HomeMy WebLinkAbout07-15-2021 Charter Commission Packet
CHARTER COMMISSION
Public Safety Building—Training Room, 825 41st Ave NE
Thursday, July 15, 2021
7:00 PM
AGENDA
ATTENDANCE INFORMATION FOR THE PUBLIC
Members of the public who wish to attend may do so in-person, by calling 1-312-626-6799 and entering
meeting ID meeting ID 898 9268 1338, or by Zoom at https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89892681338. For
questions please call the Administration Department at 763-706-3610.
CALL TO ORDER
ROLL CALL/STATUS OF MEMBERSHIP
APPROVAL OF AGENDA
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
1. April 15, 2021 Meeting Minutes
CORRESPONDENCE
OLD BUSINESS
2. City Council Vacancies (Chapter 2 Section 9)
NEW BUSINESS
ADJOURNMENT
Auxiliary aids or other accommodations for individuals with disabilities are available upon request when the request is
made at least 72 hours in advance. Please contact Administration at 763-706-3610 to make arrangements.
1
CHARTER COMMISSION
Virtual via Zoom
Thursday, April 15, 2021
7:00 PM
MINUTES
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this meeting was held virtually.
CALL TO ORDER
President Smith called the meeting to order at 7:00 pm.
ROLL CALL/STATUS OF MEMBERSHIP
Members present: Steve Smith, Matt Abel, Kathy Ahlers, Ramona Anderson, Tyl er Eubank, Ben Harris
Bill Hugo, Cliff Johnson, Tom Kaiser, Carolyn Laine, Frost Simula, Gregory K. Sloat, Susan Wiseman, Nick
Zeimet
Members absent: Joe Schluender
Also in attendance: City Attorney Jim Hoeft, Council Liaison Kt Jacobs, and City Clerk/Recording
Secretary Nicole Tingley
City Clerk/Recording Secretary Tingley stated that Commissioners Harris and Johnson were recently
appointed. She also noted this is the first meeting for Commissioner Zeimet as he was appointed last
May. Commissioners Harris, Johnson, and Zeimet introduced themselves.
APPROVAL OF AGENDA
Commissioner Laine requested to add item 8 to provide an overview of recent Charter Commission
legislation passed.
Motion by Commissioner Abel, seconded by Commissioner Laine, to approve the agenda as amended.
Motion passed unanimously.
ELECTION OF OFFICERS
1. President
Motion by Commissioner Kaiser, seconded by Commissioner Abel, to nominate Smith for
President. Motion passed unanimously.
2. Vice President
Kaiser nominated Abel. Ahlers nominated Wiseman. Wiseman stated that she would not be
interested in serving as Vice President.
Motion by Commissioner Kaiser to nominate Abel for Vice President. Motion passed
unanimously.
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Item 1.
City of Columbia Heights MINUTES April 15, 2021
Charter Commission Page 2
3. Secretary
Motion by Commissioner Laine to nominate Hugo for Secretary. Motion passed
unanimously.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
4. January 16, 2020 Meeting Minutes
Motion by Commissioner Abel, seconded by Commissioner Eubank, to approve the January
16, 2020 meeting minutes. Motion passed unanimously.
CORRESPONDENCE
City Clerk/Recording Secretary Tingley shared that Rob Fiorendino decided not to re -seek
reappointment. Furthermore, Kt Jacobs resigned when she was elected to the City Council and is now
serving as the Council Liaison.
OLD BUSINESS
5. City Council Vacancies (Chapter 2 Section 9)
Commissioner Simula provided an overview of his proposal that provided two options for
changes to Chapter 2 Section 9 of the City Charter in regards to the process for filling City
Council vacancies.
Option one was to continue with an appointment process to fill City Council vacancies. This
proposal moved up the process timeline by declaring a vacancy, posting and publishing a
vacancy notice, and accepting applications before the new City Council start s. Interviews
would continue to be after the new City Council term. Furthermore, appointments would
be determined by a rank choice. Rank choice was proposed to eliminate the issue of a tie.
The second option is to fill City Council vacancies by special election. Simula drafted the
language based on the City of Minnetonka’s City Charter.
Commissioner Laine thanked Simula for putting together the proposals. She liked that in
option one that the process was sped up and rank choice voting included, but ultim ately
appointment is a political choice made by three people. She is in favor of the special
election option.
