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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2021 05-03 CCM Special 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 SPECIAL SESSION MAY 3, 2021 Via ZOOM 1. CALL TO ORDER SPECIAL BUSINESS MEETING The Brooklyn Center City Council met in Special Session called to order by Mayor Mike Elliott at 5:06 p.m. 2. ROLL CALL Mayor Mike Elliott and Councilmembers Marquita Butler, April Graves, Kris Lawrence- Anderson, and Dan Ryan. Also present were Acting City Manager Reggie Edwards, City Clerk Barb Suciu, and City Attorney Troy Gilchrist. 3. ITEM MOVED FROM APRIL 26, 2021 MEETING 3b. PERFORMANCE REVIEW OF ACTING CITY MANAGER Mayor Elliott noted the purpose of tonight's special meeting is to discuss a pay adjustment for Acting City Manager Reggie Edwards and discuss the permanent City Manager appointment. He invited Dr. Edwards to present his memorandum in that regard. Acting City Manager Reggie Edwards stated he appreciates the opportunity to speak to this issue and is honored to serve as Acting City Manager and the confidence placed in him by the City Council. He explained it is a traditional practice, when a staff inember works outside of their classification for a significant amount of time,to adjust the pay. The City does not ask an employee to work above their class without a pay adjustment to that class. Dr. Edwards stated he is presenting a consideration of an adjustment in salaty to $150,000, noting the pay is at $156,000 for comparison cities. Dr. Edwards explained that when dealing with union negotiations, the City prefers salaries to be in the top quartile percent of pay and competitive in the market but also recognizes the City's economic stressors. He stated his current pay is $121,000, noting $150,000 is lower than the average but within the quartile. Dr. Edwards stated he has had the opportunity to meet with almost all staff and heard that the critical issues with the organization are the need for stability and predictability. He noted the firing of the City Manager and Police Chief was destabilizing for staf£ Also, at this time,the City is still grappling with the pandemic, determining how to bring folks back to an office setting, and it is an unsettling time due to Dante Wright's death and various other issues. Dr. Edwards commented on the importance of providing stability. He stated he is honored to have the opportunity to serve as Acting City Manager and would like to serve permanently as City Manager to move the City OS/03/21 -1- forward in transformation as required in the City Council's strategic priorities, establishing operations, and creating a sense of security for staff. Dr. Edwards stated he has the desire, willingness, and ability to move through these times and advance the City. He asked the City Council to consider appointing him as the City Manager going forward, noting the proposed three- year contract to serve in that capacity. Dr. Edwards asked if there is consensus among the City Council for a pay adjustment that is retroactive since he started serving as Acting City Manager, appointment to City Manager, and direction to work with the City Attorney to develop a contract for future consideration. Councilmember Butler thanked Dr. Edwards for his hard work in stepping in to fill the shoes of the City Manager, which is not easy. She acknowledged Dr. Edward's hard work as well as that of staff in continuing to deal with the tragedy around Mr. Wright. Councilmember Butler posed the question of having a public process for whoever steps into the role of City Manager. She stated support for retroactive pay since Dr. Edwards stepped into the role of Assistant City Manager and for the time being. Councilmember Butler encouraged Dr. Edwards to be part of the process, which she felt should be an open public process to determine who the best fit would be. Mayor Elliott stated he has had the pleasure of working closely with Dr. Edwards and can speak to his commitment to the work and what he brings to the role. He stated it has been great working with Dr. Edwards and he imagines the scenario where Dr. Edwards becomes the City Manager. Mayor Elliott stated support for increased pay to Dr. Edwards since he stepped into the Assistant City Manager role. He asked the Council to discuss what that amount should be in looking at Dr. Edward's work thus far. Mayor Elliott stated he also believes there should be a process to determine the length of the agreement. In addition, he supports an open process that includes the community to consider the values of the role of the City Manager on a more permanent basis. Mayor Elliott explained he has to step out of the meeting and asked Mayor Pro Tem Butler to chair the meeting. Mayor Pro Tem Butler assumed chairing the meeting. Councilmember Ryan stated his concurrence with previous remarks and commended Dr. Edwards for his hard work, filling an important role, and pulling staff together in such a difficult time while facing two crises simultaneously. He stated obviously, Dr. Edwards should be compensated for additional workload and stress. Councilmember Ryan stated he is interested in having more discussion about how to move forward from acting to a permanent City Manager. He thought that perhaps Dr. Edwards could help in what will be a matrix of success to help the City Council define an evaluation based on the City Council's goals. Councilmember Ryan stated he is confident the City Council will see success through Dr. Edward's efforts and having those metrics described would help the City Council. Councilmember Lawrence-Anderson concurred with everyone's camments and stated she believes Dr.Edwards has done a good job at a challenging time. She proposed Dr.Edwards be