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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCCMinutes - 01/14/04 WS MINUTES Eugene City Council Process Session Tykeson Room--Eugene Public Library January 14, 2004 5:30 p.m. COUNCILORS PRESENT: Gary Papd, President; Nancy Nathanson, Vice President; Scott Meisner, David Kelly, Betty Taylor, Bonny Bettman, George Poling, Jennifer Solomon. Mayor James D. Torrey called the meeting of the Eugene City Council to order. Facilitator Alicia Hayes welcomed the council and introduced herself. A. WORK SESSION: City Council Process Session 1. Debrief of Progress: September- December 2003 Ms. Hayes asked the council to debrief its progress between September and December 2003, identifying what went well and what needed improvement. Councilor Coordinator Lynda Rose recorded the council's comments on an easel pad. Successes · City Manager selection · January 2004 - Election of officers · Library and expand branches · Work with the General Services Administration-courthouse issues · Hospital siting; resolutions · PCU/FEU groundbreaking · Millrace discussion - broadened · Police headquarters discussion - broadened · City/County - initial discussions re: transportation (spirit of cooperation) · PROS discussion - higher level, longer term Improvement Needed · Boards and Commissions process · Real property transactions and contracts; de-icer item/too fast turnaround with inadequate information · Asked to make decisions with short timeline and insufficient information MINUTES--Eugene City Council January 14, 2004 Page 1 Process Session · Clear council direction; staff not responsive (example: Multiple-Unit Property Tax Exemption, stormwater discussions. No follow-up to specific discussions. Prioritizing money for preservation) · Disconnected from executive managers (clarification of process) · Process for street renaming (example: Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard) · Confusion over individuals voting their point-of-view on committees if different than council policy · Follow-up, or lack thereof · Disconnect between unanimity of hospital siting resolution (unanimous vote) and public perception · Mayor/council speaking with a single voice after action is taken · How is policy articulated? How does City Manager get it and how does staff implement? · How do we work as a council? · Consent Calendar - nothing of any magnitude on it · Public Forum - don't limit time for speakers · Brighter Request-to-Speak lights needed! (They are very dim, and it is a hindrance) Speaking to a comment from Mr. Meisner regarding his access to executive managers and staff in general, Mr. Carlson suggested that Mr. Taylor needed to be the council's focal point of contact since he was the council's direct employee. Mr. Meisner maintained that his lack of access was a change after seven years of having such access, and now he did not receive calls from either executive managers or division managers. He said that as the council's library liaison, he had not heard anything about the library's anniversary plans. Mr. Kelly questioned whether a conscious management change had created the situation Mr. Meisner described. Ms. Hayes suggested the council follow-up on this issue. Ms. Bettman concurred with Mr. Meisner, saying that she read about issues in the newspaper rather than being informed about them by staff. She perceived a trend toward councilors receiving less information and being increasingly %ut of the loop" and isolated from the organization while at the same time being asked to act on issues more precipitously. Ms. Bettman said that follow-up was an issue for her. She said that it was up to her to track issues and request a response to her inquiries. Speaking to the suggestion that the mayor and council speak with a single voice, Ms. Bettman objected to the fact that the council had made a unanimous decision on the hospital siting resolution and the mayor had made statements to the press that she perceived as undermining that unanimity and the City's ability to negotiate with the hospital on a preferred site. Mr. Kelly agreed that was an issue, and the mayor should have supported the council's decision. Ms. Bettman believed the mayor and council should speak with a single voice after the unanimous action was taken. Mr. Kelly said the issue was one of policy governance and was related to several of the bullets listed by the council. He thought there was a broader issue that required more discussion. Mayor Torrey clarified that he had supported the council resolution regarding hospital siting, but if McKenzie-Willamette/Triad was not able to site the hospital as the council preferred, he would continue to support its location elsewhere in Eugene. That was the gist of the statements he made to the press. He could not concur with a statement that the hospital would not be welcome elsewhere. MINUTES--Eugene City Council January 14, 2004 Page 2 Process Session Mr. Kelly asked where City policy was set. He suggested the mayor should have shared his remarks with the council rather than the press as that was where policy was set. Ms. Bettman said the mayor was a savvy businessman, and she did not think he would go into a business negotiation by handicapping himself beforehand by indicating what the City would settle for if it did not get what it wanted, thus undermining the council's position. Mr. Taylor questioned whether negotiation with such parties was a council policy function. He suggested that frequently there was tension about what was policy. Mr. Kelly pointed out that in this case, the resolution provided very clear direction. Mayor Torrey pointed out that several councilors and staff had worked to persuade McKenzie- Willamette/Triad to locate at 2nd Avenue and Chambers Street. The hospital had not been interested. Mr. Taylor