CC_Minutes_2007_0122 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home

City Council Study Session - 01/22/07 Minutes - Page 15 which seats on which commissions were being advertised. Finance Director Miller advised that staff had intentionally not specified which process the City Council intended to follow. Discussion included resolution language and standard procedure; individual Councilmember references and interpretations of policy language; length of terms; seeking additional citizen interest in serving in the community; whether there was a need to change language of the resolution to meet Council consensus; criteria for appointment/reappointment; continuity and learning curves to best serve commissions and the City's interests; and need to avoid political appointments. City Attorney Anderson concurred with Councilmember Pust's interpretation of existing policy (resolution) language regarding a two tiered appointment process. Further discussion included term limits; and problems in getting people interested in serving, continuing to serve, avoiding turnover; and differences in the Mayor's appointment to the HRA, as a Statutory Commission. Councilmember Ihlan expressed interest in language reVISIons that would allow all the diverse positions heard from Councilmembers to be incorporated; however, expressed her continued opposition to automatic reappointments. Mayor Klausing interpreted current language to allow an option of not automatically appointing an incumbent, at the request of two Councilmembers requesting interviews; and if not included in current language, expressed his willingness to have those changes incorporated into a revised policy. Councilmember Ihlan reiterated her position to consider appointments and reappointments at the same time, in case there was a surge of new people interested in serving. Further discussion included perceptions of applicants and incumbents and the process to follow. Additional language revisions were discussed with no obvious consensus.