Agenda - Council - 12/10/2019 - Laserfiche WebLink

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funding. He used the example of the Livable Cities grant the City recently received in the amount of $900,000. City Administrator Ulrich stated that the organization will continue to do its job whether the City chooses to be a member or not. He noted that cities come in and out of membership and explained that metro cities as a whole would not suffer if Ramsey was not part of their organization. Mayor LeTourneau stated that he could support either option related to the Metro Cities membership. He noted that the membership does provide opportunity for another voice, explaining while the City is quickly growing it helps to have every voice possible advocate for the City. He stated that this is a critical time for Ramsey and there is value in the membership, it would be the job of the City to advocate for more help from organizations. Councilmember Menth stated that advocating for the City against the Metropolitan Council or for Highway 10 would seem to provide sufficient benefit. Councilmember Musgrove believed that the Council can be more influential speaking with legislators directly and by using Mr. Tinklenberg. She stated that there are 93 cities in Metro Cities and therefore they are advocating for funds for all those cities, rather than providing direct service to Ramsey. She recommended that the Metro Cities membership not be funded next year. Councilmember Riley stated that he would recommend not including the membership in the budget. Mayor LeTourneau stated that in the interest of moving forward he would also agree that the City could make it without the Metro Cities membership in order to reach consensus. Councilmember Musgrove stated that she believes that there are two staff acknowledgements times during the year, along with the holiday party. She asked for feedback on removing one of the staff acknowledgement events. City Administrator Ulrich provided background on the staff acknowledgement events, noting that there is a breakfast once per year where higher -level staff serves breakfast to staff and presents years of service awards. He noted that the second event is a picnic type event where higher -level staff serve the staff. He stated that there is a great turnout for the events, which serve as an important atmosphere for communication and morale. He noted that there is not a large expense for the events. He stated that cutting the informal recognition event and communication opportunity could send the wrong message to staff. He believed that the events are an important part of showing the employees how they are valued to the organization. He stated that years of service awards are only presented at one of the events. Councilmember Menth stated that in his last 17 years in construction he worked for Egan Companies and did not think a price could be put on an event where employees are shown value. He commented when holiday parties were cut it was a devastating time for employees. He stated City Council Work Session / November 18, 2019 Page 12 of 14