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HomeMy WebLinkAboutJanuary 17, 2008, Charter Commission MinutesOFFICIAL MINUTES OF THE CHARTER COMMISSION THURSDAY, JANUARY 17, 2008 7:00 P.M. GAUVITTE ROOM MURZYN HALL Call to Order The meeting was called to order by President Mike Hartel at 7:05 p.m. Roll Call Members present: Barb Gertsema, Mike Hartel, Jim Johnson, Nancy King, Carolyn Laine (7:17 p.m.), Mike Patiuk, Lori Ritzko, Joe Sturdevant, Joseph Sturdevant, Dan Vogtman Members absent and excused: Bob Buboltz, Katy Korday, Scott Kyseth Members absent and unexcused: None Council Liaison, Tami-Ericson Diehm, was not present. Carole Blowers, Recording Secretary, and 7im Hoeft, City Attorney, were present. Approval of Minutes of October 18, 2007: Motion by Commissioner Sturdevant, seconded by Commissioner Patiuk, to approve the minutes of October 18, 2007, as presented. Motion passed unanimously. Election of Officers President Hartel advised the commission that the offices of President, Vice President, and Secretary will be voted upon tonight. He asked for nominations for President. Commissioner Vogtman nominated Commissioner Hartel. Commissioner Hartel declined the nomination, as his eight year term ends June of 2008. Commissioner 7ohnson nominated Commissioner Patiuk, who declined the nomination. Commissioner Patiuk nominated Commissioner Johnson, who declined the nomination. Commissioner Sturdevant nominated Commissioner Sturdevant (Jr.). President Hartel asked if there were any other nominations for President. There being none, on a white ballot, Commissioner Joseph Sturdevant (Jr.) was elected President. President Hartel asked for nominations for Vice-President. Commissioners King and Vogtman were asked if they were interested, and both declined. Commissioner Sturdevant nominated Commissioner Ritzko, who accepted the nomination. President Hartel asked if there were any other nominations for Vice President. There being none, on a white ballot, Commissioner Lori Ritzko was elected Vice President. President Hartel asked for nominations for Secretary. Commissioner King was asked if she was interested in being the Secretary again. She stated that would be fine. Commissioner Sturdevant nominated Commissioner King for Secretary. President Hartel asked if there were any other nominations for Secretary. There being none, on a white ballot, Commissioner Nancy King was elected Secretary. Therefore, the slate of officers for 2008 are: President, Joseph Sturdevant, Jr. Vice President, Lori Ritzko Secretary, Nancy King Charter Commission January 17, 2008 Page 1 Correspondence The Recording Secretary advised that since the October meeting, she sent various e-mails to members whose terms will be expiring the early part of 2008, asking if they wish to be reappointed. Commissioners whose terms will be expiring in the ne~t few months and can be reappointed are: Barb Gertsema, Katy Korday, Dan Vogtman, and Mike Patiuk At this time, three of these commissioners have expressed their intent to be reappointed. The Recording Secretary will be contacting the Chief Judge about these reappointments. Verifications of inember's e-mail addresses and phone numbers were supplied to each member present. Status of Membership The Charter Commission still has two vacancies. The Recording Secretary was not aware of any applications pending at this time. Commissioners were advised that applications for membership are available at City Hall. Old Business Continued Review of the City Charter by the City AttorneX City Attorney, Jim Hoeft, stated that at the October meeting, Chapter 4 of the charter was discussed with commission members. Tonight, the focus will be on Chapter 5, Initiative, Recall, and Referendum. 7im Hoeft stated he was going to give an overall viewpoint on the city charter regarding initiative and referendum instead of going over each section of this particular chapter. State statute does not provide for initiative or referendum. He stated that with the charter, referendum is a reactive measure, and initiative is a proactive one. The City Charter states that each ordinance must hold two readings by the City Council, and then the ordinance does not take effect unti130 days after the passage of the ordinance. This 30 days is the time period in which a petition for a referendum can be done. Jim Hoeft stated if the City Council didn't want to take a stand on an issue, the people could start an initiative. In the both the planning and budgeting process, the issues that could be put to a referendum are severely limited--thus limiting the referendum or initiative in those two areas. Recall is the process to remove a city councilmember. 7im Hoeft stated he couldn't think of any metro city that has had a successful recall. 7im Hoeft didn't think it was necessary to add any qualifying language to our current language in this section of the charter. The current restrictions are that we require 700 signatures or 10% of the total vote at the last regular municipal election now (whichever is greater). Page 13 of the city charter spells this out. State statutes do not provide for recall. As a point of fact, Mr. Hoeft stated that most central and northern metropolitan cities are city charters. (Note: Fridley, Brooklyn Center, and Minneapolis are home rule charter cities.) Mr. Hoeft referenced an article in the Star Tribune published today's date regarding the City of Eagan and their Charter Commission. The City Attorney stated we would continue discussion of the charter at the ne~t meeting, starting with Chapter 6, Administration of City Affairs. Charter Commission January 17, 2008 Page 2 New Business Approve 2007 Charter Commission Annual Report Motion by Commissioner Vogtman, seconded by Commissioner Sturdevant, to approve the 2007 annual report of the Charter Commission as prepared by the Recording Secretary. Motion approved unanimously. The Recording Secretary will provide copies to the City Clerk and the Chief Judge, as required. Annual Board/Commission Dinner The joint annual board/commission dinner will be on Wednesday, Apri116, 2008, at Murzyn Hall. Please put this date on your calendars! Invitations will be sent in the future. Next Meeting Date The ne~t regular scheduled Charter Commission meeting date is April 17, 2008, at 7 p.m. at Murzyn Hall. This is the day after the annual board/commission dinner. Adjournment Motion by Commissioner Sturdevant, seconded by Commissioner Vogtman, to adjourn the meeting at 8:05 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Carole J. Blowers, Recording Secretary Charter Commission January 17, 2008 Page 3