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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2021 11-08 CCM Work SessionMINUTES OF THE PROCEEDINGS OF THE CITY COUNCIL/ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY OF THE CITY OF BROOKLYN CENTER 1N THE COUNTY OF HENNEPIN AND THE STATE OF MINNESOTA WORK SESSION NOVEMBER 8, 2021 VIA ZOOM CALL TO ORDER The Brooklyn Center City Council/EconomicDevelopmerrt Authority (EDA) met in Work Session called to order by Mayor/President Mike Elliott at 9638 p.m. ROLL CALL Mayor/President Milce Elliott and Councilmembers/Commissioners Marquita Butler, April Graves, Kris Lawrence -Anderson, and Dan Ryan. Also present were City Manager Reggie Edwards, and City Clerk Barb Suciu. DISCUSSION OF PERMANENT FENCE City Manager Reggie Edwards introduced the topic and explained during the City Council/EDA meeting on Monday, October 25 the issue of an addition to the existing permanent fence located at the police station was raised by a resident. The Council/EDA asked for information regarding the fence. The City Manager indicated he would provide information to the concerned resident and the Council/EDA. On Monday, November 1, the City Council/EDA directed staff to add the fence to the work session as part of the agenda for the upcoming City Council/EDA meeting on November 8, 2021. Dr. Edwards showed a slide with a picture of the current temporary fence and another picture of the permanent fence. Currently, the City has multiple facilities that are fenced including the water treatment plant, public works garage, water towers, Center Brook Golf Course, and miscellaneous park spaces. The idea of adding a fence to the Police Department has included years of discussion totaling nearly a decade. Additionally, there were requests from the community for the fence in April 2021. Dr. Edwards stated currently there is permanent fencing surrounding three sides and temporary fencing in the front of the Police Station. The proposed addition would be on the front side of the facility and would connect the current permanent fence. The total cost of the project is estimated to be $190,000 and there is a federal grant of $150,000 which covers 79 percent of the project. He explained the federal grant is through the Urban Area Security Initiative Grant Program and is administered by the State. The grant was submitted in April 2021. The remaining portion of the project would be funded by forfeiture funds. Dr. Edwards noted the temporary fences cost about $10,000 per month. 11/08/21 -1- Jr, Edwards stated the rationale for the fence is to improve the safety of the public facility and staff. The staff includes administrative staff and not just the law enforcement personnel. The discussion about the fence has been going on for several years, but there have never been funds available for the project. The grant funding was made available for application, so the City could Finally access funds to support the project. Additionally, the fence provides de-escalation and prevention of law enforcement and protest interaction. The dual fencing was i prmplemented during the civil unrest and has allowed for improved interactions. Dr. Edwards stated there was a request from the Police Department in Apri12021 and grant funding became available around that time. After that, there was some operational decision making and Staff sought out community feedback from neighboring properties regarding the feel, perspective, and appearance of a permanent fence. The comments were favorable and supportive of the permanent fence, especially because it was replacing the current temporary fence. Staff coordinated with replacing the inner temporary fence with a permanent fence. There was community comment during November 1, 2021, City Council/EDA meeting and Dr. Edwards received additional broad -based community feedback over the weekend of November 5. Based on the additional community feedback and unforeseen impacts, the construction of the permanent Fence was suspended until after the trial of Kim Potter and further community dialogue on November 1, 2021. Dr. Edwards explained there were lessons learned in listening to the community and Staff. There is a relationship of distrust currently, so the Staff needed a better understanding of assumptions and motives. While some members of the community may dislike police and some want to defand or make the police go away, that was not the underlying issue with the fence. Dr. Edwards stated he heard the community hearing that they want to have a relationship with the police. The fence could be seen as the Police Department distancing and separating from the community as well as armed police officers protecting themselves from protesters. There was a misunderstanding that the permanent fence was completed in preparation for the Kim Potter trial and that the construction was meant to be completed without the public knowing. In reality, it was built because several Lily faculties do include Fencing and Lo llllplove safety for Q raimstl4tive pelso1111e . Dr. Edwards explained the community heard that symbols and images matter and are part of public safety. The community spoke up and the government responded by listening and pausing the project. Additionally, the community engaged on a routine operational matter, so Staff is A the City's process of communicating with the public. He noted the public likely would not have spoken upon a matter like this in previous years. Dr. Edwards stated there is currently suspension of construction of a permanent until after the Kim Potter trial. The fence serves as a focal point for a deeper conversation as it is not really about the fence. The topics for deeper conversation include addressing the reality of safety measures in a work environment, the desire for a relationship between the public and law enforcement, and resident ownership and say with City facilities. Dr. Edwards noted there has been a distrust around motives for both building the fence and stopping the construction of the fence, and he looks