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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2010 09-27 City Council Manager Workshop PacketAGENDA MAPLEWOOD CITY COUNCIL MANAGER WORKSHOP 5:15 P.M. Monday, September 27, 2010 Council Chambers, City Hall B. ROLL CALL D. UNFINISHED BUSINESS 1. Wipers Recycling v. City of Maplewood a. Declaration of Intent to Close Meeting for Attorney Update E. NEW BUSINESS 1. Discussion on Format of Citizen Forum F. ADJOURNMENT THIS PAGE IS INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLAND Work Session Agenda Item D1 AGENDA REPORT TO: City Council FROM: Charles Ahl, Assistant City Manager SUBJECT: Wipers Recycling v. City of Maplewood 1. Declaration of Intent to Close Meeting for Attorney Update DATE: September 21, 2010 INTRODUCTION As part of the continuing discussion on litigation matters related to the lawsuits regarding the Wipers Recycling v. City of Maplewood issues, the City Council will be receiving an update from Attorney Robin Wolpert regarding the status and progress on the various litigation matters. It is expected that due to the litigation decisions and update on client- attorney issues, that this meeting will be closed per statute. Recommended Action The City Council will receive the update during the closed session. No action will be taken during this closed session. THIS PAGE IS INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLAND Work Session Agenda Item E1 AGENDA REPORT TO: City Council FROM: Charles Ahl, Assistant City Manager SUBJECT: Discussion on Format of Citizen Forum DATE: September 21, 2010 INTRODUCTION At the recent City Council meeting, there was a brief discussion about the format of the monthly Citizen Forum. Staff was directed to place an item on an upcoming work session agenda for discussion of some of the issues. Items for Discussion The Citizen Forum is held the first Saturday of each month. The program has evolved from a forum which was held periodically by the Mayor, to a forum held by the Mayor, to the current format, where a department head provides an update on a topic and is attended by both the Department Head and the City Manager or Assistant City Manager. A number of issues have been raised for discussion: • Involvement of staff: the Management Team is available for the public in a multitude of formats and numerous after hour events. This adds a Saturday morning to the calendar for a few people, and the attendance at the Forum is a limited audience in providing City -wide information. The staff is certainly willing to continue providing information; however, we believe that there are better formats for this information. Additionally, many of the discussions have a political nature, which the staff works extremely hard to avoid becoming involved in those discussions, although, when questions are asked, staff generally attempts answers, which can provide for a difficult situation for the staff member. • Rotation of Host: beginning in 2010, the hosting of the Citizen Forum has been rotated among Council members. The staff is attempting to rotate this schedule. The Council should discuss continuing the process. • Multiple Locations: staff has rotated location between City Hall, Ramsey County Library and various fire stations within the City. The Council should discuss this rotating policy. • Monthly Meetings: the meetings are being held Monthly. The Council should discuss whether this is adequate or a quarterly [or some other timeframe] session should be held. • Televising the Forum: the staff does not believe that this is warranted. The attendance is relatively light and open discussions are frequent. Providing the staff for this effort seems unwarranted to the content of the forum. In addition, staff is opposed to placing any independent taping of the forum or any other event on the City's television channel. This places staff into a position of judging content of non -staff taped events and could create a situation of staff judging whether an independent taping is channel worthy. • Other issues raised by the Council. Recommended Action The City Council should discuss the format of the Citizen Forum. No action is necessary as part of this meeting.