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CHM 09/20/1977 CHARTER COMMISSION MEETING September 20, 1977 MEMBERS PRESENT: Raymond Sheridan, Clifford Ash, Jackie Johnson, Charles Langer, Walt Starwalt, Tim Breider, David Berg MEMBERS ABSENT: Jerry Ratcliff, Elaine Knoff, Robert O'Neill, Ray McPherson, Kenneth Brennen, John Swanson, Jean Schell, Arne Takkunen OTHERS PRESENT: NONE CALL TO ORDER: Chairperson Sheridan called the meeting to order at 7:30 p.m. APPROVE CHARTER COMMISSION MINUTES: (May 24, 1977 and July 26, 1977) Mr. Sheridan suggested that lacking a quorum for final approval of minutes that there be a general discussion and tentative approval if agreed upon at this time, with ratification at next meeting. There were no suggestions for correction of May 24 minutes. July 26 minutes should be corrected to show Charles Langer as being present and this meeting should be listed as a "special Charter Commission meeting." MOTION by Mr. Langer, seconded by Mr. Ash that minutes of May 24 and July 26 be tentatively approved, and submitted for ratification by a later meeting when there is a quorum present. Upon a voice vote, all voting aye, motion passed unanimously. Attached herewith is a new list of Charter Commission members, giving address, appointment date, and length of term.By way of background, Mr. Sheridan stated that when Commission was set up there were some two-year and some four-year appointments, but now everyone is on four-year appointments, and they are staggered so that there remains a nucleus of old members on the Commission. Mr. David Berg, appointed to the Commission on May 11, 1977 was introduced by Mr. Sheridan. Mr. Berg indicated he had been sworn in at the City Clerk's office. Other members were sworn in at Commission meeting May 24, 1977. NEW BUSINESS Mr. Sheridan passed extract of Statutes M.S.A. 471.87 and 471.88 to members which had been given him by Mr. Langer. He then asked Mr. Ash to report on action taken by Council with respect to the ethics ordinance. Mr. Ash reported that to the best of his knowledge nothing has been adopted by Council. H* said he believed Council decided to drop the Charter Commission from cover- age by this Ordinance, and said he understood they picked up Tim Breider's suggestion that if there is a suit brought against a member of a commission they will defend and pick up legal costs. Mr. Ash indicated that questions 1 through 5 posed in the letter from the Charter Commission to the City Manager dated July 27, 1977 regarding this ordinance were not answered.They did answer question #6, but Mr. Ash indicated he did not believe that any action had been taken by the Council on the matter. • pa.e 2. CHARTER COMMISSION MEETING Sestember 20, 1977 spot of Charter Comic 2 • McChesney. He read r the list of Mr. Sheridan stated that there ofePeg fill the s persons current Secretary r since the resignation d stated that anyone of those p with exception of Mr. Ash, who is Vice current members of the Commission an chair Chairman,considered for secretary but if there re is any- thing himself. He stated that Verna meetings, but Commission's record- ing scan, the minutes of the duty there of the ing gecortprb, who takes th publicity etc., that would be the thing for publication, Commission Secretary/Treasurer. composition, indicating been a stable body with a diversification of Mr. Sheridan discussed further the Commission and its that he felt it had always as he is Chairman it whether or not { philosophes.with every member having Tonga chance to be heard, whether er or Commission 1 with every member having majority hcommission,s r er might be a popular one with the maj been to his or her view mig goal of the Commission has always at the time. He stated that the g and not for any selfish reason or motiv- functions as an independent organization of work for The benefit n, he said, functions and not under the control organization the theta. rnm Commission, by of1Fridley tl of the He Chu government of the City indicated held once a month in the winter months hs but that the Commission tinsel do work closely months, andicatth that meetings are generally in the summer and in the past there have not been meetings ses needing immediate attention,is get a quorum. If anything and he also difficult to g then a special meeting would be called, as it did this year, third Tuesday of the month has been the date for the meetings stated that the but said that is not necessarily a fixed date. Nominating'Committee: Committee Sheridan appointed Charles Langer Chairman Jean Schell Nominating be members.Walt Starve and are to and asked Jackie Johnson, the next meeting Vice nominate Nominating Committee lr for reach cofb three jobs: Chairman, nominate one or more candidates easurer. Chairman and Secretary- told the Commission that he had been Chairman since the reorgan- ization Sheridan Ash has been on Commission for Mr. s been an Commission the feel- ing time, most recent y as Vice