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<br />. <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />., <br /> <br />COUNCIL BUSINESS <br /> <br />Case #1: <br /> <br />Public Hearing to Consider Adoption of an Ordinance to Amend City <br />Charter Section 2.1 <br /> <br />Mayor Gamec closed the regular portion of the City Council meeting at 5: 13 p.m. in order to <br />conduct a public hearing. <br /> <br />Public Hearin!! <br /> <br />Mayor Gamec called the public hearing to order at 5: 13 p.m. <br /> <br />Presentation <br /> <br />City Attorney Goodrich reviewed that the Charter Commission met on December 5, 2006 to <br />consider an amendment to the Charter. The amendment would change section 2.1 of the Charter <br />and provide that the City be governed by the Council-Manager Form of Government. Currently, <br />the City is governed by the Mayor-Council Plan. At its December 5th meeting the Charter <br />Commission recommended that the City Council enact an ordinance to amend the Charter to the <br />Council-Manager Form of Government. The Charter Commission recommended that the <br />amendment be effective January 1, 2008. The City Council does not have the authority to <br />change that date. Council introduced the proposed ordinance at the December 12, 2006 City <br />Council meeting. The public hearing has been properly advertised for this evening pursuant to <br />State law. Mr. Goodrich indicated a letter has been distributed from Frank Frederick of the <br />Charter Commission regarding the Charter amendment. Mr. Frederick is very much in favor of <br />the amendment; his letter does not address the date issue. Mr. Goodrich indicated the Charter <br />Commission has discussed this Charter amendment on several occasions. The January 1, 2008 <br />date was chosen because the Commission felt the City will be in the process of hiring a new City <br />Administrator and it will take time to make this change effective; a City Manager could be hired <br />effective as of January 1,2008. <br /> <br />Citizen Input <br /> <br />Councilmember Elect John Dehen stated he attended a Council work session where the City <br />Administrator/City Manager Form of Government was discussed. From his perspective he does <br />not know a lot about the difference in the forms of governance, other than the handout the <br />councilmembers received. Given that, as part of the process he would like to have input on this, <br />and would ask that the Council defer judgment on .the matter at least until the councilmembers- <br />elect are Sworn in. <br /> <br />Ms. Hannah LeMere, Vice Chair of the Charter Commission, stated Frank Fredericks has <br />included comments in his letter regarding why the Charter Commission is pushing for this <br />change in the form of government now. The Charter Commission is responsible for the City's <br />constitution and has looked at this issue for two to three years. They have done this over the <br />change of city councilmembers; the Commission reviewed this when there was a smaller council <br /> <br />-195- <br />