Commissioner Ahlers asked in regards the second proposal if 67 days was enough time for
an appointment to be made or an election scheduled or if that time could be shortened.
She commented that she liked that subdivision 1b that stated that if a special election is in
the same year as a regular municipal election than in can be held in conjunction with the
regular municipal election instead of the earliest date. Laine commented that subdivision
1b would apply to if someone resigned, moved, died, and that a special election would be
needed before the next regular municipal election if a current member of the City Council
became Mayor creating the vacancy.
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Item 1.
City of Columbia Heights MINUTES April 15, 2021
Charter Commission Page 3
Smith commented that it seems to him that the Charter Commission has focused on the
maximum number of days for each step in the process and that the process does not have
to take up the maximum number of days.
Simula commented that while the second option changes the City Charter more
substantially, it is democratic.
Smith stated that Minnesota State Statute already includes that a special election must be
conducted if more than two years remain in the unexpired term. In regards to the
proposals, Smith stated that he does not intend for there to be any action moving one
forward this evening as it is the first hearing of them. He asked the Charter Commission
how they would proceed.
The Charter Commission discussed what would prompt a special election in the second
proposal. Simula explained issues from the last time the appointment process was used in
2017 and stated that in his opinion a special election made more sense.
Commissioner Harris asked how often a current councilmember is elected to Ma yor in
Columbia Heights. Ahlers stated that in the 30 years she has lived in Columbia Heights it
has happened multiple times. Johnson stated that it has the potential to happen often with
the Mayor’s term only being two years.
Harris also asked in regards to the first proposal how does compressing the timeline for the
process affect equitability and opportunity. He added that there needs to be consideration
on what is making the process prolonged if it is because of tied votes, than a solution for
that is what needs to be addressed. Simula stated that it is important to have someone
appointed as soon as possible because it may delay city business.
Commissioner Anderson stated that she does not like rank voting. Laine explained how
rank voting would eliminate the issue of tied votes.
Commissioner Kaiser stated that the second option makes the most sense because it does
not politicize the process and eliminates the issues with the current process.
Ahlers inquired about offering the vacancy to the person with the next highest vote totals
from the last general election. Commissioners commented that from the last vacancy the
individual that was appointed was the individual with the next highest vote totals from the
last general election.
Ahlers suggested considering no longer having “conviction of a felony of any such person
whether before or after qualification” be a reason for removal from office. Laine stated it
could be changed to “conviction of a felony of any such person after qualif ication.”
Motion by Commissioner Laine, seconded by Commissioner Kaiser, to continue to discussing
option 2 at the next meeting. Motion passed 10-2-2. Ayes: Abel, Ahlers, Eubank, Hugo,
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Item 1.
City of Columbia Heights MINUTES April 15, 2021
Charter Commission Page 4
Kaiser, Laine, Smith, Simula, Wiseman, Zeimet. Nays: Anderson, Sloat. Abstain: Harris,
Johnson.
NEW BUSINESS
6. Approve the 2020 Charter Commission Annual Report
Motion by Commissioner Laine, seconded by Commissioner Ahlers, to approve the 2020
Charter Commission Annual Report. Motion passed unanimously.
7. Mayor’s Term Length (Chapter 2 Section 7)
Commissioner Simula presented changing the Mayor’s term length from 2 years to 4 years.
He stated that in 2018, the Charter Commission supported it, it was not approved by the
City Council, and ultimately sent to referendum where it did not pass, but there is a new
City Council. He asked if there would be interest in resubmitting it to the new City Council.
It was noted that the 2018 referendum regarding the Mayor’s term did not pass by 14%.
Furthermore, multiple commissioners stated that there has not been a significant change in
the City Council. Commissioner Laine commented that she thought it should be continued
to be considered, but not acted on at this time.
The Charter Commission decided to not move forward with this p roposal at this time.
8. Recent Charter Commission Legislation
Commissioner Laine stated that during the 2020 session there were changes made to
Minnesota State Statute regarding Charter Cities. These include clarification that the Chief
Judge can reappoint Charter Commission members, changing the time frame for making an
appointment or reappointment to 60 days, and changing the amount of money a Charter
Commission is authorized to in order to educate on a charter amendment to 0.07% of the
property tax levy. She estimated this would be approximately $8,000 using a Columbia
Heights property tax levy in the amount of $11.63 million.
ADJOURNMENT
Motion by Commissioner Eubank, seconded by Commissioner Anderson, to adjourn the meeting.
