Minutes - Council Work Session - 04/18/2006

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Mr. Bakken provided an overview of the Planning Commission work session of February 23, 2006. The Council, staff and Mr. Bakken discussed the comments made by the Planning Commission in the following areas: . Planning Commission Perception of their Role . Planning Commission Relationship to City Council The Council discussed communication between the City Council and the Planning Commission. Councilmembers expressed the following concerns: . Concern with the unwillingness of many of the Commissioners to participate in the cluster ordinance. . Concern with the lack of participation by the Chair and Vice Chair in the appointment process. . The Planning Commission is one of the City's most important commissions, it is important for the Commission to understand what the Council needs from them. . The need for the Council to relay to the Commission the reasons for the Comprehensive Plan amendments and the Cluster Ordinance. . The need to use joint meetings more efficiently. The Council discussed the current communication process with the Planning Commission. It was noted there has been a positive move in this process with the Community Development Director meeting with the Chair of the Commission to discuss the agenda and the bigger issues the Council is working on. There has also been the addition of including a Staff Update on the agenda of the Planning Commission meeting in reference to cases the Council has taken action on. Mayor Gamec noted the Council has discussed providing the Commission with an update similar to the Council's Weekly Update. Staff has expressed concern with the amount of time that would be required to prepare this type of update. Mr. Bakken indicated the Commission would be quite happy with staff communication and a better understanding of the bigger picture. The Council discussed the following areas in relation to communication between the Council and the Planning Commission: . The Planning Commission needs to understand the direction of the Council with the Cluster Ordinance. It was noted that some members of the Commission would likely agree with the ordinance in its holistic sense for preservation. . The need for the Commission to have policies to adhere to. o Mr. Bakken suggested the Council may want to consider the Planning Commission making periodic policy recommendations to the Council. Community Development Director Trudgeon expressed his feelings that the meetings with Chair Nixt are invaluable, and that the Chair can lead the Commission by example. He indicated there should be more descriptive updates on actions taken by the Council, possibly expanding thisifurther on the Planning Commission agenda. City Council Work Session I April 18, 2006 Page 2 of 4