Item 2A: Approval of City Council Minutes

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th Dennis Gabrielson , 300 South 10 Street, Creswell, objected to the mandated furloughs imposed by the City on its AFSCME employees and predicted they would be found unlawful. He objected to the expenditure of funding on the Beam project at a difficult economic time and suggested that the council stop considering federal money to be free money. Mr. Gabrielson also noted his objection to the Dream Act. He did not think that illegal immigrants should be given special treatment. He indicated his concurrence with the remarks of Ms. Clarke about the firm that maintained the library, saying it also maintained the wastewater facility and many people did not feel it did a good job. Mayor Piercy closed the public forum. She noted her own concerns about contracting City services as a policy and was also concerned about the relationship between the City and its unions. She had sought direction from the City Attorney about the degree to which the council could become involved in the issue and was waiting to hear back. She thanked the Sustainability Commission for sharing its concerns and noted that she had sent an e- mail to the council that afternoon about the same issue. She acknowledged the gap in preservation funding but questioned if the council wanted to restrict STP funds by policy to that use. Councilor Poling asked how many people were laid off as a result of the library contract. City Manager Jon Ruiz indicated no City employees were laid off. Councilor Poling asked about the training provided to contract employees. City Manager Ruiz said he would get back to the council on that issue. Councilor Poling suggested that if the work was substandard, that was not what the City was looking for. He asked what impacts on other service areas or employees were involved in the reduction. City Manager Ruiz indicated that the City’s goal was to minimize the impact of such reductions on services and avoid layoffs. He said that the City succeeded in that goal. He did not know what other options had existed and did not want to speculate. Councilor Poling asked about the new manager position at the library. City Manager Ruiz explained that the City combined two positions into one position and retitled it. Councilor Clark asked if City Manager Ruiz considered the contract a change in policy. City Manager Ruiz indicated that the occasion was the first time it occurred in his knowledge. Responding to a question from Councilor Clark about the actual savings realized by contracting maintenance services at the library, City Manager Ruiz estimated the savings at $250,000 annually, and indicated that $100,000 had been saved in fiscal year 2010. Councilor Clark asked how much the contracted employees were paid, and if City Manager Ruiz would characterize it as a “non-living wage.” City Manager Ruiz acknowledged the hourly rate was less and indicated he would have to return with a comparison. City Manager Ruiz expressed appreciation for the work of City employees and for AFSCME’s representatives, and suggested that parties shared different viewpoints. He wanted to work on the relationship and thought the city had an opportunity to improve things and said “we will.” His motivation for the change was to ensure that all employees could remain employed with the organization. He believed that conflicting values were at work and said the City needed to work through those. Speaking to the concerns expressed by Mr. Sabin and Mr. Oberman, Councilor Clark asked if some houses lacked on-street parking entirely. Planning and Development Director Susan Muir did not think so, and indicated she would follow up. She said she also planned to meet with Mr. Savin and Mr. Oberman to see if there was a “win-win” situation that could be found. Mayor Piercy adjusted the agenda to accommodate the schedule of Councilor Ortiz. 5. ACTION: Interim Appointment to the Budget Committee MINUTES—City Council January 11, 2010 Page 3