CCP 03-29-2004 - Laserfiche WebLink

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ARDEN HILLS REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES MARCH 8, 2004 6 . Councilmember Grant stated both departments had good policing units. He stated while there were some people who wanted this changed, he belicved there werc more people who did not want this changed. He stated he believed in the theory "if it is not broke, it does not need fixing". He believed it was a positive change that the Sheriffs Department would now be located within the City and he believed the response time would go down. He stated the New Brighton proposal was also more expensive and he did not belicve they should bc spending more tax dollars at this time when the service they were currently receiving was adequate. He noted New Brighton had approached them and they had not approached New Brighton. He stated he would vote for the Ramsey County Sheriffs Department. Councilmember Holden stated the business community liked the Sheriffs Department and she was surprised they had only received approximately 50 comments from the public. She expressed concern about the identity issues if they went with the City of New Brighton Police Department. She stated the City was at fault in some instances with respect to issues with the Sheriffs Department because there was a monthly contract Sheriffs meeting that the City had not been attcnding until Ms. Wolfe started, but now with Ms. Wolfe attending these meetings, she believed the door of communication with the Sheriffs Department would be more open. She stated she would be voting for the Sheriffs Departmcnt. Mayor Aplikowski indicated she had previously statcd she would not vote on this issue, unless . it was necessary. She noted the Ramsey County Sheriffs Department had 3 votes, so she would not be voting. She thanked both Departments for their time. She stated this was a difficult choice because both Departments were equal in so many areas. MOTION: Councilmembcr Grant moved and Councilmember Larson seconded a motion to authorize staff to notify the Ramsey County Sheriffs Department of the City's decision to continue recciving policing service through calendar year 2005. In addition, to thank the City of New Brighton for the time and effort spent preparing the proposal and subsequent information for the City of Arden Hills. The motion carried (3-1-1) (Councilmembers Grant, Larson, and Holden Aye. Councilmember Rem - Nay. Mayor Aplikowski - Abstain). B. Human Rights Discussion Ms. Wolfe stated somc incidents at Mounds View High School have spurred discussion regarding possible response(s) by the City of Arden Hills to address potential human rights issues in the cormnunity, including possibly re-activating its Human Rights Commission. The City Council has been very vocal in stating a desire to partner with the school district and the neighboring communities to address potential problems. Councilmember Holden asked how some of the efforts would be completed if there were no . commission or task force in place. Mr. Wolfe replied that some ofthc options could be handled at the staff level, but some of them would potentially need a commission or task force.