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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2020 10-26 CCM Study Session10/26/20 -1- 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 OCTOBER 26, 2020 CALL TO ORDER The Brooklyn Center City Council met in Study Session called to order by Mayor Mike Elliott at 6:00 p.m. The meeting was conducted via Webex. ROLL CALL Mayor Mike Elliott and Councilmembers Marquita Butler, April Graves, Kris Lawrence- Anderson, and Dan Ryan. Also present were City Manager Curt Boganey, Community Development Director Meg Beekman, City Clerk Barb Suciu, and City Attorney Troy Gilchrist. CITY COUNCIL DISCUSSION OF AGENDA ITEMS AND QUESTIONS -None. MISCELLANEOUS HOUSING POLICY MEETING – 11/30 5 PM TO 8PM City Manager Curt Boganey stated, at the last Council meeting, the City Council agreed upon the date of November 30, 2020 from 5:00-8:00 p.m. for a Housing Policy meeting. He requested consideration of alternative dates as that date does not work for the consultant. Community Development Director Meg Beekman stated the meeting dates originally proposed by the consultant were November 16, 18 or 19, 2020. She added three additional dates are proposed by City Staff as possible meeting dates. Mr. Boganey stated the dates that have been proposed that will potentially work are November 11, November 24 and December 2. He added these dates have not been confirmed by the consultant. Ms. Beekman confirmed this. Mayor Elliott stated he is not available on November 11 or 24, 2020. He added he is available on December 2, 2020. Councilmember Butler stated all three dates work for her. Councilmember Graves stated the City Council should go with December 2, 2020 if that date works for the Mayor. She added she is not sure why November 19, 2020 was not a possibility. 10/26/20 -2- Councilmember Lawrence-Anderson stated any date is fine with her except November 10, 2020, which is her birthday. Councilmember Ryan stated December 2, 2020 works for him. Ms. Beekman asked whether November 19, 2020 works for the City Council, in the interests of having an alternative date to propose to the consultants. Mayor Elliott stated November 11, 2020 would work for him if the meeting is one hour. Ms. Beekman stated the meeting will be longer than one hour. Mayor Elliott stated another date should be found so there is an alternative date. He added December 3, 2020 works for him. Councilmember Lawrence-Anderson asked why the meeting is being pushed so far out. She added a date was already agreed upon that fit the Mayor’s schedule. Mr. Boganey stated the November 30, 2020 date did not work for the consultants. Councilmember Ryan stated December 2 or 3, 2020 work for him. He added he hopes this meeting can be nailed down. Councilmember Graves agreed. She confirmed the dates work for her. There was a majority Consensus of the City Council to pursue the dates of December 2 or 3, 2020 for the Housing Policy meeting. PROCEDURES FOR RANDOM ACTS OF KINDNESS PRESENTATION Mr. Boganey requested City Council feedback and comment regarding how to proceed with the Random Act of Kindness Awards at tonight’s Council meeting. He added, in the past, the presentations have been divided among the Councilmembers and taken in order. Mayor Elliott stated he would support rotating the presentations. Councilmember Graves expressed concern that this might be difficult to navigate electronically. She added it is confusing to stay on track with the presentations. She noted it would be better from a logistical standpoint to have less people do the reading. Councilmember Lawrence-Anderson stated it would be more meaningful to the recipients if the Mayor were to give the presentations and acknowledge these residents. Councilmember Ryan agreed, adding it would be more straightforward to have one reader. He added the Mayor could call on Councilmember Butler to step in if need be. He noted it would be more simple to have one reader, and help move things along. 10/26/20 -3- Mayor Elliott agreed to read the presentations. City Clerk Barb Suciu confirmed that the presentations will be displayed in a PowerPoint and shared in the online meeting as they are being read. 252 TASK FORCE SURVEY PRESENTATION Councilmember Butler requested City Council consideration of a presentation of survey results by the Highway 252 Task Force at an upcoming City Council Work Session. She added the Task Force has requested a meeting with City Staff. She noted they have accomplished what professionals have not been able to, which is engage residents on both sides of Highway 252 who will be impacted by the changes. Mayor Elliott stated the Task Force has reached out with a request to present information to the City Council as part of a Regular Session, based on the nature of the information they have collected. He added he supports their request. Councilmember Ryan stated he would like to have evaluation and a recommendation from City Staff regarding the so-called poll that was taken by the Riverwood neighborhood group. He added he has reservations about the methodology and purpose of the poll. He asked whether City Staff can provide a review of the poll. Mr. Boganey stated City Staff can provide comments regarding the survey, in terms of the formation of the questions and how they may or may not meet criteria for statistically valid surveys. He added there is not much else that City Staff can offer in terms of evaluating the survey itself as the survey results are the results. Councilmember Ryan stated he has had some exposure to opinion surveys, and appropriate methodologies, although I am no expert. He reviewed a recent phone call he received from a pollster, in which questions were framed to shape his opinion. He added he noticed some things about this survey that were problematic, as options that were given were not that which an objective process would identify. He noted he has issues with this neighborhood group’s repeated claims that the Minnesota Department