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HomeMy WebLinkAbout06-22-2026 City Council Conference Meeting June 22, 2026 at 5:30 p.m. 7071 University Avenue NE Agenda 1.Transportation Funding Requests - Status Update 2.Chapter 5 of the City Charter, City Council Discussion Accessibility Notice: If you need free interpretation or translation assistance, please contact City staff. Upon request, accommodations will be provided to allow individuals with disabilities or those needing interpretation services to participate in City of Fridley services, programs or activities. If you are in need of an interpreter or require auxiliary aids, contact the City at 763-572-3450 at least five business days in advance to ensure arrangements can be made. A solicitud, se darán adaptaciones para permitir que las personas con discapacidades o las que necesiten servicios de interpretación participen en los servicios, programas o actividades de la Ciudad de Fridley. Si necesita un intérprete o requiere ayudas auxiliares, comuníquese con la Ciudad al 763-572-3450 al menos cinco días hábiles de antelación para asegurar que se puedan hacer los arreglos. Markii la codsado, adeegyo caawimaad ah ayaa la siin doonaa dadka naafada ah ama kuwa u baahan adeegga turjumaadda si ay uga qayb qaataan adeegyada, barnaamijyada, ama hawlaha magaalada Fridley. Haddii aad u baahan tahay turjubaan ama qalabka caawiya dadka naafada ah, kala xiriir Magaalada taleefankan 763-572-3450 ugu yaraan shan maalmood oo shaqo kahor, si loo hubiyo in qabanqaabada laguu sameeyo. Raws li kev thov, yuav muaj kev pab tshwj xeeb rau cov neeg xiam oob qhab lossis cov uas xav tau kev pab txhais lus kom lawv tuaj koom tau nrog Nroog Fridley (City of Fridley service) cov kev pab cuam, cov kev kawm, los sis cov dej num sib txawv. Yog koj xav tau neeg txhais lus los sis xav tau lwm yam kev pab, thov hu rau lub Nroog ntawm 763-572-3450 kom tsis pub tsawg tshaj tsib hnub ua hauj lwm ua ntej, xwv kom peb thiaj li npaj tau rau koj raws li lub sij hawm ntawv. AGENDA REPORT Meeting Date: June 22, 2026 Meeting Type:City Council Conference Submitted By:James Kosluchar, Public Works Director Title: Transportation Funding Requests - Status Update Background Engineering staff have several projects that they are planning or considering for upcoming funding applications. Three of them are on the regular agenda for the June 22 Regular City Council Meeting. Staff will discuss those and others that may be considered for future funding applications and further action by the City Council. Recommendation Discuss presented material. Attachments and Other Resources Vision Statement We believe Fridley will be a safe, vibrant, friendly, and stable home for families and businesses. AGENDA REPORT Meeting Date: June 22, 2026 Meeting Type:City Council Conference Submitted By:Wally Wysopal, City Manager Title: Chapter 5 of the City Charter, City Council Discussion Background The purpose of this agenda item is to provide the Council an opportunity to deliberate on the proposed amendments to Chapter 5 of the City Charter as recommended by the Charter Commission. The Charter Commission spent approximately two years reviewing Chapter 5, which governs the initiative, referendum and recall powers reserved to the people of Fridley. In October 2025, the Commission formally recommended Ordinance No. 1435 to the City Council. The ordinance proposes language modernization throughout the chapter as well as a substantive reduction in the signature threshold required for initiative and referendum petitions from 15% to 5% of total votes cast in the last Presidential Election, a reduction of approximately 67%. The City Council conducted a public hearing and first reading of Ordinance No. 1435 on November 10, 2025. Staff recommended the Council not approve the first reading. The City Manager's recommendation raised a broader question about the Commission's authority to make this particular change. While the Commission has the power to propose Charter amendments, that power is bounded by the Charter's own definition of the Commission's role limited to changes that "enable effective government operations that reflect the values of the voters." The City Manager noted that the Charter does not grant the Commission the authority to determine what those resident values are. That determination rests either with residents themselves through a petition, or with the City Council as the duly elected representatives of the voters. The Commission, as an appointed body, is intended to collaborate in that process, not to act as the sole arbiter of community values. In this case, neither the Council nor staff had received any indication from residents that the existing petition threshold was a concern, making the threshold reduction difficult to ground in a demonstrated expression of resident values. The Council did not approve the first reading. Following the November meeting, Mayor Ostwald wrote to the Commission Chair, reaffirming the Council's interest in dialogue and clarifying that the Council's concern was limited to the signature threshold provisions, as the remainder of the proposed amendments were considered non-substantive. The Commission invited the Council to a joint meeting held in April 2026. At that meeting, the Commission Chair walked through the history of Chapter 5 and explained the Commission's case for lowering the threshold. The Commission argued that gathering signatures under the current requirement places too great a burden on residents, and that the existing threshold is unfairly higher than the 5% required by State law to amend the Charter itself. The goal of making the petition process easier is not a standard recognized by State law (M.S. Chapter 410) or the Charter as a basis for changing petition requirements. The Council should also weigh what a 5% threshold would mean in practice under that standard, a resident could initiate a petition with fewer signatures than the number of votes required to win a seat on the City Council, raising a fundamental question about the appropriate balance between direct citizen action and representative government in Fridley. The purpose of this agenda item is to facilitate a discussion among the City Council related specifically to the reduction to the petition threshold. Recommendation Attachments and Other Resources Vision Statement We believe Fridley will be a safe, vibrant, friendly, and stable home for families and businesses.