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Regular City Council Meeting Monday, August 18, 2008 Page 10 Mayor Klausing questioned cause and effect of the public process in limiting time for existing firms. Councilmember Ihlan opined that, as a taxpayer and member of the public, a firm should not appear to have an inside relationship with staff to ensure that their ser- vices were renewed indefinitely; opining that this was not in the public interest, nor would it further the City's integrity. Mayor Klausing thanked Councilmember Ihlan for her perspective, and opined that he didn't disagree with her statement; however, from his perspective, it ap- peared that the exception eliminated the rule; questioning why to have a policy to review and make a determination, based on recommendation of the City Manager, and how that helped with this issue. Councilmember Roe opined that it created a benefit to start from the notion that it wasn't a given that the contract would be renewed; and that it allowed the City Manager and the City Council to evaluate the situation. Councilmember Roe opined that he agreed with the one proposal of the City Manager for adding an evaluation process to give more perspective on whether to make a change or not. Mayor Klausing suggested it would be more beneficial to the City's interest to have a review or evaluation at the end of each contract period, in addition to the notice clause. Councilmember Roe noted the similarities of serving as an elected public official if citizens remained satisfied with that service. Councilmember Pust opined that, legal services contracts, as with all other con- tracts, should adhere to a policy to determine if the public was getting the highest quality and the best services for their taxpayer dollars. Councilmember Pust opined that such decisions for contracted services should always be made through a bidding process; that everyone came back in to bid, with no one receiving or be- ing deducted points for being a provider in the past. Councilmember Pust ques- tioned the need for the language about not applying after six years of service, if the current firm was providing the best service, as long as it was open to bid every three years, and based on market dictates. City Manager Malinen thanked Councilmembers for their various perspectives; and advised that his intent was to put the contracts out for bid on a three-year cy- cle. City Manager Malinen concurred with Councilmember Pust's perspective, that bids be accepted from new and existing qualified providers, with current pro- viders undergoing an annual evaluation to improve performance and communica- tion.