forward to conversations about creating safety for staff and residents and building relationships throughout the community. Ultimately, Dr. Edwards sees this as an opportunity for the City. 11/08/21 -2- Councilmember/Commissioner Butler thanked Dr. Edwards for the presentation. She noted Dr. Edwards' rationale for the project makes sense, but she stated how it was handled was not okay because they are not in crisis. When they were in crisis, it made sense to make moves to protect unsafe people. She explained she has never heard discussion about a fence being built during her tenure on the Council/EDA and added comparing a fence around the Police Department to other City facilities with a fence is unfair, especially given the current climate with a majority of the community feeling distrust with the Police Department. There is a feeling of the City being proactive and protecting the Police Department and its structure but left out those in the apartment building across the street who had nothing to do with the civil unrest that was happening. Councilmember/Commissioner Butler stated the communication about the fence was subpar. The Council/EDA has received presentations on community art displays or other public construction projects that do not affect the grand scheme of things, but the fence was completely off the radar of the Council/EDA. If this grant was applied for back in May, it should have been presented to the Council/EDA at that time. Instead, it was the public who brought the construction up to the Council/EDA who had no working knowledge of the project. Councilmember/Commissioner Butler stated she has the feeling that the construction of the fence was done behind the backs of the Council/EDA. Similarly, the Police Department felt left in the dark throughout the process of developing the Dante Wright and Kobe Dimockc Heisler Community Safety & Violence Prevention Act and expressed their desire to be a part of the decision -making process for that. Councilmember/Commissioner Butler stated if Staff needs the support of the Council/EDA on something, then they need the benefit of a presentation before decisions are made. It is inappropriate to compare the building of a fence around the Police Department to other structures because they are in a new time with new dynamics in the community. Councilmember/Commissioner Butler noted she hopes there is better communication in the future. She added she is still not in favor of the fence after hearing Dr. Edward's presentation. She agreed there should be a temporary fence around the Police Department throughout the Kim Potter trial, but stated there should be further discussion before installing a permanent fence with ample community input. Councilmember/Commissioner Ryan asked if the immediate plan is to keep the temporary fence up throughout the Kim Potter trial. Dr. Edwards confirmed that is correct. Councilmember/Commissioner Ryan stated he can understand that measure. He added it is a real imperative to separate protestors and law enforcement. Unfortunately, what had to be erected in short order was not aesthetically pleasing. He noted it seems like what staff did to improve safety for both protestors and Police Department staff in a short time has been misconstrued as something else entirely. Councilmember/Commissioner Ryan stated he would defer to others and noted they could return to the topic when tensions have decreased. At that time, they could have a balanced, informed discussion about potential options. The bottom line is the City has an obligation to protect all of its assets. Councilmember/Commissioner Graves stated she does not have any comments, but she would like to hear from community members. 11/08/21 -3- Joy stated she heard comments that law enforcement is more vulnerable and the fence has been in the works for years. Joy asked why they waited until April 2021 to access the funding if it had been a long-awaited project. Dr. Edwards stated several sources of funding became available during the aftermath of the George Floyd trial and the civil unrest in Brooklyn Center that were previously unavailable. He added he was unsure if anyone pursued funding for a fence before his tenure. Joy noted Dr. Edwards said there are fences around other City facilities and that employees are vulnerable. She asked why the staff wasn't working remotely and why they can't move patrol vehicles to the Public Safety Facility. Dr. Edwards stated there may be different and better alternatives or solutions that may help build relationships and improve safety at the same time, so he hopes those ideas will come forth in future discussions. Joy stated it appears the Council/EDA was not aware of the decision, but subdivision 7 of Chapter 5.02 of the City Charter says the City Manager's role is to keep the Council/EDA fully advised. Joy asked why Council/EDA would not be fully advised on this matter. She added it begs the question about what other conversations have been taping place without the City Council/EDA's knowledge. Dr. Edwards stated there are several operational matters not brought before the CouncWEDA and explained he is charged with handling the operational matters with Staff. He noted he does so to the best of his ability while maintaining the spirit of the Charter. Joy stated she heard earlier that budget conversations had been happening since July, and she noted she was curious where the fence grant funding was on the line items. Melissa stated this is the third time she has brought up the issues of grants and what it requires of them when they accept these grants. When they say "yes" to grants, they must ask what else they are saying "yes" to. For example, the Department of Justice grants attach a federal notice where it requires the City and law enforcement to work with and provide information to Immigration and Customs Enforcement. She explained they have taken those grants in the past which requires the Lily to have a cooperative relationship with hrimi-gratron and l ustoins hnforcerllent. Melissa asked what having the