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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2022 07-25 EDAM WORK SESSION MINUTES OF THE PROCEEDINGS OF THE CITY COUNCIL/ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY OF THE CITY OF BROOKLYN CENTER IN THE COUNTY OF HENNEPIN AND THE STATE OF MINNESOTA WORK SESSION JULY 25 2022 CITY HALL—COUNCIL CHAMBERS CALL TO ORDER The Brooklyn Center City Council/Economic Development Authority(EDA)met in Work Session called to order by Mayor Pro Tem/President Pro Tern Marquita Butler at 8:20 p.m. ROLL CALL Mayor Pro Tem/President Pro Tern Marquita Butler and Councilmembers/Commissioners April Graves, Kris Lawrence-Anderson, and Dan Ryan. Also present were City Manager Reggie Edwards, and City Clerk Barb Suciu. Mayor/President Mike Elliott was absent. IMPLEMENTATION COMMITTEE DISCUSSION (CONT.) Mayor Pro Tem/President Pro Tem Butler asked what the objective of the conversation is. City Clerk Barb Suciu stated Staff was looking for discussion from the Council and the public related to the Implementation Committee. It is the decision of the Council if it should be brought back on a future agenda or any other action items. Mayor Pro Tem/President Pro Tem Butler stated a structure needs to be implemented that creates clear roles and expectations for the members and the public to be aware of. It is not conducive of the Council's time to determine all of those structures as it would take a long time to flesh out. She noted she sent an email to Dr. Edwards at the beginning of the process suggesting to engage their consultants to run a smoother meeting. Councilmember/Commissioner Graves noted her agreement with Mayor Pro Tem/President Pro Tem Butler. She explained the Implementation Committee was not discussed by the Council or Staff as the Resolution clearly gave the power to the Mayor to oversee its efforts. The way Ms. Turk was treated was wrong. The Implementation Committee has seemed divided from the efforts of the City. Councilmember/Commissioner Graves has discussed concerns with Law Enforcement Action Partnership (LEAP) about how to transition ideas from the Implementation Committee to City Staff. It was an attempt to bridge the gap with Ms. Turk's role. She added she wasn't sure if she was welcome at the Implementation Committee until she showed up. 7/25/22 -1- Councilmember/Commissioner Graves added it would be important to have more black and brown voices as white voices may have taken up too much space so far in the process. Addressing white privilege is acknowledging it exists. There need to be active efforts to address that privilege. Additionally, women of color need to be heard when they point things out. Furthermore, people need to assess why they may feel offended in the process. Councilmember/Commissioner Graves stated the community needs to work together despite their differences. She noted her appreciation of the comments made by members of the public during Open Forum. Councilmember/Commissioner Graves stated they need to decide what type of advisory committee is needed. The Implementation Committee was set up to address the unarmed traffic and moving violations response and the community response model. They need to focus on that charge. She stated she is anxious to see some recommendations come forward. Discussion of another policy change is not helpful at the time. They can create a long-term advisory committee to handle additional policy considerations. Councilmember/Commissioner Graves pointed out there needs to be more equitable access and input from the public. They need to determine if other components are needed for the Committee such as listening sessions,surveys,a social media campaign,or civilian oversight.There also needs to be a code of conduct and bylaws. The City Attorney drafted bylaws for the Implementation Committee, but they were never adopted. The members also need the technical information they need, but it is missing operational support from Staff. The Staff don't feel comfortable in the space. Councilmember/Commissioner Graves stated there needs to be diversity in membership on multiple dimensions. It needs to represent different skills, perspectives, cultures, and life experiences. They have a lot of opportunity, but they need to work together for a solution rather than relying on one person. Councilmember/Commissioner Ryan asked if Mayor Pro Tem/President Pro Tern Butler was referring to Common Sense Consulting. Mayor Pro Tem/President Pro Tern Butler confirmed she was. Councilmember/Commissioner Ryan agreed with her recommendation. Councilmember/Commissioner Ryan noted his agreement with the ideas shared by Councilmember/Commissioner Graves. Both sets of recommendations should be brought to the City Manager and have him create a code of conduct. The June 23 meeting was handled with error. Councilmember/Commissioner Lawrence-Anderson stated she likes process and for people to know their roles and responsibilities. There has been a lack of clarity of roles within the Committee. There was a breakdown in communication, as seen by the public comment. There needs to be clear expectations. 