Minutes - Council Work Session - 06/12/2018

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been decided in his mind. He stated that if the City starts down the road with engagement and the community is largely supportive, one action could be chosen but if the community is largely opposed, then another action could be chosen. He stated that he believes that if there is support from the community, the topic would not need to go to the ballot and the Council could make the decision. Councilmember Kuzma stated that his only concern is that if the topic is placed on the ballot and passes with the support of the community, there would be no going back. Acting Mayor LeTourneau stated that the Council is tasked with making difficult decisions all the time and he is not aware of a time when the public has ever repealed an ordinance. He stated that even if that were to occur, he did not think that would be bad either. Councilmember Kuzma stated that he would also be concerned with the Charter Commission and potential actions. Acting Mayor LeTourneau stated that he would encourage engagement of the community and if the community is supportive, there would not be pushback from the Charter Commission. City Administrator Ulrich noted that one of the first pieces of engagement in the WSB process would be to engage and inform the Charter Commission. Councilmember Johns agreed that having concrete information will be helpful to inform the Charter Commission more effectively. City Administrator Ulrich agreed that there have been assessments that have impacted residents now and there is solid financial information to use for comparison. Councilmember Shryock stated that given the timeline from WSB, she believed that it would be helpful to begin this now. She stated that the education piece will be important whether this goes to ballot or not. City Administrator Ulrich acknowledged the point made by Acting Mayor LeTourneau that perhaps along the way it is clear that the community will not support this action and therefore language could be added into the contract that would provide a check-in where the City could choose not to move forward. Acting Mayor LeTourneau stated that there will be activity between now and November that will be distracting and noted that he would like to ensure that the conversation is done in a time when there will not be distractions. He stated that he does not want this to be a fight and asked the Council to consider shutting down the discussion until there is not that distraction. He acknowledged that the Council is attempting to get ahead of the next road assessment cycle but wanted to ensure that this can be a thoughtful discussion that engages people for the right reason. Councilmember Riley agreed that there needs to be a long-term solution for the long-term problem. He stated that the City does not have the expertise and is short on staff, which would City Council Work Session/June 12, 2018 Page 3 of 8