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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2006 09-25 CCM Study Session MINUTES OF THE PROCEEDINGS OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF BROOKLYN CENTER IN THE COUNTY OF HENNEPIN AND THE STATE OF MINNESOTA STUDY SESSION SEPTEMBER 25, 2006 CITY HALL — COUNCIL CHAMBERS CALL TO ORDER The Brooklyn Center City Council met in Study Session and was called to order by Mayor Myrna Kragness at 6:00 p.m. ROLL CALL Mayor Myrna Kragness and Councilmembers Kathleen Carmody, Kay Lasman, Diane Niesen (arrived at 6:03 p.m.), and Mary O'Connor. Also present were Interim City Manager Curt Boganey, and Deputy City Clerk Camille Worley. CITY COUNCIL DISCUSSION OF AGENDA ITEMS AND QUESTIONS Councilmember O'Connor requested that the EDA and HRA meeting minutes be approved at the next regular City Council meeting rather than waiting for the next EDA or HRA meeting. Mayor Kragness responded the meetings are different bodies and therefore the minutes can not be approved by the City Council. It was the majority consensus of the City Council to continue to approve the EDA and HRA minutes at there respective meetings. Councilmember O'Connor stated her following corrections to the minutes: Regular Session — Page 2 The Brooklyn Center City Council met in Regular Session and was called to order by Mayor Myrna Kragness at 7-09 7:10 p.m. Work Session — Page 1 The Brooklyn Center City Council /Economic Development Authority (EDA) met in Work Session and was called to order by Mayor/President Myrna Kragness at 5-89 9 :06 p.m. The following meeting minute corrections were submitted by Councilmember Carmody: Work Session - Page 3 Councilmember Carmody stated disappointment of the loss of a candidate that she believed was due to a data request by Councilmember Niesen . Councilmember Lasman inquired about the Brewer and Brew Pub Off -Sale Malt Liquor License being approved on the Consent Agenda prior to the fee being set for the license on the regular portion of the agenda and stated the fee should be set before the license is approved. Interim City Manager Curt Boganey stated it would be appropriate to approve the fee prior to the license approval. The City Council discussed that the Brew Pub Off -Sale Malt Liquor License indicates that the fee is required to be paid before the approval of the license. It was the majority consensus of the City 09/25/06 1 Council to make the license approval subject to fee payment. Councilmember Niesen stated she would like to table item 9a. because she has not had an opportunity to meet with the City Council to discuss negotiations for the employment agreement of the City Manager. She stated after a long day of interviews, what she understood is that Mr. Nollenberger would explore Mr. Boganey's contract desires and return to the City Council with the findings. She stated the hiring of the City Manager is the most important job of the City Council and requested a meeting to discuss what will be offered in the contract. Mayor Kragness stated the meeting minutes from the September 16, 2006, meeting indicates that Mr. Nollenberger was to draft an employment agreement and present it to the City Council at its next meeting. Mayor Kragness stated the proposed contract is the same as the former City Manager, Mike McCauley's, which has never proposed a problem to the City or the City Manager. Councilmember Niesen stated the City Council only received the salary information with regard to Mr. McCauley's contract and not the full contract. She stated in a Memo to Council that included the proposed CM Evaluation Form, she proposed Council review the contract as the council makeup had changed since it was first written but that suggestion apparently died with the tabling of the proposed CM Evaluation Form until February 2007. She stated that now that she has reviewed it, the City Council, composed of new members from the 2002 and 2004 election, must review it together and come to agreement. Mayor Kragness stated it is a basic contract offered to a City Manager and needs to be moved forward and stated postponing the process is unfair to Mr. Boganey. Councilmember Carmody state she does not wish to table the item. Councilmember Niesen stated there is no City that has an agreement like this based on her research and added that according to the League of Minnesota Cities, the process should not be rushed, therefore she is requesting that it be tabled so that a discussion can take place without the presence of Mr. Boganey. Councilmember O'Connor stated she would like to discuss the item today. Councilmember Lasman stated adequate information has been provided including comparison