Chairman. Ash is so inclined. ing tame, Tice recently ou h the chair if Mr. McChesney, Hethat effaces should tary succeed e rer job has been filled by Peg McChes He stated that the Secretary- ears but declined reappointment. who had been on the Commission for four years ws state that a written notice days prior to the annual election a to.the said that be believed the Y which election be the to ton annual ere election to bh out at the in November, days prior to that and after the October the d ues ay, Nove is held aT the meeting get at and out after the October third Tuesday, mi ating committee Twenty committee would have sOO�at would be by about meeting, the nominating he said, at the annual October and the slate change in the by-laws change in the by-laws will be discusmeembe� of the Commission Onnual 25. Any suggested that if any annual meeting. Mr. Sheridan lugs should probably be brought out at the n they copies of the by-laws the has berommendngionH for changes,anyone did not have cop' October meeting. He asked if any of the Fridley Charter Commission By- Laws that all members receive a copy attached) . Laws with copy of these minutes; (copy CHARTER COMMISSION MEETING, September 20, 1977 Page 3. Mr. Sheridan stated that for a number of years the Commission has used the City attorney for legal advice, but came to realize that in so doing the City Attorney was actually representing two heads -- making it difficult if Commission wanted to go before the Council with a problem. After a dis- cussion with Commission members, Mr. Sheridan approached the City Attorney regarding this question that had arisen and left it up to him if he wished to continue or whether Commission should get their own attorney. He saw the problem, Mr. Sheridan said, and suggested that it might be better if he were relieved of that duty. As a result of this discussion, and a recommend- ation of a Charter Commission committee appointed to look into possible candidates for this job, John Terpstra was appointed. Mr. Sheridan said that Mr. Terpstra has been at several meetings and may be asked to attend any meeting where Commission feels he might be needed; he will also be available for phone consultation during the course of meetings, but feels for budget reasons, that he should not attend meetings unless needed on specific issues. Mr. Ash posed a question to Messrs Starwalt and Breider, as ex-Council members; what do they think about possibility of Charter Commission taking on the role of: 1) Council watchdog; 2) see how Charter works first-hand by attending all the Council meetings on a rotating basis, two members attending for a month? Mr. Starwalt indicated that he felt it would be a chore and probably not too fruitful except that it would be a learning experience. Mr. Breider felt if Council were to go against Charter it would probably be an oversight rather than intentional because Council is already pretty well watched by City administration and City Attorney. Both Mr. Breider and Mr. Starwalt encouraged anyone to attend these meet- ings who might wish to on their own, just to see how the Council works. Mr. Ash explained that the question posed by him came up because of some deadlines set by the Commission which had not been met by Council. The Charter has since been corrected to make it more workable, he said. There followed a general discussion of nature of representation and duties of Councilmen, and pros and cons of councilman at large versus ward councilman, etc. Both Mr. Breider and Mr. Starwalt indicated that in their experiences as Councilmen that they felt the ward representation to be the most workable and popular method of representation. There was also some discussion on the number of Councilmen and whether it works better with five people or with larger number as 7 or 9. Mr. Sheridan said that after discussion with Mr. Ash he sent a letter on behalf of Charter Commission to retiring Commission members, with a certificate, letter dated September 9, attached. One of the reasons it took so long to get the letter out was that the first draft of certificate was not satisfactory in appearance; he stated that the letters went out last week and were hand delivered. He read the letter sent to Ms. McChesney and said the others were essentially the same except for the reference to her duties as Commission secretary; others receiving letters were Ole Bjerkesett, Harry Crowder, and Herbert Bacon. CHARTER COMMISSION MEETING, September 20, 1977 Page 4. NEXT MEETING: October 18, 1977, at 7:30 p.m. Mr. Sheridan stated that at this time he hoped the Nominating Committee can bring with them a slate of nominees for future offices. He also told members that any time any member has a subject for the agenda that they may contact him or Mr. Ash, or Dorothy Evenson, Planning Department Secretary in charge of agenda and special materials. Mr. Berg asked how does a Commission like this come about and how long does it last? Mr. Sheridan responded