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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2012-02-15 PACKET 08.B.REQUEST OF CITY COUNCIL ACTION COUNCIL AGENDA MEETING ITEM # DATE 2/15/2012 4W 4 PREPARED BY Administration Ryan Schroeder ORIGINATING DEPARTMENT DEPARTMENT HEAD COUNCIL ACTION REQUEST 1. Consider accepting validation of the Charter petition. 2. Consider adopting a resolution in support of applicants for seats on the Charter Commission, 3. Authorize the Mayor to forward a letter to the Washington County District Court. STAFF RECOMMENDATION 1. Accept the validation. 2. Adopt the resolution. 3. Authorize the Mayor to forward the letter to the Washington County District Court. SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS ® MEMO /LETTER: Memo from Ryan Schroeder ® RESOLUTION: Draft. ❑ ORDINANCE: ® ENGINEERING RECOMMENDATION: ❑ LEGAL RECOMMENDATION: ® OTHER: Attachments. ADMINISTRATORS COMMENTS Administrator /O ,r-k Date COUNCIL ACTION TAKEN: []APPROVED ❑ DENIED ❑ OTHER Document3 City of Cotta Grove J Minnesota To: Honorable Mayor and City Council Members From: Ryan R. Schroeder, City Administrator Date: February 10, 2012 Subject: Charter Commission Process and Applications As reported at the February 1, 2012 meeting of the City Council, city staff has been in the process of validating a petition to create a Charter Commission that had been received by the District Court on January 5, 2012. Since this meeting Washington County staff has offered, and the city has accepted, assistance in validation of the petitions. Validation on the County portion of the petition was completed on February 9. Validation by the City portion of the petition was completed on February 10. The County has forwarded their validation results to both the City and the District Court. The City will be forwarding its validation results on February 13. As part of the submittal of the petition to the Court the petitioners recommended specific individuals to be considered for appointment by the Court to the Commission. These persons are: John Swenson Darrell Cruea Tom Dippel Daniel Zwakman Lawrence Richie Clifford Morrell Thomas Hunter Dale Andrews Raymond Sandborgh Jim Pierce Deb Nelson Grace Krumm Al Schilling Kathleen Lewandoski 7903113 th Street 8366113 th Street 12085 Grey Cloud Trail 8354 Hemingway Avenue 7676 Jasmine Avenue 7387 Jorgensen Avenue 8235 River Acres Road 8430 Keats Avenue 8726 80 Street 8065 Jeffery Avenue 9890 Heath Avenue 784774 th Street 7542 Immanuel Avenue no address submitted Jordan Bieber 7723 Jasmine Avenue Submitted by Petitioners to the Court but not included in initial packet material Peter Staloch 8946 Jasmine Lane Richard Bourg David Dunn Derrick Lehrke Leon Moe Beverly Moreland Roger Roorley 9192 East Point Douglas Lane 9718 Heath Avenue 885082 nd Street Court 8660 Grospoint Avenue 8679 Greystone Avenue 8691 Grospoint Avenue The City has solicited interest in the Commission as well and has received the following: Patrick McLoughlin Christian Reese Annie Elmer Jeff Podoll Leon Peterson Roger Peterson Jack Lavold Tony Jurgens David Olson Josh Straka Ken Brittain Craig Patterson Thaddeus Owen 6635 Hadley Avenue 6284 Hedgecroft Avenue 9866 Hamlet Avenue 8818 Grospoint Avenue 7626 Langly Avenue 8284 Indian Boulevard 6859 Ideal Avenue 8054 Jody Avenue 8627 Jorgensen Avenue 6068 Summit Curve 963078 th Street 7471 Hidden Valley Court 6958 Idsen Avenue Additionally, the Court has received applications directly from Michael Edman 7560 Harkness Avenue David Olson also submitted to City Tony Jurgens also submitted to City Tom Hren 7398 Burr Oak Avenue William Spencer 7314 Isleton Avenue Enclosed please find a resolution in support of positive consideration by the District Court of the applicants received by the City. The preponderance of these applications come to the City with supporting documentation /resume's along with a letter of interest. Most of these applicants have significant volunteer experience with the City and /or the community. Staff has prepared a map depicting the residence of each of these applicants. This map points out that these applicants represent the entire geographic area of the community. The Mayor has reviewed all application materials from these persons and is recommending this entire slate