charts with other cities in and out of Minnesota. She stated she feels the salary that was agreed upon is an amount that the entire City Council is familiar with. She stated the proposed salary is fair and Mr. Boganey has more experience in this City than the other candidates. She stated he was selected as the City Manager and the City Council needs to move forward. She stated there is nothing unusual about the proposed contract. Councilmember Niesen stated the proposed salary is only a factor among others that need to be discussed. She stated the City Council has not made an offer; rather Mr. Boganey has only met with Mr. Nollenberger to craft an agreement. She stated the agreement needs to be discussed paragraph by paragraph and should be discussed by the City Council to be fair. Councilmember Lasman responded with disagreement and stated it would be an open meeting if discussed and tabling the item is not the best option. Councilmember Niesen responded the City Council should meet with the sole purpose of reviewing the contract and stated an offer needs to be created that is protective of the City. Councilmember O'Connor suggested that amendments be made and discussed, and then the amended contract returned to the City Council for approval. She requested an opportunity to review the contract since this is the first time she has seen it. There was discussion regarding the $250 traveling allowance. 09/25/06 2 DISCUSSION OF WORK SESSION AGENDA ITEMS AS TIME PERMITS Councilmember Niesen requested postponement of the hotel agreement. She requested a comparison table to show proposed changes from what the Council had originally been presented. Mayor Kragness stated she would like to see the item moved forward. Mr. Boganey stated if the item meets the requirements of the City Council, staff recommends it be moved forward. DISCUSSION OF FIRE PENSION PROPOSAL Mr. Boganey stated this is the third and final increase which is part of a gentlemen's agreement made three or fours years ago when the lump sum pension payment amount had fallen substantially below the State maximum. He stated it is requested that it be brought back to the State's allowed maximum given that the total funding is expected to come out of the investment of the State funds that the City receives on an annual basis. He stated the Fire Relief Association sees it as critical to their recruitment activities. He explained a study done of the condition of their investment fund and that forecasted what the effect would be if the payout were increased. He stated Springsted has indicated that in the first year, the City was able to increase it to $6,000 without negatively affecting the ability to make the payment, and in the second year the analysis indicated that the increase to $7,000 could go forward without significantly impacting the fund's ability to cover the payment, and the last study indicated that the $500 increase, bringing it to statutory maximum could also go forward with reasonable expectation that the investment portfolio would be able to cover these costs. He stated the analysis and forecast is just that and not guarantees. He stated the fund appears to be strong enough to support this request. Councilmember O'Connor inquired about other benefits provided to Firefighters and the timeframe i q p g of retirement benefit payout. Mr. Boganey stated the Firefighters receive duty pay, FICA, p Y g Y CA i g Y p Y> > along with paid training. Kent Korman, Brooklyn Center Fire Relief Association per explained that Firefighters are aid $13 p g P p hour and Officers are paid $18 per hour for training. He explained that they are paid $82 for duty shifts and that during fire response; the only two people paid are those on their scheduled duty, all other fire response is volunteer. He stated retirement funds cannot be collected until age 50 and only by those who have at least 10 years invested in the program. There was discussion regarding the decrease in surplus. Councilmember Carmody inquired about the retention of firefighters. Mr. Korman responded he hopes the pension proposal will assist in retention of Firefighters. He stated the last time the City i Council had to make a a ment to the pension was in 2002 for p Y p o approximately $16,000. Mayor Kragness stated she is in favor of approval, Councilmember Lasman agreed. There was discussion of pension payments made in recent years and the amount of those payments. The majority consensus of the City Council was to move the item to the next City Council agenda 09/25/06 3 ADJOURNMENT Councilmember Carmody moved and Councilmember Lasman seconded to close the Study Session at 6:48 p.m. Motion passed unanimously. City Clerk May(fr 09/25/06 4