Motion passed unanimously.
Meeting adjourned at 7:54 pm.
Respectfully Submitted,
_______________________________________
Nicole Tingley, City Clerk/Recording Secretary
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Item 1.
CHARTER COMMISSION
AGENDA SECTION OLD BUSINESS
MEETING DATE JULY 15, 2021
ITEM: City Council Vacancies (Chapter 2 Section 9)
DEPARTMENT: Administration BY/DATE: Nicole Tingley, 7/8/2021
BACKGROUND:
At the last Charter Commission meeting in April, the Charter Commission discussed the Appointment Process
for Vacancies on the City Council as outlined in Chapter 2 Section 9 of the City Charter. The discussion
centered on a proposal by Commissioner Frost Simula with two options. At this meeting, the Charter
Commission decided to move forward with only discussing/further refining option 2. This option calls for a
special election to fill City Council vacancies.
One question that came up during the discussion was how often vacancies/appointments have occurred on
the Columbia Heights City Council. Historically, we can look back, but unfortunately this does not reliably
predict future occurrences as it is all dependent on who is running. To try and gain a better picture, I looked at
both the times appointments did occur and the times that appointments were possible in the case that a
current councilmember not up for reelection ran for Mayor. For simplicity, I did not consider if a current
councilmember ran for mayor, but lost in the primary election. I went back to the 2000 election.
2000: No appointment possible
2002: No appointment possible
2004: No appointment possible
2006: No appointment possible
2008: No appointment possible
2010: No appointment possible
2012: No appointment possible
2014: No appointment possible
2016: Appointment (current councilmember not up for reelection ran for Mayor and won)
2018: Appointment Possible (current councilmember not up for reelection ran for Mayor and did not win)
2020: Appointment Possible (current councilmember not up for reelection ran for Mayor and did not win)
For reference, I have included both proposals from Commissioner Simula from the last meeting and other
background information. The section of the City Charter as it currently reads is on the next page.
ATTACHMENT(S):
April 15, 2021 Proposal from Commissioner Frost Simula with two options
Schedule of 2017 City Council Vacancy Schedule
Current City Council Vacancy Appointment Process by Day
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Item 2.
Page 2
Chapter 2 Section 9. VACANCIES IN THE COUNCIL.
A vacancy in the council shall be deemed to exist in case of the failure of any person elected thereto to
qualify on or before the date of the second regular meeting of the new council, or by reason of the death,
resignation, removal from office, cessation as a resident of the city, continuous absence from the city for
more than three months, conviction of a felony of any such person whether before or after qu alification,
the failure of any council member without good cause to perform any of the duties of membership in the
council for a period of three months or for any other cause as may be provided for in Minnesota Statutes,
as amended. In each such case, at the next regular meeting following receipt of notice by the counci l of
one of the foregoing conditions, the council shall by resolution declare such vacancy to exist unless further
investigation is required. Notice of said vacancy shall be post ed at city hall for a period of two (2) weeks
from the date of the adoption of the resolution declaring said vacancy. Notice shall also be published in a
designated city newspaper for a period of two (2) weeks as soon as possible after the date of the adoption
of said resolution, with the publication being completed no later than thirty (30) days from said date.
Applications shall be sought and accepted from individuals interested in filling the vacancy, which
applications shall be submitted to city hall, to the attention of the City Clerk, within 45 days from the date
of said resolution. The council shall interview each of the applicants within 30 days from the close of the
application period, and shall conduct said interviews in an agreed upon uniform manner as a council. After
said 30 day period, the council shall make its appointment from the pool of applicants within 15 days,
whether done so at a regular council meeting or a special meeting. The individuals so appointed sh all fill
said vacancy until the next regular municipal election, when the office shall be filled for the unexp ired
term by an eligible person elected at large in the manner hereinafter set forth; provided, however, that if
a vacancy is declared by resolution after March 31st in the year of a regular municipal election, then the
appointment process as set forth herein shall not take effect and any such vacancy shall continue to exist
until said election, at which time the vacancy shall be fill ed for the unexpired term by an eligible person
elected at large in the manner hereinafter provided. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary herein, any
vacancy resulting from a recall election or from a resignation following the filing of a recall petition shall
be filled in the manner provided in such case. (Ordinance No. 1331, passed September 23, 1996)
(Ordinance No. 1086, passed June 11, 1984)
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Item 2.
