 21, 2005 Page 4 agenda, it would be nice to have representation from the city council present at those board/commission meetings. The Recording Secretary reminded the Charter Commission members that the city council does receive copies of all board/commission meeting minutes in their agenda packets. Next Meeting Date The next regular Charter Commission meeting date is October 20, 2005, at 7 p.m. at Murzyn Hall. Adjournment Motion by Commissioner Hartel, seconded by Commissioner Ritzko to adjourn the meeting at 8:22 p.m. Motion passed unanimously. Respectfully submitted, Carole J. Blowers, Recording Secretary Charter Commission July 21, 2005 Page 5