of candidates for positive consideration by the Court. Also included within the packet is a draft letter to the Court for the Mayors signature. Action: 1. By motion accept validation of the Charter petition pursuant to the above 2. By motion adopt Resolution 2012 -XX in support of applicants 3. By motion authorize the Mayor to forward a letter to the Court as attached RESOLUTION NO. 2012- [Resolution Number] In support of positive consideration by the District Court in Washington County of applicants for a seat on the petitioned for Cottage Grove Charter Commission Whereas, on April 19, 1973 a bill was placed into law creating the category of statutory city within the State of Minnesota, and Whereas, following this law the City of Cottage Grove became a Statutory plan A city operating under Minnesota State Statutes Chapter 412; this form of municipal government being the most common form of government for Minnesota municipalities, and Whereas, on January 5, 2012 a petition was submitted to the Washington County District Court in support of creation of a Charter Commission and development of a Charter for the City of Cottage Grove under Minnesota State Statutes Chapter 410, and Whereas, Minnesota Statutes Section 410.05, subdivision 3, the City Council may suggest names to the District Court for consideration of appointment to a charter commission; and Whereas, the City Council of the City of Cottage Grove is desirous of ensuring that the process of creation of a Charter is a reasoned, deliberative process, and Whereas, the City Council believes that the process of considering the community needs for a charter, and the development of a charter that will serve as the city's governing document, will be enhanced if the persons appointed to the Charter Commission have knowledge about and experience in local government operations, finance and management; and Whereas, it is desirable that the Charter process include positive debate and deliberation; and Whereas, it is desirable that the Charter Commission members represent a broad spectrum of the community and have the ability and desire to craft a governing document that will serve present and future generations of the City; and Whereas, the City Council has received numerous applications from persons with diverse backgrounds, perspectives and experience in local governance; NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF COTTAGE GROVE that the following individuals are recommended for appointment by the District Court to the Cottage Grove Charter Commission: *Patrick McLoughlin 6635 Hadley Avenue, Cottage Grove Timber Ridge *Christian Lee Reese 6284 Hedgecroft Avenue, Cottage Grove Pine Cliff *Annie Elmer 9866 Hamlet Avenue, Cottage Grove Pine Glen *Jeff Podoll 8818 Grospoint Avenue, Cottage Grove Thompson Grove *Leon Peterson 7626 Langly Avenue, Cottage Grove Old CG *Roger Peterson 8284 Indian Boulevard, Cottage Grove Pine Tree *Jack Lavold 6859 Ideal Avenue, Cottage Grove Highlands *Tony Jurgens 8054 Jody Avenue, Cottage Grove Sandy Hills *David Olson 8627 Jorgensen Avenue, Cottage Grove Sandy Hills *Josh Straka 6068 Summit Curve, Cottage Grove Highland Hills *Ken Brittain 963078 th Street, Cottage Grove Kingston *Craig Patterson 7471 Hidden Valley Court, Cottage Grove Hidden Valley *Thaddeus Owen 6958 Idsen Avenue, Cottage Grove Highlands Passed this 15th day of February 2012. Myron Bailey, Mayor Attest: Caron M. Stransky, City Clerk C O V Q Q O E O L. CD S V 0 February 9, 2012 Honorable Judge Hoffman Chief Justice, 10 "' Judicial District Ryan Schroeder, City Administrator City of Cottage Grove 7516 80' Street South Cottage Grove MN 55016 Re: Charter Commission Petition Judge Hoffman & Mr. Schroeder, Property Records and Taxpayer Services Kevin Corbid Director The Washington County Elections Division was asked by the City of Cottage Grove to review the names of the individuals who signed the Charter Commission Petition. on Tuesday, February 7, 2012. The purpose of this letter is to provide information on the process we used to complete that request and the outcome of our review. The petition was received in an electronic format on February 7, 2012. The document was printed on paper and divided between several people to handle the review. Each entry was reviewed utilizing the