compensated for work done and will continue to do. Councilmember Lawrence-Anderson agreed it should be an open process and maybe Dr. Edwards will be selected but for now, continuity of his leadership is critical at this time. She noted that hiring a City Manager is the only hire made by the City Council so they need to make the best decision. She would like to hear feedback from department heads on Dr. Edwards' leadership style, which is a critical step in going forward. Councilmember OS/03/21 -2- Lawrence-Anderson agreed Dr. Edwards needed to be fully compensated for interim support but the City Council is not in a position now to make that most important decision the City Council makes for leadership of the City. Councilmember Graves stated she concurs with the comments thus far. She stated part of her feels as though Dr. Edwards has already earned this position, and he is still learning about becoming a City Manager,which is an ongoing process taking many years. She noted that Dr. Edwards already has several years' experience as Deputy City Manager. Councilmember Graves stated she appreciated former City Manager Curt Boganey and didn't want to see him go and knows that Dr. Edwards has a relationship with Mr. Boganey that he can rely on. She also sees the advantages of being more transparent in light of more recent events and recognizing this is the only employee the City Council hires. In that case, she trusts Dr. Edwards to do that job but knows there is room to grow for all. Councilmember Graves stated she is willing to go along with the consensus of the City Council to discuss what that might look like and in meantime, compensating Dr. Edwards for his time in that role and moving forward. Mayor Pro Tem Butler stated there is consensus that Dr. Edwards will be compensated and the City Council supports an open process. She requested a legal opinion regarding the pay rate for retro pay and going forward until a decision is made. She asked if that discussion is considered during an open meeting or should it be a closed session. City Attorney Troy Gilchrist advised that the compensation decision should be kept open. Relating to when it is decided, the direction could be given to the Acting City Manager to prepare a report showing the salaries of city managers in surrounding cities. He advised that this decision is up to the City Council. Mayor Pro Tem Butler stated she would like to see comparables before making that decision. Councilmember Ryan stated a useful comparison may be the City of Richfield,which is just larger than Brooklyn Center, and hired a city manager who had no formal experience in that position. He noted that a very capable person remains the Richfield City Manager and maybe an example of a person performing at a high level without prior experience and that salary may be a comparable salary. Mayor Pro Tem Butler stated it would be useful to understand Dr. Edwards' background while serving as Deputy City Manager for Brooklyn Center and his prior city manager position at a smaller city. Mayor Elliott returned to the meeting and stated he missed some of the discussion but is happy to work with Dr. Edwards, Human Resources, and City Attorney Gilchrist to gather the information requested for consideration at the next meeting. Councilmember Lawrence-Anderson concurred with the need for additional research and a pay increase that is retroactive. About the amount of pay, she noted that Dr. Edwards had stepped into the role and the City Council needs to be logical and pragmatic in how they proceed. Councilmember Lawrence Anderson requested a memorandum outlining Dr. Edward's experience OS/03/21 -3- and comparable pay rates in cities with like populations so the City Council has additional information to make this decision. She noted that deciding on these items tonight would not be prudent. Mayor Pro Tem Butler stated there is consensus to direct staff to prepare the requested memorandum and to support a higher pay rate that is retroactive once that rate is decided. Dr. Edwards stated he appreciates the consideration. He noted that he has most of the requested information already prepared and the Human Resources Manager has provided comparison city salaries. He stated this information will be presented at the next City Council meeting. Mr. Gilchrist asked if there is City Council consensus to draft a contract for the interim service so the Acting City Manager is working under contract. The Council supported this suggestion. Mr. Gilchrist stated it will be presented for consideration at the next meeting and would be in place until the City Council works through the process to hire a long-term City Manager. Mayor Elliott stated he is intimately familiar with the contract of the former City Manager and will work with Mr. Gilchrist to prepare that contract agreement. Councilmembers Lawrence-Anderson and Ryan concurred. Mayor Pro Tem Butler stated that concludes everything the City Council needed to consider at tonight's special meeting. Dr. Edwards agreed the City Council has provided direction and reached a consensus. 4. ADJOURNMENT Councilmember Ryan moved and Mayor Pro Tem Butler seconded adjournment of the City Council special meeting at 5:34 p.m. Motion passed unanimously. OS/03/21 -4- STATE OF MINNESOTA) COLTNTY 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: l. That attached hereto is a full, true, and complete transcript of the minutes of the Specia] Session of the City of Brooklyn Center held on May 3, 2021. 2. That said meeting was held pursuant to due call and notice thereof and was duly held via ZOOM. 3. That the City Council adopted said minutes at its May 24, 2021, Regular Session. . �-- --------__- ��'l� /nW�- �C�l� - City Clerk Mayor OS/03/21 -5-