Minutes - Council Work Session - 11/10/2008

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Councilmember Elvig stated that he doesn't see a scenario where the City could ever recoup the costs of this. He stated that he sees this as the City taking on the role of judge and jury. He stated that this seems like a monumental task and he hates to see a juggernaut of all the abatement and policing and is concerned about the Council's role. Mayor Gamec stated that is why he thinks the fees should be reviewed so the Council can see if the City is coming close to recouping our costs. Councilmember Elvig stated that he would be far more supportive ofthis if it wouldn't increase the officer time. Police Chief Way stated that it will take more work because of the financing piece. He stated that they have a ticket writing process where officers don't even have to write tickets anymore, so, this would involve a lot more paperwork and time. Councilmember Strommen stated that having sat through budget discussions during the last few years, she is finding a huge contradiction here. She stated that this is talking about increasing the load and staff and there isn't money for additional staff. She stated that unless the Council is committed to adding to the budget and people, then she doesn't think this is something that can be on our plate. She stated that there comes a time when our staff simply cannot absorb more and more activity. Councilmember Dehen stated that the glut of this stuff in the court systems is unbelievable. He stated that the officers will have to step up to the plate and he agrees there will be a front-end load, but this needs to be looked at as a long-term commitment. He stated that once the learning curve is over, it shouldn't be too bad. Councilmember Strommen stated that she is not disputing that, but she doesn't think it is our burden to bear. Councilmember Elvig stated that this is asking the City to supplement the failing court system. Mayor Gamec reiterated that this is why the City needs to make sure the fees are in line. Councilmember Dehen stated that this is an opportunity that if someone gets an administrative citation, they will want it to go away. He stated that it will benefit almost everyone involved. He asked if there was a large learning curve in Mounds View. City Administrator Ulrich stated that it had been done for a number of years and was ingrained in the process. He stated that they continued to do it without express authority from the legislature, because it had previously been in place. He stated that he doesn't think the City should do this without the express authority from the legislature. He stated that record keeping hasn't even been discussed in relation to this, or the insurance company issues. He stated that to Mayor Gamec's point, he thinks the statute allows for charging whatever it costs the City to process the tickets. City Council Work Session / November 10,2008 Page 7of9