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1 H REQUEST FOR COUNCIL ACTION Attachment A Date: 10/28/13 Item No.: Department Approval City Manager Approval Item Description: Consider Creation of a Volunteer Coordinator Position 1 BACKGROUND 2 3 For the past several years, the Park and Recreation Commission and the City Council have 4 discussed the need for the creation of a Volunteer Coordinator position. The need for the 5 position has been generated by the desire to more effectively manage the volunteers that the City 6 already has and to lessen the load of an already busy staff. It is also hoped that having a 7 volunteer coordinator will help the City recruit more volunteers to assist in City needs. 9 In the draft 2014 City Manager's recommended budget, the Volunteer Coordinator position was 10 not funded due to limited needs and other priorities. However, the City Council has expressed a desire to have a more discussion on the possibility of funding a Volunteer Coordinator within the 12 2014 budget. This report will review what other cities are doing in regards to managing their 13 volunteers, discuss the challenges and opportunities of having a volunteer coordinator, review 14 how a volunteer would fit and operate within the organization, and provide options for the City 15 Council to consider in moving forward in implementing a volunteer coordinator. 16 17 Volunteer Coordination in other cities. 18 19 Most cities have some level of volunteerism with the City. Staff was able to find that several 20 cities have dedicated staff to coordinate volunteer activities. These include St. Paul, St. Louis 21 Park, Plymouth, Maple Grove, Bloomington, and Burnsville. 22 23 The Interim City Manager met with Jackie Maas, the Volunteer Coordinator with the City of 24 Plymouth. Ms. Maas indicated that Plymouth has had a staff person dedicated for volunteer 25 coordination for 20 years. The position was originally part -time and focused primarily on Park 26 and Recreation needs. Over time, the position was made full -time and serves the volunteer needs 27 for all of the City Departments, although the position still resides in the Park and Recreation 28 Department. The position is funded by the general tax levy. 29 30 Ms. Maas indicated that Plymouth has about 1000 active volunteers. These volunteers range 31 from youth sports coaches, police reserves, residents who adopt parks, trails, and streets, provide 32 help at community events and provide office clerical duties. The volunteers range from high 33 school students, to young adults, parents, and retirees. 34 35 Ms. Maas indicated that overall the use of volunteers within the city has been a positive 36 experience that has allowed the City to extend their resources and provide for additional services. 37 Ms. Maas also indicates that volunteers do come with a cost, both to recruit and track the Page 1 of 4