of Transportation is violating its safety protocols for location of interchanges. He noted he will support a presentation from them if it is the will of the City Council. Councilmember Butler stated these are Councilmember Ryan’s opinions. She added we need to caution ourselves about comments as they can be insulting to community work. She added the group has done a lot of research, and went door-to-door, getting the word out and dispersing information. She noted they have their own opinions because they will be impacted by whatever decisions are made. She noted there is a more respectful way to disagree, and Councilmember Ryan’s language around their efforts is disrespectful, has been consistent with your attitude toward this group from the beginning. Councilmember Butler stated she is not an expert on qualitative or quantitative data but she has been willing to listen to them whether she agrees with them or not, which is more than other City 10/26/20 -4- Councilmembers have done. She added the group deserves an opportunity to come forward and address the City Council, in the same way that other groups have done, including the chicken and bees supporters. Mayor Elliott stated a time should be scheduled for this group to attend a Council meeting, if they are ready to give a presentation. Mr. Boganey agreed to schedule the presentation at the group’s earliest convenience. DISCUSSION OF WORK SESSION AGENDA ITEMS AS TIME PERMITS EARLE BROWN NAME CHANGE Mr. Boganey stated this issue was discussed by the City Council in July 2020, at which time there was a level of interest from the City Council in getting a greater degree of factual certainty around assertions and allegations regarding Earle Brown. He added a local author reached out to the Mayor, and there was an expectation that the author would be invited to a future City Council meeting to review research that went into the book. He noted he received a voicemail from another individual who indicated he has additional information about the history of Earle Brown and would like to be present at a City Council meeting at which this issue is discussed. Mr. Boganey stated he also received an email from a resident, Arvid Sorensen, expressing concern about changing the name given the factual disputes. Mr. Boganey requested City Council feedback and comment regarding potential additional research, including reaching out to the University of Minnesota, as indicated in the July meeting minutes. He asked whether the City Council would wish to pursue additional information, and what organizations should be contacted so City Staff can pursue this issue. Mr. Boganey stated, if the City Council believes there is sufficient information, given the fact that there is disputed information about Earle Brown, there are a variety of options open to the City Council in terms of changing the names of the City’s amenities. He added City Staff can provide some options for City Council consideration. Councilmember Ryan stated he would like more information and additional research from local historians, as the question that was raised was that Earle Brown testified before a Grand Jury regarding his membership in the KKK. He stressed the importance of finding out more about his motives. He noted it is also in the City’s best interests to explore its options in changing street and place names. Councilmember Lawrence-Anderson stated any changes like this should go to the people in the form of a referendum. She added community engagement is important to the City Council, and this is a crucial issue on which the elected Councilmembers should not decide. She reiterated her belief that the people of Brooklyn Center need to decide. Mayor Elliott stated it is important for citizens to weigh in whenever possible. He added the decision to name streets and amenities after Earle Brown was a decision of the City Council, and 10/26/20 -5- Mr. Brown nor his progeny were involved in these decisions. He noted, ultimately, the City Council is responsible for addressing this issue. City Attorney Troy Gilchrist stated the election process cannot be used for an advisory question from citizenry. He added residents do not have the authority to make this type of decision under the law. He noted the City could collect public opinion but a decision on this matter would be down to the City Council. Councilmember Ryan stated he is in favor of citizen engagement on all civic issues. He added the City Council should be consistent in its standards for community engagement in all matters, although it is ultimately a City Council decision, and should be reviewed further. He noted there is an open question about who Earle Brown was, in terms of his nefarious affiliation, and more information and potential community engagement is required to resolve this issue. He noted a potential decision will be made less controversial by community engagement. Mayor Elliott stated two City Councilmembers have requested additional information before moving forward with this issue. Mayor Elliott stated it is time to move to the Open Forum. Mr. Boganey requested additional information from the City Council on this issue after the Regular Session. Mayor Elliott asked the City Council whether they feel that this discussion has reached its conclusion. Mr. Boganey stated the issue must be discussed again so City Staff can find out what kind of information to look for and what sources to search. Discussion of this item continued at the October 26, 2020, Work Session. ADJOURN STUDY SESSION TO INFORMAL OPEN FORUM WITH CITY COUNCIL Mayor Elliott adjourned the Study Session at 6:45 p.m. 10/26/20 -6- 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. That attached hereto is a full, true, and complete transcript of the minutes of a Study Session of the City Council of the City of Brooklyn Center held on October 26, 2020. 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 9, 2020, Regular Session. Barbara Suciu, City Clerk Mike Elliott, Mayor