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HomeMy WebLinkAbout12-10-09-S �S�EN HILLS Approved: January 11, 20 10 CITY OF ARDEN HILLS, MINNESOTA SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL MEETING DECEMBER 10, 2009 6:00 P.M. - ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL CHAMBERS CALL TO ORDER/ROLL CALL Pursuant to due call and notice thereof, Mayor Stan Harpstead called to order the special City Council meeting at 6:15 p.m. Present: Mayor Stan Harpstead, Council Members David Grant, Brenda Holden, and David McClung Absent: Council Member Fran Holmes (excused) Also present: None 1. APPROVAL OF AGENDA Councilmember Grant requested that Council Comments and Requests be added to the agenda after the Transition Process Discussion. MOTION: Councilmember Grant moved and Councilmember McClung seconded a motion to approve the meeting agenda as amended The motion carried unanimously (4-0). 2. TRANSITION PROCESS DISCUSSION Mayor Harpstead began the discussion by reading through Councilmember Holmes' comments on the topic. She suggested that Sue Iverson be appointed the Acting City Administrator during the interim period. It should be determined if Sue has the time and capacity to serve as both the Acting City Administrator and Finance Director. ARDEN HILLS SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL-DECEMBER 10 11 2009 2 2. TRANSITION PROCESS DISCUSSION(continued) Councilmember Holmes indicated in her note that she spoke with Mark Nagel about assisting in the search for a City Administrator. She suggested the City use the League of Minnesota. Cities to assist in the hiring process to negate the need for a recruiter. She recommended the City follow up with Melinda Coleman. Mayor Harpstead indicated that she agreed with Councilmember Holmes' comment to speak with Sue about filling the City Administrator position in the interim. Councilmember Holden agreed that a joint position did not work last time. Councilmember McClung explained he spoke with the directors after the announcement was made and agreed that he would support Sue as the Acting City Administrator. Mayor Harpstead reviewed several caveats with the Council about the Acting City Administrator position. He indicated he would like clarification from Sue on the $249,000 negative revenue on the TCAAP revenue report. Mayor Harpstead understood that the books were difficult for TCAAP but that it was Sue's responsibility and needed to be resolved. Mayor Harpstead noted the second caveat he had was the water meter discrepancy that needed resolution. Councilmember Holden stated this issue has been on-going for several years and that she has spoken with staff about it as well. From her understanding, Pang has brought this to Greg's attention and Greg has stated it was not a priority. Mayor Harpstead explained that his third caveat was that he would like to see a complete financial analysis from the Finance Department. Councilmember Holden agreed with this statement indicating that Ron did not agree everything had to run through the Finance Department. The Council agreed that Sue Iverson would be the Acting City Administrator with the understanding that the reporting relationships would need to be improved and that the three above mentioned caveats would need further clarification. ARDEN HILLS SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL-DECEMBER 10 2009 3 2. TRANSITION PROCESS DISCUSSION(continued) MOTION: Manor Harpstead moved and Councilmember Grant seconded a motion to appoint Sue Iverson, Acting City Administrator until such time as another City Administrator, whether interim or permanent, is appointed. Councilmember Holden suggested that this decision be revisited in three months if the Council has not made a decision on the position. Mayor Harpstead indicated the Council could vote to revisit this issue at any time. The motion carried unanimously (4-0)., Mayor Harpstead indicated the next item for discussion on this issue was if the - City could get by with Sue as the Acting City Administrator or if an Interim should be sought after. Councilmember Holden explained that Jim Willis did the City a disservice through his employment with us and another City at the same time and cautioned the City creating this type of situation again. She questioned if it would be worth the training spent on an interim position. Mayor Harpstead stated he felt the City should bring in an interim City Administrator, but felt Councilinember Holden's point on training was valid. Councilmember McClung expressed concern about an interim position stating he would only like to see someone hired if they were close to full time. Councilmember Grant indicated he would like to see the City act quickly to negate the need for an Interim City Administrator. He stated he knew Mark Nagel on a personal level and stated he would make an exception if Mark were to serve as the Interim City Administrator. Mayor Harpstead questioned how the Council wanted to approach the recruiting and hiring of a new City Administrator. He stated he would like to bring in a recruiter, but not Harry Bruel or Richard Fursmen. Sharon Klump was suggested from Springstead, as he does not feel the Council could complete this process alone. ARDEN HILLS SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL-DECEMBERIO 2009 4 2. TRANSITION PROCESS DISCUSSION(continued) Councilmember Holden indicated there may be a