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<br />Councilmember Dehen stated there should be discussion about the funding and whether the <br />Council has interest in the Excessive Consumption of Services Ordinance. <br /> <br />Council member Strommen commented the Council seems to be on board with the. concept of this <br />type of program; however, on behalf of the Finance Committee they will need to explore <br />funding. She suggested staff provide further information with an estimate of a reasonable budget <br />based on prior numbers. <br /> <br />Mayor Gamec indicated in the past the cost to implement this type of program was estimated at <br />$75,000. <br /> <br />Councilmember Dehen commented the code enforcement officer would likely be an entry level <br />position. He suggested the possibility of shifting staffing resources to utilize building personnel <br />that is not currently doing inspections due to the construction slow down. <br /> <br />Ass't Community Development Dir/HRA Executive Dir. Frolik advised a key element would be <br />the continuity of having a code enforcement technician. <br /> <br />Interim City Administrator Nelson indicated staff feels having someone specifically trained in <br />the area of code enforcement has the skill set to deal with code violation issues. She requested <br />direction as to whether Council is interested in proceeding with both programs. <br /> <br />Consensus of the Council was to direct staff to provide further information regarding options to <br />implement an administrative hearing process and a city-initiated abatement program. <br /> <br />Councilmember Dehen stated the ability to prosecute by citation would be an important option to <br />leave open to address particular problem cases. <br /> <br />Mayor Gamec commented it may be beneficial to include this for instances involving hazardous <br />materials that affect health and welfare, or for repeated offenses. <br /> <br />City Attorney Goodrich indicated staff will look into including this in the options presented to <br />Council. <br /> <br />3) Administrative Fines for Minor Traffic Violations <br /> <br />Police Chief Way stated in considering the possibility of administrative fees for minor traffic <br />violations there are a couple of things to look at: what the City would try to gain from that, and <br />whether it is legal. It is dependant on who you talk to as to whether it is considered legal. He <br />has paperwork from a couple of sources that have indicated it is not legal at this point. <br />Legislation has been introduced and is currently being debated in the legislature to formally <br />allow cities to utilize administrative fines under state statute for specific traffic violations. This <br />legislation is currently in committee. Mr. Way indicated there are only a couple of cities that use <br />this process; one is Columbia Heights. If Council were to determine to proceed with this for the <br />purpose of making revenue, it will not be a money maker. In 2005 Columbia Heights took in <br /> <br />City Council Work Session I May 1, 2007 <br />Page 8 of 16 <br />