that this Commission came about by taxpayers petition- ing the Court for a commission to review operation of government and set up a Charter. At that time it was the understanding that it was established forever, he said. Mr. Ash stated that ruling from Attorney was that we are members until someone is officially sworn in to take our place. Those members who are up for reappointment will still be on a year from then if no one is appointed in the interim. Mr. Sheridan mentioned that State Statutes state that if a member of the Commission misses a certain number of consecutive meetings then the Charter Commission can ask the Court to appoint someone else. He reminded members that they should call if there is a reason they cannot attend a particular meeting. ADJOURNMENT Mr. Sheridan called for adjournment at 8:45 p.m. Respectfully submitted, //i' Vern. Gor- Recor•in• Secretary Attachs: 1. Fridley Charter Commission Members List 2. Excerpt of M.S.A. 471.87 and 471.88 3. Copy of ltrs to Ms McChesney. and Messrs. Bjerkesett,Crowder & Bacon. ry^ w c C / mss- /:• i`f • FRIDLEY HOME RULE CHARTER COMMISSION BY-LAWS Adopted March 13, 1973 MEETINGS Meetings shall be held in the Fridley City Hall . The annual meeting shall be held on the third Tuesday of November of each year. Special meetings shall be held at such times as may be set by the President. Special meetings may be called by the President or on request in writing of five (5) members. When the President shall receive written notice of a request for a meeting signed by five (5) mem- bers he shall , within ten (10) days, call a special meeting. Public Hearings shall be held upon request of eight (8) members of the Charter Commission membership. • OFFICERS The officers shall be: President, Vice-President, and Secretary- Treasurer. The officers shall be elected for one (1) year. DUTIES OF OFFICERS The President shall preside at all meetings. The President shall call all meetings. The President shall be ex-officio member of all committees. The Vice-President shall preside over all meetings in the absence or disqualification of the President. In case of vacancy in the office of the President, the Vice-President shall assume all duties and obligations of the President until a successor is duly elected and qualified. • p.f • The Secretary-Treasurer shall keep general supervision over the records and proceedings , shall take minutes of any and all meet- ings , shall issue notices of all meetings , shall conduct all correspondence, shall issue all press releases of the organiza- tion, and shall expedite disbursements of authorized expenditures. COMMITTEES The President shall appoint the committees and the members there- of, and shall designate the chairman of each committee. In September of each year, the President shall appoint a nomina- ting committee of three (3) or more members who shall report the nomination of one (1) or more candidates for each office. Written reports of such nominations shall be mailed -to each member at least twenty (20) days before the annual election. Nominations from the floor shall be in order at any election. ORDER OF BUSINESS 1 . Call to order by President. 2. Roll Call--quorum being present the meeting proceeds with business. 3. Reading by Secretary of minutes of previous meeting and their consideration and approval . 4. Report of officers. 5. Report of committees. 6. Considerations of communications. 7. Unfinished business. 8. New Business. 9. Motion to adjourn. All meetings shall be governed by authority of Robert's Rules of Order. QUORUM Eight (8) members shall constitute a quorum A majority of members present shall be sufficient to pass motions and resolutions. AMENDMENTS Amendments and changes to these By-Laws may be proposed by a major- /-. ity of a quorum. They shall become a part of the By-laws when rati- fied by two-thirds (2/3) or ten (10) of the Home Rule Charter Com- mission membership. FRIDLEY CHARTER COMMISSION MEMBERS NAME ADDRESS TELEPHONE APPOINTED LENGTH OF TERM Raymond Sheridan 1301 Hillwind Road H. 574-0007 • May 11 , 1977 4 years Fridley, Mn 55432 B. 560-4100 - Clifford Ash 460 Rice Creek Blvd. H. 574-9579 Jana 24, 1975 4 years Fridley, Mn 55432 B. .332:3366 Elaine Knoff 6776 7th Street N.E. H. 571-1938 Jan. 24, 1975 4 years Fridley, Mn 55432 B. 786- 91 ,1 Jerry Ratcliff 7350 Memory Lane N.E. H. 786-2142 Jan. 24, 1975 4 years Fridley, Mn 55432 B. 854-3434 Robert O;Nei11 861 Rice Creek Terrace H. 571-1272 Jan. 24, 1975 4 years Fridley, Mn 55432 B. �'*! -60o0 Jackie Johnson 1415 Tro1lhagen Drive H. 571-0906 Jan. 24, 1975 4 years Fridley, Mn 55421 Roy McPherson 5808 Tennison Drive N.E. H. 574-0127 Jan. 24, 1975 4 years Fridley, Mn 55432 B. 542-5539 Kenneth Brennen 6715 7th Street N.E. H. 571-8035 May 11 , 1977 4 years Fridley, Mn 55432 B. 1 51 t-3101 John Swanson 5835 Central Avenue N.E. H. 571-7638 May 11 ,1977 4 years ^ Fridley, Mn 55432 B. 560-•4100 - Charles Langer 6530 Hickory Drive N.E. H. 560-1388 May 11 , 1977 