conflict of interest with Sharon Klump due to a previous situation involving their dog in the City. Councilmember Grant agreed the Council could not complete this process without assistance. Mayor Harpstead suggested that a Councilmember or two interview several recruiters and see which would work best for the City. Councilmember McClung indicated he felt the City should use a recruiter and find out what they can do for the City of Arden Hills. Councilmember Holden questioned if the Council was interested in speaking with Melinda Coleman. Councilmember Grant stated this may be a good starting point. Councilmember McClung explained that in hindsight he would have thrown out the entire batch of candidates and went out to the market a second time. Mayor Harpstead indicated he has learned a lot over the past year and a half as to what the City is missing in a quality City Administrator. He explained that he would have a different set of criteria than he did from the last hiring process. Mayor Harpstead then reviewed the criteria he would like to see the new City Administrator exemplify in this position. The main areas of concern were experience in managing staff is critical, along with communication, follow up and leadership from experience. Mayor Harpstead noted that Melinda Coleman may not have the experience the City needs at this time as she is not managing staff. Councilmember McClung stated he hoped the Council had learned from the past experience and could take from it the knowledge needed to find a proper candidate to administer the City going forward. He indicated he created a similar list to the Mayor's on who the City should seek and hire. ARDEN HILLS.SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL-DECEMBER 10 2009 5 2. TRANSITION PROCESS DISCUSSION(continued) Councilmember Holden explained quality candidates may not be willing to throw their name in the hat as they were weeded out early in the process last time. She indicated this could be detrimental to the leadership position. Councilmember McClung indicated these were concerns of his at this time. Councilmember Grant stated he would be interested in looking at candidates outside of the City Administrator realm, depending on who the person was. Councilmember McClung noted a recruiter does look through the candidate pool making decisions the Council is unaware of. He indicated it may benefit the Council to be more involved in this process. Mayor Harpstead suggested the recruiter be told who to target, while also = reevaluating the job description. He added that the recruiter should provide the Council with information on their processes, if they are available and their understanding of the talent in the marketplace. Mayor Harpstead further reviewed a suggested hiring process to be used with a recruiter the Council could follow through the hiring of a City Administrator. Councilmember Holden stated Harry Bruel was less expensive than many of the other recruiters and questioned how much money the City was willing to spend through the hiring process. Councilmember Grant questioned if Sharon Klump had a previous lawsuit in the City of Arden Hills and suggested that may be a conflict of interest for her working with the City. Mayor Harpstead noted the City could have a conversation with her to see if this was fact. Councilmember Holden stated the City Attorney could clarify this as well. She suggested that the recruiters provide the City with pricing information before a decision was made. Councilmember McClung agreed that further investigation would be needed before a recruiter could be chosen. ARDEN HILLS SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL-DECEMBER 10 2009 6 2. TRANSITION PROCESS DISCUSSION(continued) Councilmember Holden admitted that the City was in a great position for hiring as the pool of candidates could be increasing and suggested that the posting be completed by the beginning of January. Mayor Harpstead noted he would follow up with Jerry Filla about the Sharon Klump situation and questioned who would be willing to interview recruiters on behalf of the City. Councilmember McClung stated he would be available for these interviews. Mayor Harpstead suggested that the recruiters provide the City with a proposal that could be reviewed by Council on December 21 St. The rate, process, availability and perspective schedule should all be discussed within the proposal. Councilmember Grant indicated he would review the job description and draft a new one before the next meeting. Mayor Harpstead explained if the Council reviewed the proposals on December 21St the job posting may be done the middle of January. - Councilmember Holden questioned where the job description would be posted. Mayor Harpstead noted the job was posted a bit broader than the League of Minnesota Cities last time. He did not recall how this was completed. Councilmember McClung suggested that this be discussed with the recruiter in that the City was open to a broader list of candidates than just those with City upper management experience. Mayor Harpstead asked if the City was interested in interviewing candidates from out of state. Councilmember Holden stated then the City would be responsible for flying people in and paying for relocation expenses. She was not in favor of this and suggested the City seek local candidates where information on them is well known. Councilmember Grant agreed. ARDEN HILLS SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL-DECEMBER 10 2009 7 2. TRANSITION PROCESS DISCUSSION(continued) Mayor Harpstead questioned if the Council would entertain aone-day drive as the perimeter allowed for the candidates. Councilmember McClung indicated he did not want the potential caliper of the candidates to be limited by location. Councilmember Holden stated Arden Hills was a city of 9,000 people and understood the need for the right person. She indicated she would like the candidates to remain local. Mayor Harpstead questioned if the Council would be in favor of entertaining out of state candidates if they were willing to pay their own travel expenses. The Council was in favor with this scenario and reiterated they were not in favor of funding travel or relocation expenses. Mayor Harpstead set a tentative application date as January 22"d. Counci*lmeniber Grant suggested this not be set until after speaking with a - recruiter. Mayor Harpstead indicated he would like to see the Council be proactive in setting a date to have the recruiter meet the City's timeline. Councilmember McClung stated he would like to see the hiring process move rather aggressively, but stated he would like to seek input and advice from the recruiter before confirming any dates. Councilmember Holden felt that January 22"d was a reasonable date. Councilmember McClung suggested the Council focus on the long-term position and hiring for this position before discussing the short-term interim position. Councilmember Holden and Mayor Harpstead agreed. Mayor Harpstead further reviewed a potential hiring timeline with the Council. After reviewing the suggested steps it was noted the process could take roughly three months before a contract could be negotiated. ARDEN HILLS SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL-DECEMBER 10 2009 8 2. TRANSITION PROCESS DISCUSSION(continued) Councilmember McClung felt the Council would be doing well if a contract were offered before April 1 St Mayor Harpstead noted no Council action would be taken on December 14th, but that the Council would request bids that would be reviewed on December 21 St at a Special Council meeting. The Council was in favor of this suggestion. Councilmember Holden stated she did not want to lead any recruiter candidates and wanted to hear what they had to say. Councilmember Grant suggested that Melinda Coleman and Mark Nagel be considered in the permanent pool This information would be passed along to the recruiter. Councilmember Holden indicated she had a list of several potential candidates as well. Councilmember Holden questioned how Sue would be compensated as the Acting City Administrator. Mayor Harpstead asked how this was handled last time. He suggested a 7% pay increase. Discussion ensued regarding a staff reprimand. Councilmember Holden suggested a 10% increase as she would be acting outside of her class. She questioned if City Administrator Moorse would be completing performance evaluations before leaving the City. Mayor Harpstead indicated this would need to be decided by the Council, and that he did not see any value in having him complete the evaluations. Councilmember Holden asked if staff would be receiving a step increase or COLA. ARDEN HILLS SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL-DECEMBER 10 2009 9 2. TRANSITION PROCESS DISCUSSION(continued) Councilmember McClung reported that step increases were in the budget for 2010 and COLA was not. Councilmember Grant stated he did not want to see the step increases become automatic. Mayor Harpstead suggested the decisions be deferred until a permanent administrator be put in place. Councilmember Holden stated the only problem with this was that the step increases were based on past work that the new administrator would have no knowledge of. Mayor Harpstead indicated the biggest issue will be with Sue as she was under her current step increases. Councilmember Grant suggested this be addressed in January and that the City Council act as the City Administrator in the absence of a City Administrator. Mayor Harpstead questioned if the Council was in favor of the 10% pay increase. Councilmember McClung suggested the Council investigate these numbers further and vote on it December 2 1 St Mayor Harpstead indicated he would speak with Sue about the Council's decision and if Sue has the capacity to complete both jobs during an interim period. The Council indicated they would further discuss the need for an Interim City Administrator after discussing this with Sue, if she feels the need for an intern or would not be willing to serve as the Acting City Administrator. Mayor Harpstead questioned if anyone was interested in sitting in with him when he brought this information to Sue. Councilmember Grant stated he would sit in with the Mayor. ARDEN HILLS SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL-DECEMBER 10 2009 10 I COUNCIL COMMENTS AND REQUESTS Councilmember Grant indicated he spoke with Community Development Director Lehnhoff about adding an item to the work session agenda to discuss the Vaughn Tower. The Council was in agreement with this suggestion. ADJOURN MOTION: Councilmember Holden moved and Councilmember McClung seconded a motion to adiourn. The motion carried unanimously (4-0)e Mayor Harpstead adjourned the Special City Council Meeting at 7:35 p. lei Susan K. Iverson Stan Harpste Acting City Administrator Mayor