7/25/22 -2- Councilmember/Commissioner Lawrence-Anderson agreed with the recommendations shared by Councilmember/Commissioner Graves and Mayor Pro Tem/President Pro Tem Butler. There needs to be more overlap between Staff and the Implementation Committee to properly implement the ideas. The Implementation Committee is doing great work, but they are siloed. The Council needs to own that they didn't set enough parameters and guidelines in place before the Committee began. Councilmember/Commissioner Lawrence-Anderson noted there has been a previous suggestion for a third-party community member to serve as co-chair along with Mayor Elliott. She supports the idea and added the person should be unbiased and not elected. Councilmember/Commissioner Ryan said if someone violates a code of conduct, there should be a red line with consequences, whether it is a chair or community member. Mayor Pro Tem/President Pro Tem Butler added there needs to be urgency around getting the work done. It has been a year and a half, and the Council hasn't received any recommendations. The Implementation Committee meet quite often. She noted her agreement with the suggestions shared by Councilmember/Commissioner Graves. Councilmember/Commissioner Graves pointed out her suggestions are not the final answer. She agreed consultants would be a great idea. Whatever is drafted for a code of conduct should include the members of the Implementation Committee and continue to center their voices throughout the process. Ms. Suciu noted there was a community member who wanted to speak. Mayor Pro Tem/President Pro Tern Butler stated there is not usually public comment during Work Session, but she would leave it up to the Council to decide. Councilmember/Commissioner Ryan stated once the Council has come to a consensus, public comments are in order. Lori B., member of the Implementation Committee, pointed out it is the first time she has felt unanimous support from the City Council. At times, she has felt that the Committee has been set up for failure. She added the Committee is mindful of the urgency of the matter as her own children are at stake. The Committee was close to presenting a recommendation to Council, but the incident from June 23 has slowed down the process. The Policy Work Group has recommendations to present. Lori B. noted she appreciates the suggestions made by Councilmember/Commissioner Graves and would like a copy of her recommendations. She added it would be helpful for Councilmember/Commissioner Graves to attend some Implementation Committee meetings to provide input and support. Councilmember/Commissioner Lawrence-Anderson asked if the Council is asking Staff to rescind the memo that was submitted limiting the Staff support of the Implementation 7/25/22 -3- Committee. She noted the next step in the healing process would be to expedite a meeting between the Implementation Committee, the City Manager, the Police Chief, Ms. Turk, and any available Councilmembers. Then they can continue the work that needs to be done. Councilmember/Commissioner Graves stated she would defer to the people doing the work to see if they are prepared or interested in such a resolution process. Rather than imposing or rescinding anything, she would defer to the Implementation Committee if they are ready to move forward in that way or if they would prefer to have more structure in place first. Councilmember/Commissioner Lawrence-Anderson noted she did not want to mandate a resolution meeting, but she would hope they could set up the meeting when all parties are ready. Councilmember/Commissioner Ryan stated his issues is not with the Committee but the conduct of the Chair. There needs to be strong incentives for the Chair to change. He doesn't want to cause undue delay in the work, but he would like there to be guidelines and consequences in place to ensure community members and Staff are treated properly. Julie B., Implementation Committee member, thanked Councilmember/Commissioner Lawrence-Anderson for her comments as she too feels like the Committee was set up to fail. Considering the work and the time they have all given to the process, it is frustrating to be stalled. The Implementation Committee wants to move forward as quickly as they can. Julie B. added the entity that caused the harm needs to address what happened. The lack of clarity around people's roles lent to the situation, and it is unfair for the Committee to figure out their responsibilities. The members of the Implementation Committee have received hostility and criticism, but their only goal is to create a safer City and prevent any more tragedies. The Committee has continued to meet without LEAP and Staff support. Councilmember/Commissioner Graves pointed out she didn't pay much attention to local government until she joined the City Council. She agreed government moves slowly and can move faster. Sometimes, it does need to be slow and deliberative. Councilmember/Commissioner Graves explained the pace is what the reluctance was around the Resolution in the first place. It was given to them on a Friday and were asked to vote on it during a Saturday press conference. It was pushed back to another date, but there wasn't much time for discussion. She stated she was concerned about the set-up of the Implementation Committee from the beginning. Joylenna G., Implementation Committee member, pointed out they do have Staff at the meetings. Margretta Getaweh and Amina Dedefo are doing great work and are representing people of color. ADJOURNMENT 7/25/22 -4- Mayor Pro Tem/President Pro Tern Butler moved and Councilmember/Commissioner Ryan seconded adjournment of the City Council/Economic Development Authority Work Session at 8:59 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 Clerk of the City of Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, certifies: 1. 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 July 25, 2022. 2. That said meeting was held according 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 August 8, 2022, Regular Session. /eilll( Bar ara Suciu, ity Clerk Mike Elliott, ayor 7/25/22 -5-