AMENDED Agenda Packet 4-8-19 Meeting

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•Councilor Syrett – offered that there is no real replacement for direct engagement with thepublic; efforts should be directed to increasing participation and engagement in public forums,neighborhood meetings and opportunities for personal outreach. •Mayor Vinis – stated that the City’s website is the organization’s institutional voice; encourageddevelopment of tools for the council to use to communicate with and gain input fromconstituents. •Councilor Zelenka – said he felt the City does not do an adequate job of telling its story, usingprogress on the Climate Recovery Ordinance as an example; supported efforts such as moremarketing, reporting on council activities at neighborhood meetings, community survey anddirect councilor-to-constituent communication, noting that the volume of emails the councilreceives makes it challenging to respond. •Councilor Pryor – said it is not enough to simply push out information or follow minimumnotice requirements; more personal dialogue is needed to engage people and increase the levelof commitment on the council; survey needs to measure “why” in addition to “what.” •Councilor Yeh – noted that engagement is a big part of communication; supported efforts toincrease engagement, using existing resources before creating new systems. •Councilor Syrett – requested information about what past community surveys looked like toprovide context for newer councilors. •Councilor Clark – acknowledged that information generated by a community survey might beuseful but questioned whether it is useful; encouraged consideration of alternatives thatpersonalize issues when they are communicated. •Councilor Taylor – appreciated the opportunity to respond to Public Forum testimony; said thatneighborhood newsletters need to be re-invented and more frequent, and suggested that theyinclude a regular submission from the councilor(s) representing the neighborhood. •Mayor Vinis – suggested the possible expansion of the existing online newsletter to includecouncilor submission, and making the City Council more prevalent on the main webpage. •Councilor Zelenka – supported the concept of City Council contributions to neighborhoodnewsletters. •Councilor Pryor – supported incorporating an element of “why you should care” intocommunications; figure out a way to convey to the public the stakes involved in issues thecouncil is addressing. •Councilor Semple – expressed concern that the City website is its biggest communication tooland it is inadequate; should be fun, compelling and easy-to-use; supported dedicating money toweb improvements in advance of 2021. •Councilor Zelenka – stated that the South Willamette project is an example of the potentialconsequences of required notice vs effective communication. •Councilor Taylor – supported efforts to inform residents about the implications andcomplications of council proposals and decisions, using Amazon Park as an example. •Councilor Clark – acknowledged that contextualizing issues can be very difficult. •Councilor Zelenka – encouraged consideration of what the council intends to do with any inputreceived through surveys or other communication modes. •Mayor Vinis – thanked everyone for their participation.The meeting adjourned at 1:28 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Beth Forrest City Recorder Link to the webcast of this City Council meeting: here. April 8, 2019, Meeting - Item 2A