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Regular City Council Meeting Monday,June 03,2013 Page 5 the City of Edina based on income may not seem appropriate, Mayor Roe noted that they provided comparable services to that of the City of Roseville. Interim City Manager Trudgeon agreed to the need to find peer communities, and that they probably could not be universal depending on what was being measured. Mr. Trudgeon noted that another comment often heard was why the City didn't compare with its neighboring communities; but noted that they were completely different types of communities, even while geographic location was an important component for comparison. Mr. Trudgeon suggested that more thought was needed for this complicated issue. At the request of Mayor Roe, Ms. Antonsen advised that she could provide the larger group of cities originally considered in writing; and read it off during the meeting. Mayor Roe noted that the list included some neighboring communities to Roseville, along with others in Ramsey County. Ms. Antonsen clarified that some neighboring cities did not provide the same scope of services provided by Roseville; and when doing a study, they may gather information from those located in the same geographic area, but they were not al- ways found to be a good match and even though the information was available in- ternally, it may not be used for the study itself as a comparable for the overall analysis, but for informational purposes only. Ms. Antonsen further noted that some of the responses received may be sufficient, but the position itself found in- consistent with another city or that of Roseville, and therefore pulled out of the mix. Mayor Roe noted that these recommendations would come back to the City Council as part of their budget discussion; and suggested a separate policy discus- sion as to what the City wished for a threshold for compensation based on averag- es. Councilmember Etten sought additional information on how this study compared with the City's union employees, compared to other cities and non-union posi- tions; and comparisons within the City itself, if there were any positions obvious- ly lagging behind. Ms. Bacon responded that internal equity is a piece of compensation and how the employees are valued within an organization, admitting that there was some in- consistency, basically due to unions having successfully arbitrated their rights. As an example, Ms. Bacon advised that, if the City Council determines that all staff will get a cost of living adjustment (COLA) increase in a particular budget year, those unions could contractually go to arbitration and compare themselves with other communities that may be getting a higher percentage increase, with the mediator finding in their favor to receive that higher percentage, which the City was contractually obligated to provide, creating some inconsistency in equity with