Minutes - Council Work Session - 09/09/2025

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Councilmember Riley asked why the current legal firm has been underperforming from Staff's perspective. City Administrator Hagen explained that from a personnel standpoint, they do not feel confident that City Attorney Knaak can guide them through a difficult scenario. He shared that they had a situation that they were not confident that City Attorney Knaak could handle, and they ended up working with another firm, which gave them quick guidance on how to navigate the situation. He added that there have also been items that have been missed or forgotten about. He noted that the Police Department handles both criminal and civil cases, and City Attorney Knaak has not had the best working relationship with the Police Department. He shared that for some of the civil cases City Attorney Knaak has handled, he has not provided solutions that have made sense. He said they have been dealing with a dangerous dog case for almost two years and have not received the best guidance. He stated that timing is one of the biggest issues they are facing, as well as confidence in his guidance. He noted that City Attorney Knaak has done a great job in other areas; however, there have been a lot of times that he and Staff have been frustrated with his work. Mayor Heineman asked how office hour pay works. City Administrator Hagen explained that currently, this is generally about two and a half hours on the day of Council meetings to be in person for Staff to ask questions; however, this is not being well utilized. He shared that if they do move forward with a different firm, he would like to move away from this, as they do not see a high value in this office hour time. Mayor Heineman asked when they did the calculations for how much they are paying City Attorney Knaak versus how much they are utilizing him, if this included the office hours and drive time, or just the times that Staff had reached out to him. City Administrator Hagen said their calculations included office hours but not drive time. Mayor Heineman asked how many hours City Attorney Knaak puts in outside of attending meetings. City Administrator Hagen shared that in 2022, City Attorney Knaak reported 429 hours, in 2023, he reported 280 hours, in 2024, he reported over 300 hours, and they are anticipating he will report around 300 hours for 2025. Mayor Heineman said he does not want to just go with the cheapest option; however, cost is a factor in making his decision. Councilmember Riley said he does not feel strongly about whether they pay hourly or with a retainer. He stated he finds it interesting that all of the other firms provided an hourly wage and suggested this route instead of a retainer. The Council reviewed its rankings of the six firms. The consensus of the Council was that Eckberg Lammers was their top choice. City Council Work Session / September 9, 2025 Page 3 of 5