Laserfiche WebLink
Engineering Administrative Assistant exclusively to the Engineering Department. This Staff Member had <br />previously been assigned 20 hours per week in the Building Division on a temporary basis. <br />The Community Development Assistant has a wealth of institutional knowledge, and a phased retirement would be <br />an appropriate tool to support a seamless transition of this role's primary functions. The Community Development <br />Assistant has requested phased retirement for 2020 and 2021 working two days a week at 16 hours per week. <br />Approval of the Phased Retirement Option (PRO) was recently extended by the Minnesota Legislature. The City <br />Council is not obligated to approve the phased retirement option, but it is a tool that can be used in overall budget <br />discussions. Retirement of this individual is inevitable at some point in the near future, and Staff would desire to <br />capitalize on the institutional knowledge to its fullest extent. <br />CODE ENFORCEMENT MANAGEMENT <br />Staff is falling increasingly behind in code enforcement cases for zoning code enforcement as the number of <br />complaints and intensity of cases increases. Community Development handles code complaints for home -based <br />businesses, issues with buildings and structures, and enforcement in commercial and industrial districts. The Police <br />Department handles long -grass complaints and junk vehicle complaints. The Police Chief also manages all appeals <br />to Notices of Violations. <br />Community Development Staff has several dozen open cases at the moment, with several dozen other open cases <br />likely needing administrative closure (violation corrected or unfounded, lacking data entry). With several <br />prominent cases escalating recently, Staff has found it difficult to maintain the current workload. The published 14 <br />Day Correction Period is closer to 30 Days or more. Additionally, a large majority of Staff Time is consumed by <br />development review of land use applications. Staff has had to tap all resources of all team members to ensure <br />development projects walk through the Planning Commission, EDA, and City Council process in the time <br />prescribed by State Statute and expected of our Applicants. Staff has had to postpone work on projects such as the <br />Comprehensive Plan Update, Highway 47 Plan, and Zoning Code Update due to development review and code <br />enforcement obligations. <br />ALTERNATIVES <br />The proposed phased retirement gives Staff and City Council an opportunity to think differently about the positions <br />within the division. <br />Planning Technician - Current Staff Proposal <br />Staff is currently evaluating replacing the Community Development Assistant with a Planning Technician. This new <br />position would split its time between Reviews Coordinator - coordinating land use applications and Code <br />Enforcement Management - Key Contact. <br />Talking Points <br />• Entry Level Position/Low Cost/High Benefit <br />• Likelihood of high turnover (advancing career, lower salary, type of activity) <br />• Large help for routine type code enforcement cases <br />• Need for other Staff to handle larger, more complex code enforcement cases <br />Senior Level Staff and/or Separate Positions <br />This alternative would replace the Community Development Assistant with an Administrative Assistant doing more <br />routine administrative assistance. In addition to that, the City would hire a separate code enforcement staff member <br />dedicated to that activity. <br />Talking Points <br />• Robust administration and timely resolution to code enforcement cases <br />• Ability to handle more complex code enforcement cases, reducing burden on other team members <br />• Stability in Land Use Application process <br />