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CHM 10/03/2011 CITY OF FRIDLEY CHARTER COMMISSION MEETING October 3, 2011 CALL TO ORDER: Chairperson Braam called the Charter Commission meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. ROLL CALL: Members Present: Peter Borman, Gary Braam, Marion Flickinger, Carol Hoiby, Bill Holm, Nancy Jorgenson, Ted Kranz, Rick Nelson, Pam Reynolds, Noel Ryan, Cindy Soule, and Lois Scholzen Members Absent: Don Findell, Leslie Plummer and Keith Shaw Others Present: Deb Skogen, City Clerk/Staff Liaison APPROVAL OF AGENDA Commissioner Ryan MOVED and Commissioner Kranz seconded a motion approving the meeting agenda. UPON A VOICE VOTE, ALL VOTING AYE, CHAIRPERSON BRAAM DECLARED THE MOTION CARRIED. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Commissioner Holm MOVED and Commissioner Reynolds seconded a motion approving the Charter Commission meeting minutes of April 4, 2011. UPON A VOICE VOTE, ALL VOTING AYE, CHAIRPERSON BRAAM DECLARED THE MOTION CARRIED. Commissioner Holm MOVED and Commissioner Reynolds seconded a motion approving the Charter Commission meeting minutes of May 16, 2011. UPON A VOICE VOTE, ALL VOTING AYE, CHAIRPERSON BRAAM DECLARED THE MOTION CARRIED. ADMINISTRATIVE MATTERS A. 2012 CALENDAR The Charter Commission discussed the meeting dates for 2012. Due to the Labor Day holiday in September and the election in November, there are no scheduled meetings for those months in 2012. However, they decided to have two meetings in October (the first and the last Mondays). If an additional meeting is required, the Chair will call a special meeting. Commissioner Nelson MOVED and Commissioner Hoiby seconded a motion approving the Charter Commission meeting dates for 2012 as follows: January 9; February 6; March 5; April 2; May 7; October 1 and October 29, 2012. CHARTER COMMISSION MEETING OF OCTOBER 3, 2011 PAGE 2 UPON A VOICE VOTE, ALL VOTING AYE, CHAIRPERSON BRAAM DECLARED THE MOTION CARRIED. DISCUSSION OF CHAPTER 2 - VACANCIES IN THE COUNCIL Deb Skogen gave an overview of the materials provided in the agenda packet. Commissioner Kranz said a couple of points were brought up in the May 16th minutes. He asked if a legal opinion had been requested regarding whether or not it was legal to prohibit an appointee to run for election after the term expired. Ms. Skogen said she had not requested it because she was not sure what direction the Charter Commission wanted to give at this meeting. Mr. Kranz felt Bill Burns was seeking a special election. Ms. Skogen said that was the direction he was leaning toward, but felt the City Council did not have an opinion about whether a vacancy should be filled by appointment or special election; only that if appointed the individual should have the right to run for election at the end of the term. The Commissioners agreed that was what they heard at that meeting. Commissioner Kranz asked what the Charter Commission needed to do next. Ms. Skogen said they could take the City Council's comments, redraft the amendments and send it to City Council for their approval, which had to be unanimous. Ms. Skogen said the draft she had proposed took into account the changes in election laws and the city manager's concerns to provide for special elections. She said it was really up to the Charter Commission to decide what direction to proceed. Commissioner Reynolds felt most of the discussion by the Charter Commission had centered on trying to eliminate the need for a special election by allowing for an appointment to the Council. She said the only problem was the Charter Commission's desire to prohibit the appointee from running. She said the majority of cities were allowing for the appointment and understood not allowing an appointee to use the term incumbent. Commissioner Jorgenson asked if an individual who was appointed to fill a vacancy during the first two years would have to file for office to fill the last two years of the office at the next regular election. All Commissioners agreed the answer was yes. Pam Reynolds said one city called it a special election, even though it was during the regular election, because it was for the remainder of the term of that office. Commissioner Jorgenson said, as far as she could remember, the City had only run into this problem once in 62 years and felt it would be very minimal in the future. Commissioner Borman wondered why the councilmember at large would serve as the mayor until the end of the Mayor's term (in the amendment to Section 2.06.6 now 2.06.3). The Commissioners felt the councilmember at large should fill the full term because they were also elected by the whole city and that the Councilmember at large could then be appointed until the next general election. There was some discussion about the councilmember at large being the Mayor Pro Tem; however after reading the Charter, that individual is chosen from the remaining council members. In addition, the current language requires the councilmember at large to serve as the mayor until the vacancy is filled. The consensus was that an individual filing for office as councilmember at large would have to understand if something happened to the mayor, they would be expected to serve in the mayor's place and their position would become vacant. At the end of the term, that individual could then decide to run for their old position or for the mayor's position. Commissioner Holm felt Commissioner Reynolds was right in that the main discussion of the Charter Commission was