Minutes - Council Work Session - 02/05/1997 - Workshop

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Councilmember Zimmerman: That was perceived as Ryan doing it on his own. Councilmember Beyer: People have the perception that staff does whatever and then it becomes law. Councilmember Haas Steffen: You have an ordinance to finish to work with this Charter amendment. Staff needs to work to finish this - they have to bring options to Council and the public. Staff should present things for our review. Councilmember Beyer: We had been discussing certain options and we did not instruct staff to do anything. All of a sudden it's published in the Ramsey Resident and next thing we have a public hearing. People are perceiving this as law. That's why the public hearing was so hot. Mayor Gamec: City Council calls the public hearings. It had to get ordered some way. It's up to us to ask questions and decide. Staff should bring us the options. Councilmember Beyer: There are too many things that slip by us on the Consent Agenda. Mayor Gamec: We should read our agendas and we can pull things out of the Consent Agenda that we don't feel comfortable about or that need more discussion. Councilmember Haas Steffen: I do not want to take away staff's initiative to lay two or three or more options if front of us - even if a couple of them are bad. I want staff to do this without my direction. Councilmember Beyer: There gets to be a zeroing in on one option and that's where it goes. Councilmember Zimmerman: Staff needs to explore the ordinances or whatever, they can bring it to City Council and Council decides. Councilmember Haas Steffen: We need to have some ordinances and I would like staff to lay out the options for us. The Charter amendment was not complete. Even the author stated that. City Council has to deal with tying up loose ends. Councilmember Zimmerman: We should not be making decisions the night of the public hearings. Mayor Gamec: Maybe it is better to receive the input and have time to think about it. Councilmember Zimmerman: If you make a decision the same night, the people giving input see that as us having already made up our minds and that the input wasn't taken into consideration. Mayor Gamec: Some of the public hearings are just a formality. Councilmember Zimmerman: If no one shows up to voice opposition - that could be the green light for Council to act on it that night. If there are people against it, a decision should be made on the next agenda. Councilmember Haas Steffen: I do not have a problem with that. It could be decided on a case- by-case basis. Councilmember Beyer: Even with sealcoating, if residents don't feel a good job was done, we should not decide on that on the same evening. We are expecting people to pay for these improvements and they should be held to a higher standard. City Council Workshop/February 5, 1997 Page 4 of 6