Statewide Voter Registration System (SVRS) in order to determine if the individuals were registered to vote in the City of Cottage. The Elections staff is responsible for maintaining voter records in the SVRS for Washington County, so we have access to all of the voter records in our County. After all signatures were reviewed the number of individuals that were registered, according to SVRS, were counted and several categories were created for those entries that were not registered. Below are the totals by category: Registered Voters — 1609, in these cases the individual listed on the petition was an active registered voter in the City of Cottage Grove. Non - Registered Voters — 235, in these cases the individual listed on the petition was not registered in the City of Cottage Grove. Inactive Status — 49, in these cases the individuals had not voted for 4 years and the voter record goes into an inactive status. Not registered in Cottage Grove — 1, in this case the individual was registered in a different City. Not readable — 6, in these cases the entries (name or address) were not able to be read. Challenged — 2, in these cases the individual's record is challenged, due to the return of a mailing sent from our office, or the individual is ineligible to register based on eligibility criteria in MN Statute. Duplicate — 1, in this case the individual had already signed the petition on another page. We will retain the paper copy in our office, but certainly if there are questions or concerns about the process, the outcome, or if you would like to review the document, please feel free to contact either Kevin Corbid at 651- 430 -6182 or Carol Peterson at 651- 430 -8271. Kevin Corbid, Director Property Records & Taxpayer Services Carol L. Peterson Elections Supervisor Government Center • 14949 62nd Street North — P.O. Box 6, Stillwater, Minnesota 55082 -0006 Phone: 651 - 430 -6175 • Fax: 651 - 430 -6178 • TTY: 651 - 430 -6246 www.co.washington-mn.us Equal Employment Opportunity / Affirmative Action The Honorable Judge John C. Hoffman Assistant Chief Judge Tenth Judicial District Washington County Courthouse 1494962 nd Street Stillwater, MN 55082 Dear Judge Hoffman It is the understanding of the City Council of the City of Cottage Grove that on or about January 5, 2012 a petition was submitted to your office requesting creation of a Charter Commission for the City of Cottage Grove. We appreciate that you have provided the City of Cottage Grove opportunity to review the validity of that petition. With assistance from our County Commissioner Autumn Lehrke and County Elections staff the City has now completed validation of the petition and we believe that at least 1335 signatures of registered voters within the City of Cottage Grove have been validated. We believe that 1335 signatures were required to meet statutory requirements for a petition of this type at this point in time. Along with submittal of the petition it is our understanding that the petitioners also submitted applicants for seats on the Charter Commission. Since the submittal of these Commission applicants by the petitioners the City has advertised for applicants from within our community. The Court may have received applications directly due to our outreach to the community. Additionally, the City is in receipt of letters of application from interested individuals. Enclosed, please find a Council resolution, adopted at our meeting of February 15, 2012 which recommends individuals for appointment by the Court to the Charter Commission. Each of these applicants has background knowledge that the City Council believes would be helpful in creation of a Charter document. This background includes past or current advisory commission, City Council or other governmental experience. There is strong business background among these applicants and as a whole these applicants represent a broad spectrum of experience and residence from throughout the community. Thank you again for allowing the City the opportunity to review the petition and petition process. We further request your assistance in ensuring the Charter review is a reasoned review by positive consideration of the applications as enclosed. On behalf of the City Council and citizens of Cottage Grove Myron Bailey Mayor, City of Cottage Grove