to minimize or eliminate special elections. He felt holding special elections was contrary to those discussions. He also felt the City Council was opposed to the prohibiting appointees from running for office. He said if the Charter Commission really believe strongly they wanted to eliminate special elections, they should then give up prohibiting appointees from running for office after their term expired. Commissioner Hoiby said some of the Commissioners did not agree about that issue. Commissioner Kranz said he had brought up the idea and Commissioner Jorgenson had backed him up. He felt the Council members did not CHARTER COMMISSION MEETING OF OCTOBER 3, 2011 PAGE 3 agree with that amendment and he felt Mr. Burns’s suggestion about special elections was totally contradictory to what the Charter Commission had been discussing all year. Commissioner Nelson said the Charter Commission's amendments were what the City Council did not want nor what Dr. Burns wanted so was unsure about how to proceed. The Commissioners felt they were a lot closer to what the City Council wanted. Chairperson Braam wondered if anyone had a strong opinion to limiting an appointed person running for that office. Commissioner Soule wondered if they allowed an appointee to run, if they would appear as an incumbent. Commissioner Jorgenson and Ms. Skogen said no, they were not elected so they could not use that term, or the term to re-elect. They could only state on their literature that they had been appointed to the Council and served for a certain period of time. Commissioner Holm felt the Commissioners were in agreement removing that language, but wanted more discussion on the mayor and councilmember at large. He said if the Mayor resigned in the first six months of office, the councilmember at large would then become the mayor for three and one half years. He asked if the appointed person who filled the councilmember at large position would then serve for that same period. Commission Jorgenson said no, that person would serve the term until the next regular election, similar to the other Councilmembers, Commissioner Reynolds asked if that would preclude the councilmember at large who became mayor, from running for office as councilmember at large. They felt at the end of the mayor's term, that individual could decide whether they wanted to run for mayor or councilmember at large. Commissioner Holm wondered what would happen if the councilmember at large decided they did not want to be mayor. The Commissioners said the way the Charter would be amended, any person filing for that office would have to understand that part of being elected to the councilmember at large could possibly mean they would be appointed as mayor or they should not file at all if they felt they did not want that responsibility. Commissioner Nelson said it was his suggestion to include the language prohibiting appointees to file and run for office due to his experience with other city councils he had worked with throughout the state in the past, but was willing to have that language removed. There was further discussion about whether the appointed mayor would serve the full term or until the next general election. They talked about the duties of the mayor pro tem, continuity, history, and possible line of succession and removal of the ward system. The consensus was they would appoint the councilmember at large to serve the remainder of the mayor's term and vacate the councilmember at large office until the next regular election. Bill Holm said if their objective was eliminating special elections, they should recognize the likelihood of the mayor leaving during the first two years of office was minimal. He liked Commissioner Jorgenson's suggestion that the councilmember at large serve the remainder of the mayor's term, as they were elected city-wide, even if it is for more than three years. Commissioner Jorgenson said all of the council members serve on an organization or groups representing the City to get experience and an understanding. She did not think a mayor would walk away unless there was a scandal or illness. Rick Nelson suggested removing the sentence prohibiting appointees from filing for office and the following language to the new Section 20.06.3, "If the Mayor's position is declared vacant, the Councilmember at Large shall serve as the Mayor until the end of the mayor's term. vacancy is filled The Councilmember at Large shall then be declared vacant and shall be filled as outlined in Section 2.06.2 of the Fridley City Charter." Commissioner Soule MOVED and Commissioner Holm seconded a motion proposing the language Commissioner Nelson suggested above. CHARTER COMMISSION MEETING OF OCTOBER 3, 2011 PAGE 4 UPON A VOICE VOTE, ALL VOTING AYE, CHAIRPERSON BRAAM DECLARED THE MOTION CARRIEDL. Commissioner Ryan MOVED and Commissioner Holm seconded a motion directing staff to prepare and ordinance and bring it back to the next Charter Commission for their review. UPON A VOICE VOTE, ALL VOTING AYE, CHAIRPERSON BRAAM DECLARED THE MOTION CARRIED. OTHER BUSINESS There was a brief discussion about voter ID by the commissioners. ADJOURNMENT: Commissioner Flickinger MOVED and Commissioner Kranz seconded a motion to adjourn the meeting. UPON A VOICE VOTE, ALL VOTING AYE, CHAIRPERSON BRAAM DECLARED THE MOTION CARRIED AND THE MEETING WAS ADJOURNED AT 8:15 P.M. Respectfully submitted, ________________________ ________________________ Debra A. Skogen, Peter Borman, Secretary City Clerk/Staff Liaison