Agenda - Council - 11/28/2017 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home

Councilmember LeTourneau stated that he understands that the City cannot meet the expectation level of residents for the parks and other improvements, while running at a lower operation rate than the City had in 2011 and handling more duties. He stated that perhaps he would like an opportunity to talk about this item on camera when the budget comes forward because he believes it would be important for residents to hear that justification. Mayor Strommen stated that she would hate to focus on one piece of the budget because one resident brought that up and rather focus on the budget in its entirety. Councilmember Kuzma stated that while he is not thrilled with the levy rate, roads are a big portion of that and residents will need to understand that the City is doing its best to control that cost. Mayor Strommen stated that the comparisons are not apples to apples comparisons because the roads were not included in the budget in the past. She noted that some municipalities use franchise fees while others do not have their own police department. She stated that if the roads were done on a franchise fee, the levy may look different. Finance Director Lund confirmed that the Councilmembers present are comfortable with the budget and levy coming forward for final adoption as discussed. 2.02: Proposed 2018 Schedule of Rates, Fees, and Charges Finance Director Lund reviewed the staff report. She noted that there will be a public hearing tonight at the regular meeting. She stated that once adopted there is a 30-day period before the fees could be enacted and therefore this is the timeline to enable the fees beginning in 2018. Councilmember LeTourneau asked for details on the use of a fund and whether it could be used for trail maintenance. Parks and Assistant Public Works Superintendent Riverblood replied that the fund can only be used for the construction of new capital. 2.03: Discussion Regarding the Process for the City Administrator's Next Annual Performance Evaluation Human Resources Manager Lasher reviewed the staff report. Councilmember Johns stated that she liked the new tool they used the previous year. She stated that although there is a cost to the product, it did seem to use less human resources time and she found it easier to work with. Councilmember LeTourneau stated that he likes the tool they began using the previous year because of the depth of information that you're able to gather. He stated that using the same tool the second year would provide information on a baseline and for comparison purposes. He asked City Council Work Session / November 14, 2017 Page 4 of 7