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HomeMy WebLinkAbout04-26-05 Minutes, Study CommissionMINUTES OF THE MEETING OF THE CITY OF BOZEMAN, MONTANA LOCAL GOVERNMENT STUDY COMMISSION April 26, 2005 The Study Commission met in regular session in the Commission Room, Municipal Building at 7:00 pm on Tuesday, April 26, 2005. Present were Chair Loren Olsen, Bill Hayward, Marilou Turrentine, and Brian Close. Also present was Secretary of the Commission, Celeste Janssen. The meeting was called to order at 7:09 pm by Loren Olsen. Public comment There were no public comments at this time. Minutes Bill Wise has the minutes for March 15th. Celeste Janssen will send the draft of the minutes to the Study Commission as soon as she receives them from Mr. Wise. Minutes from March 22, 2005. Motion to approve as amended by Bill Hayward. Seconded by Marilou Turrentine. Brian Close abstained because he was not present at the meeting. Minutes approved. Minutes from April 12, 2005. Motion to approve as amended by Brian Close. Seconded by Bill Hayward. Minutes approved unanimously. Brian Close recognized Harold Fryslie, who was in attendance, and asked if Mr. Fryslie would be interested in serving as a replacement for Bill Wise, who has resigned from the Study Commission. Harold Fryslie stated that he would consider the idea. Chair Olsen informed the group that the City Commission is required to appoint a replacement. The Study Commission has discussed someone from MSU or a former elected official, and would like to propose a few names to the City Commission. Bill Hayward also wanted to mention that Bill's date on his email says March, but in fact the resignation came in April (as seen by the date from the email server). The public had no comment on the minutes. Report on Issues Subcommittee Report Bill Hayward explained that the document Bill Hayward and Brian Close were going to present looked less like a questionnaire and instead looked like an outline for discussing which alternatives the Study Commission might select from and /or what changes the Study Commission would propose to the NCL Model Charter. Brian Close explained the document (see the document below the minutes). Regarding the general service survey: Brian Close stated that it will not happen this year, but suggested that the Study Commission support the City Manager in his general service survey. Regarding building inspection/planning: Brian Close stated that the Planning Department must have a lot of this data, because of the 2020 plan, and also a clear way to get in touch with developers and builders. Regarding parking: Brian Close's personal view is that the parking situation will be radically changed with the new parking. Regarding service related issues such as water, sewer, and streets: Brian Close believes the Study Commission would first need to collect info, for instance how the City calculates water rates, and what are procedures for street maintenance. By doing so, the Study Commission can get a good idea about what the city is already doing, and good data has already been collected. Brian Close states that he personally is unsure of the value of doing a service review, and he doesn't see how these affect the charter. Bill Hayward stated that he is in favor of looking at the delivery of services. Brian Close believes that the Study Commission doesn't have to put off the charter timeline for these service issues, because these can be in the supplementary report, which can be done after August 25tn Commissioner Krauss suggested looking at the legal/justice system. Chair Olsen responded that the Study Commission was instructed by Ken Weaver to stay away from legal issues. However, Chair Olsen likes idea of adding the system to the list, so that they will be included in the final report. Brian Close stated that he will start looking at how to approach this court issue. Regarding political representation: Brian Close discussed the idea of a "voter preference" electoral system. The Charter could allow the City Commission to implement such a system. But first, Mr. Close will gather more information about the system and look at the feasibility of implementing this system in Bozeman. Regarding the Mayoral seat: There was general discussion regarding voter preference. Bill Hayward noted that the mayor's authority is not included on the document, but it should be considered. Brian Close offered to write it up and add to the list. Regarding Taxes: State law controls all revenue sources, but not fees. Bill Hayward wanted to know if there was always a rational relationship between service and fee. John Trull wanted to know if the City could legally pull services out of general fund. The group discussed where this had and had not been done. Commissioner Krauss suggested that the Study Commission address tax issues as little as possible, because limits could one day become a strain for the city. There was a general discussion of city taxes, property tax levy, bond issues, and debt service levy. Brian Close talked about his idea of empowering versus ordering the city. Brian Close suggested that at the next meeting, some people volunteer to take on items. Brian noted that he will not be there, but he will take parks, library, and parking. Chair Olsen noted that he will talk to David Smith about finances, budget ideas. Loren Olsen offered to call Tracy Oulman regarding communications, and asked if Bill Hayward could help with finance and budgets. Report on City Manager's survey of public services (Loren Olsen) Chair Olsen stated that he left a message for Chris this afternoon, and did not hear back. He suggested tabling this issue until the next meeting. Report on Chronicle Article (Loren Olsen and Marilou Turrentine) Marilou Turrentine and Loren Olsen worked on an op-ed for the Chronicle, and handed out the draft. Brian Close noted word count. Amendments to the op-ed were taken by Loren Olsen. Review current status on logics (i.e. office space, website) Celeste Janssen informed the Study Commission that she can now update the website, but is still waiting to hear of what is going on with the office space. New Business Loren Olsen noted that he will keep pressure on City Commission to find a replacement. Confirm date of next meeting The next meeting will be May loth at 7:00 pm. Brian Close noted that he will be gone from May 5 to May 12. He informed that group that he wants to be in the discussion of the mayor's election. He hopes that the Study Commission will wait to discuss this issue until May 24th Brian Close also suggested that the group continue to cc Robin Sullivan in all emails, so that our emails are in the public bozeman.net system. Celeste Janssen will check in with Robin. Adiournment Motion to adjourn meeting at 9:38 by Bill Hayward. Seconded by Brian Close. LOREN OLSEN, Chair CELESTE JANSSEN Secretary of the Study Commission