Commissioner RL Frost Simula
July 20, 2017, Revised April 15, 2021
Brief
●The existing appointment process for filling vacancies in the council is excessively and unnecessarily
long.
●Some city business is delayed for over 3 months while the council seat remains unfilled.
●The existing charter does not specify how a deadlocked Council should break a tie.
Record
●Following the 2016 election, a vacancy resulted in a deadlocked Council, drawing out the process even
longer than expected.
●Columbia Heights received negative attention thanks to heated deliberation, and a verbal assault from
one of the applicants.
●Under pressure, the Mayor reluctantly changed their vote to appoint the threatening applicant.
●The lengthy appointment process was originally discussed at a Charter Commission meeting on
January 19, 2017. Both President Smith and City Attorney Hoeft noted that the process is prolonged.
●The lengthy appointment process was discussed again at a Charter Commission meeting on April 20,
2017. Councilmember Buesgens and Commissioner Laine suggested shortening the process to make
an appointment by the end of February. Commissioner Penniston drew attention to the lack of direction
in the Charter addressing consistent tie votes in the appointment process. Commissioner Anderson
suggested that the Mayor has the power to break a tie. Commissioner Laine asked the commission to
consider ranked choice voting as well. President Smith directed commissioners to submit amendment
proposals to the city clerk prior to the next meeting for review.
●An amendment was originally proposed at a Charter Commission meeting in July 2017. President
Smith suggested that the issue be tabled and postponed until the October 2017 Charter Commission
meeting.
●At a Charter Commission meeting on October 26, 2017,this issue was postponed again until the
January 2018 Charter Commission meeting.
●At a Charter Commission meeting on January 19, 2018,this issue was postponed again until the April
2018 Charter Commission meeting.
●At a Charter Commission meeting on April 19, 2018,this issue did not appear on the agenda.
Commissioner Simula asked that it be added to the July 2018 agenda.
●At a Charter Commission meeting on July 19, 2018,Commissioner Laine noted that the city of Richfield
holds special elections to fill vacancies. Councilmember Buesgens reiterated that the process following
the 2016 election was drawn out. President Smith suggested a study of how the special election
operates in the city of Richfield, how it has been utilized in the past, and what sections of our Charter
would be affected by a similar change. President Smith suggested that commissioners prepare these
facts for a discussion at the October 2018 meeting.
○Cities of Richfield and Bloomington are considering amendments modeled after City of
Minnetonka Home Rule Charter Section 2.06 - Vacancies in the Council
●At a Charter Commission meeting on October 18, 2018,President Smith tabled this issue indefinitely.
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Item 2.
Proposal (Option 1 - Appointment)
(underlined)
CHAPTER 2
FORM OF GOVERNMENT
Section 9, VACANCIES IN THE COUNCIL
A vacancy in the council shall be deemed to exist in case of the failure of any person elected thereto to qualify
for the new council term on or before the date of the first regular meeting of the unexpired council following the
election, or by reason of the death, resignation,removal from office, cessation as a resident of the city,
continuous absence from the city for more than three months, conviction of a felony of any such person
whether before or after qualification, the failure of any council member without good cause to perform any of
the duties of membership in the council for a period of three months or for any other cause as may be provided
for in Minnesota Statutes, as amended. In each such case, at the next regular meeting following receipt of
notice by the council of one of the foregoing conditions,the council shall by resolution declare such vacancy to
exist unless further investigation is required. Notice of said vacancy shall be posted at city hall for a period of
two (2) weeks from the date of the adoption of the resolution declaring said vacancy. Notice shall also be
published in a designated city publication for a period of two (2) weeks as soon as possible after the date of the
adoption of said resolution, with the publication being completed no later than thirty (30) days from said date.
Applications shall be sought and accepted from individuals interested in filling the vacancy, which applications
shall be submitted to city hall, to the attention of the City Clerk,within six (6) weeks from the date of said
resolution. The new council shall interview each of the applicants within three (3) weeks from the close of the
application period, and shall conduct said interviews in an agreed upon uniform manner as a council. After said
three (3) weeks day period, the council shall make its appointment from the pool of applicants within two (2)
weeks, whether done so at a regular council meeting or a special meeting.Such appointment shall be
determined by ranked vote, with each seated council member casting no more than 3 votes each. Should the
ranked vote result in a tie, the mayor shall make an appointment from the final two applicants.The individuals
so appointed shall fill said vacancy until the next regular municipal election...