grant for the fence requires the City to do and noted if a new presidential group comes to power, then there could be a change in the requirements. Such changes would seriously affect undocumented or under -documented members of Brooklyn Center. She added she would like to see the signed paperwork for the grant to ensure that it does not require the City to work with Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Additionally, she encouraged the Council/EDA to deny engaging with grant programs that support the work of Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Melissa asked why this grant didn't need to be approved by City Council/EDA when all of the other grants have required approval from the Council/EDA. She noted it is concerning that this grant was not presented to the Council/EDA. In the future, there could be a resolution to ensure certain grants must be presented to and discussed by the Council/EDA. Melissa asked where the additional $40,000 for the fence is coming from. She thanked Councilmembers that have fielded emails from residents concerned about the fence. Melissa explained people are very scared about going to the Police Department. 11/08/21 -4- Melissa stated while she can only speak for herself, she explained while she and her family were in the process of becoming documented citizens, they were extremely fearful to advocate for themselves. There is already a barrier for immigrants to access City services and to overcome the differences between their previous and current governments. She asked if the goal as a City is to build bridges, then why are they building fences. The City has improved the UNisa process which allows victims of domestic violence to receive help in the application process, but if someone is afraid to go to the Police Department to get those documents filed, that means the difference between being safe or unsafe. The fence is another layer of a barrier for community members, whether they are immigrants or domestic abuse survivors, and that is very important in promoting public safety. Melissa stated there was a question posed at a recent Multicultural Advisory Committee about when the temporary barrier would go down. The response was when the permanent barrier goes up. She explained that communicates that whoever is in that building doesn't feel safe with the rest of the community because the temporary barrier was brought up during civil unrest - civil - in -rest which was a result of a misbehaving member of the Police Department. The chaos was caused by someone being killed by a member of law enforcement, so it's frightening to think of living in a permanent war zone. She asked what the intention is behind the action and if it means the City is going to allow the misbehavior by law enforcement to continue or that something similar may happen again. Melissa stated she cannot stand for that option. Unless there is some new use for the fence such as to surround a basketball court for youth to play with the police or other creative use, then it's unhelpful. This is the opposite of people saying they hate the police, but they want open communication. She added knows the intent was not negative, but the impact is negative. Councilmember/Commissioner Ryan thanked Melissa for her comments. He stated he hopes staff can address her wide range of comments in a report that helps the Councn/EDA and the Staff to make these decisions more seriously while respecting the various positions. While the fence was well -intended, it was ultimately misplaced. Councilmember/Commissioner Ryan asked Dr. Edwards to have his communication staff shine more light on the positive intentions of police officers, such as their recent trip to visit the elderly in the community. He added the extraordinary scrutiny is understandable considering the time they are in, but the City needs to work on addressing the impacts of its decisions on the community. Councilmember/Commissioner Ryan stated he supports Staff s recommendation to keep the temporary fence up during the Kim Potter trial, but he would like to defer discussion on a permanent fence to a later date. Brett asked if a permanent fence is more cost-effective in the long-term, then should the City consider having a permanent fence in place rather than spending more money on temporary fencing. Mayor/President Elliott stated he believes they should take a look at the grant agreement and asked Dr. Edwards to email the grant agreement to the Council/EDA. He noted Melissa raised important concerns, and he was also concerned that he hasn't seen or signed off on the grant. He added it is important for Dr. Edwards to bring grants of this size to the Council/EDA. This discussion underscores the important time they are in. 11/08/21 -5- Mayor/President Elliott noted he has read up on uprisings, and people have consistently responded to uprisings of Black folks in America with more militarization, armor, and fortification of urban police departments. He stated this is a sobering moment for all of there, and they need to ask how they can continue to move forward in ways that can help the City deal with the quagmire that the entire United States of America continues to be stuck in. ADJOURNMENT Mayor/President Elliott moved and Councilmember/Commissioner Graves seconded adjournment of the City Council/Economic Development Authority Work Session at 10438 p.m. Motion passed unanimously. STATE OF MINNESOTA) COUNTY OF HENNEPIN) ss. Certification of Minutes CITY OF BROOKLYN CENTER) The undersigned, being the duly qualified and appointed City Cleric of the City of Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, certifies: 1. That attached hereto is a full, true, and complete transcript of the minutes of a Work Session of the City Council of the City of Brooklyn Center held on November 8, 2021. 2. That said meeting was held pursuant to due call and notice thereof and was duly held at Brooklyn Center City Hall. 3. That the City Council adopted said minutes at its November 22, 2021, Regular Session. City Clerlc 11/08/21 -6-