4 years Fridley, Mn 55432 B. 571-82-11 David Berg 7680 East River Road N.E. H. 571-4282 May 11 , 1977 4 years j Fridley, Mn 55432 B. 374--rLsg Tim F. Breider 7550 Tempo Terrace N.E. H. 786-5341 May 11 , 1977 4 years Fridley, Mn 55432 B. Jean Schell 5198 St. Moritz Drive N.E. H. 571-3283 May 11 , 1977 4 years Fridley, Mn 55421 B. Walt Starwalt 1021 Hackmann Circle N.E. H. 571-6228 May 11 , 1977 .4 years Fridley, Mn 55432 B. Arne Takkunen 6420 Baker Avenue N.E. H. 571-5749 May 11 , 1977 4 years Fridley, Mn 55432 B. 331 - 603o Secretary Verna Gore H.484-6147 B.296-3665 (meeting and minutes) ^ Secretary-Planning Dept. Dorothy Evenson- Agenda and special materials 571-3450, Ext. 169 EXCERPT OF M.S.A. 471.87 and 471.88 1 M.S.A. 471.87 Public Officers, interest in contract; penalty Except as authorized in section 471.88, a public officer who is authorized to take part in any manner in making any sale, lease, or contract in his official capacity shall not voluntarily have a personal financial interest in that sale, lease, or contract or personally benefit Financially therefrom. Every public officer who violiates this provision is guilty of a gross misdemeanor. - Laws 1951, C.379; Laws 1955, C.41 , Sec. 1. M.S.A. 471.88 Exceptions Subdivision 1. The governing body of any port authority, seaway port authority, town, school district, county, or city, by unanimous vote, may contract for goods or services with an interested officer of the govern- mental unit in any of the following cases: Subd. 2. In the designation of a bank in which the officer is interested as an authorized depository For public Funds and as a source of borrowing, no restriction shall apply to the deposit or borrowing of any funds or the designation of a depository by such authority or governmental unit in any bank in which a member of an authority or officer of a governmental unit shalil have an interest if such deposited funds are protected in accordance with Minnesota Statutes, Chapter 118; provided, however, that any member or officer having such an interest shall disclose that he is a director or employee of the bank, which disclosure shall be entered upon the minutes of the authority or governmental unit, such disclosure shall be made when such bank is first designated as a depository or as a source of borrowing, or when such member or officer is elected whichever is later, and such disclosure shall serve as notice of such interest and need not be made with each successive transaction; Subd. 3. The designation of an official newspaper, or publication of official matters therein, in which the officer is interested when it is the only newspaper complying with statutory or charter requirements relating to the designation or publication; Subd. 4. A contract with a cooperative association of which the officer is a shareholder or stockholder but not an officer or manager; Subd. 5. A contract for which competitive bids are not required by law and where the amount does not exceed $1,000 when the commodity or service contracted For is not otherwise available in the affected governmental unit; Subd. 6. A contract with a volunteer fire department for the payment of compensation to its members or for the payment or retirement benefits to these members; Subd. 7. A contract with a municipal band for the payment of compensation to its members; Subd 8. Contracts for goods or services when the consideration does not exceed $1 ,000 in any year and the contracting governmental unit has a population of less than 5,000; Subd. 9. When a port authority commissioner is engaged in or employed by a firm engaged in the business of importing or exporting or general trade, it shall be lawful For the authority to do business with the commissioner or his employer provided that in the fixing of any rates affecting shippers or users of the terminal facility, said commissioner shall not vote thereon. Subd. 10. When a seaway port authority commissioner is engaged in or employed by a firm engaged in the business of importing or exporting or general trade, it shall be lawful for the authority to do business with the commissioner or his employer provided that in the fixing of any rates effecting shippers or users of the terminal facility, said commissioner shall not take part in the determination of, except to testify, nor vote thereon. - Laws 1961, c. 651, Sec. 1. Subd. 11. When a commissioner of any public hpusing or port au 'hority is employed by a bank engaged in making loans or performing trust services involving real or personal property affected by any plan of such hdusing or port authority, no restriction shall apply to any such loans made or.'C•rust services performed by said bank if the commissioner shall disclose of such loans or trust services of which he has personal knowledge, which disclosure shall be entered upon the minutes of such authority. - Amended by Laws 1965, C. 806, Sec's. 1-4; Laws 1969, c. 26, Sec. 1, eff. March 6, 1969; Laws 1973, c. 123, Art. 5, Sec. 7.