Schedule for filling City Council vacancies
Current Proposed
Council resolution read, city hall & newspaper postings begin January 9, 2017 November 28, 2016
City hall posting ends January 23, 2017 December 12, 2016
Newspaper posting ends (latest possible date)February 8, 2017 December 28, 2016
Last application received, interviews begin February 23, 2017 January 9, 2017
Interview period ends, council deliberations begin March 25, 2017 January 30, 2017
Final appointment April 9, 2017 February 13, 2017
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Item 2.
Proposal (Option 2 - Special Election)
(underlined, modeled after City of Minnetonka Home Rule Charter Section 2.06 - Vacancies in the Council)
CHAPTER 2
FORM OF GOVERNMENT
Section 9, VACANCIES IN THE COUNCIL
A vacancy in the council shall be deemed to exist in case of the failure of any person elected thereto to qualify
on or before the date of the second regular meeting of the new council, or by reason of the death, resignation,
removal from office, cessation as a resident of the city, continuous absence from the city for more than three
months, conviction of a felony of any such person whether before or after qualification, the failure of any
council member without good cause to perform any of the duties of membership in the council for a period of
three months or for any other cause as may be provided for in Minnesota Statutes, as amended. In each such
case, at the next regular meeting following receipt of notice by the council of one of the foregoing conditions,
the council shall by resolution declare such vacancy to exist unless further investigation is required.
A special election is required to fill a vacancy when:
(a)The vacancy has been declared, or has automatically occurred, before the first day to file affidavits of
candidacy for the next regular municipal election;and
(b)more than two years remain in the unexpired term.
When (a) applies, the city council must adopt a resolution to set the date for the special election at the first
regular or special meeting of the city council occurring after the vacancy automatically occurs or at the same
meeting at which the vacancy is declared. The special election must be held in accordance with subdivision 1
of section. The person elected will serve the unexpired term for that office. The city council, at its option and at
the same or a subsequent meeting, may make an interim appointment of a person to fill the vacancy until a
successor is elected at the special election and qualifies for the office.
If a special election is not required (b), the council may either appoint an eligible person to serve until
expiration of the position's term or fill the vacancy by special election. Upon notice of an impending resignation,
the council may begin the process of determining how to fill the vacancy. No later than 60 days after a vacancy
automatically occurs or is declared to exist, the council must appoint an eligible person to fill the vacancy or
schedule a special election to be held in accordance with subdivision 1 of this section.
If the council does neither, the mayor, or acting mayor if the vacancy is in the mayor's position, has seven days
to appoint an eligible person to fill the vacancy.
If after 67 days no appointment is made nor an election scheduled, the clerk must schedule a special election
to be held in accordance with subdivision 5 of this section.
Subdivision 1. Special Election Requirements
(a)Except as provided in subdivison 1.b. below, special elections must be held at the earliest date possible
under state law. Candidates must file for office no later than four weeks before the election.
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Item 2.
(b)If a special election occurs in the same year as a regular municipal election, the council may at its
option schedule the special election to occur in conjunction with the regular municipal election rather
than at the earliest possible date under state law.
The term of a council member elected at a special election begins as soon as the person has qualified for
office and the city clerk has issued a certificate of election to the successful candidate in accordance with state
law. The council member serves until the expiration of the position's term.
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Item 2.
Vacant Council Seat Appointment Schedule
Day 1
Vacancy resolution declared
Day 1-14
Vacancy posted in City Hall for from date of the resolution for two weeks
Notice published in city newspaper for two weeks as soon as possible after
resolution
Publication must be completed within 30 days of the resolution
Day 45
Individual applications must be submitted to City Clerk within 45 days from the
date of the resolution.
Day 75
Council to interview candidates within 30 days from the close of the application
period
Day 90
After the 30 day interview period the City Council shall make its appointment
within 15 days.
Day 105
Applicant takes a seat
This list assumes all points in the process are carried to their limits as stated in the
charter
Steve Smith
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Item 2.
Schedule for filling City Council vacancies
Council resolution read January 9, 2017
Two week city hall posting January 23, 2017
Newspaper posting for 2 weeks
Completed within 30 days February 8, 2017
Last application within 45 days February 23, 2017
30 day interview period March 25, 2017
Final appointment April 9, 2017
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Item 2.