said that he had council direction regarding the site and the funding levels available for incentives. He questioned how he could know to proceed with the 2nd and Chambers site given that it was suggested to him by three or four councilors at the Aurora Building dedication in casual conversation rather than in the context of policy making. He questioned how he should interpret such direction. He said he was not looking for an answer now, but wanted the council to think about that. Ms. Nathanson pointed out that the resolution adopted by the council indicated its preference for a certain geographic area but did not direct staff not to assist the hospital if it chose another direction. She said that nothing in the resolution prohibited staff from responding to inquiries from the hospital about other sites. Ms. Nathanson did not see the mayor's remarks as being inconsistent with the council's action in adopting the resolution. Ms. Bettman asked Ms. Nathanson how she would feel if McKenzie-Willamette/Triad approached staff for incentives outside the desired area. Mr. Carlson indicated that had not occurred. Ms. Bettman said that she had been asked at a neighborhood meeting if the mayor's remarks meant that the City intended to provide incentives to the hospital outside the desired geographic area. She said that people did not differentiate between what the mayor said and what the council said. Ms. Nathanson said she could not control the speculations of others, and could only refer them to the record. Ms. Hayes said that the council clearly had an issue that would be followed up on at a later time. Mr. Meisner said the issue of how policy was represented was a continuing issue at council process sessions. The question for him was how the council worked together and, after it took action, what did that mean for the all of the councilors. Mr. Kelly said he believed the council's process generally worked. He suggested to Mr. Taylor that the tension he mentioned was the gray area between the council giving him official policy direction and councilors sharing bright ideas with him, such as those raised at the Aurora Building dedication. He said the manager could either accept such suggestions, or place them on a council agenda for discussion by the full body. MINUTES--Eugene City Council January 14, 2004 Page 3 Process Session Mr. Taylor indicated staff would review the discussion to frame the policy discussion in February 2004. Mr. Kelly advocated that staff examine current policies and procedures before that discussion. 2. Enhancing Effectiveness Ms. Hayes asked the council to consider how it could work more effectively in the future. · How do we (staff) know priorities so they align with resources? Thoughts/Solutions: o Each councilor, during "items" share one good thing that happened in community the prior week o Prep work/advance contact with staff on work session items o Identify strategic issues that staff would (City Manager) o Kiss person on the right o Mayor/council speaking with a single voice o On every issue, take time to find common ground o Limit discussion issues, so there's more time for in-depth discussion o Get questions answered (if simple) prior to meeting on Consent Calendar items o Arrive at meetings prepared o Need better availability by staff on Monday of council meetings o Don't attribute motives to others o Body language speaks as loudly as words o Continue with process sessions and retreats - stick with it o Staff needs to better frame policy questions in Agenda Item Summary/materials o Align expectations with capacity o Have council identify a specific goal for 2004 and work to achieve it o Policy governance: needs a feedback loop and monitoring - need a mechanism o Need to commit to strategic planning process o Clarification of rule versus intent; how to remain consistent (example: election of council officers, boards and commissions). Get clarity ahead of time. Respect and consistently im- plement fair processes - fair, balanced, and nonpartisan o Each person needs to be respected whether or not in minority; times respected o Someone on staff keeping a list of questions that come up at meetings; better tracking sys- tem o Council comfort - McNutt - hot; Council Chamber - cold. Work sessions at the Eugene Public Library? Logistics. 4A parking vouchers - too limiting 3. Strategic Planning/Goal Setting The council prepared for its upcoming February goals setting session. Mr. Taylor reported that he secured the services of Julia Novak of Management Partners to serve as facilitator for the session. Ms. Rose noted the proposed location at the Valley River Inn and asked the council its preference in terms of the time scheduled. Ms. Rose distributed a list of potential agenda elements for councilors to comment upon, and solicited their ideas for others. MINUTES--Eugene City Council January 14, 2004 Page 4 Process Session Creating an Agenda · How will mayor/council and executive management communicate?? Follow up. KellF · Valley River Inn/OK · Most important: specific objectives and action plan · Vision OK/Goals OK · Level below needs work · Goal/objective needs approval by 7 of 8 · Take effectiveness list and prioritize Meisner · Valley River Inn/OK, need specific times ASAP · Not prepared for annual goal process · Norms and operating principles need work · How can annual work plan be done without execs? Nathanson · Need to keep process simple. Just choose a few things and work on them · Location in town OK · Four hours each day preferred Papd · Issues and priorities · Up to the City Manager whether executive managers attend or not TaFlor · Doesn't like Valley River Inn/prefer closer to seat of government · Two hours Friday, two hours Saturday · Community vision done in community Solomon · Just choose a few things and work to accomplish those Bettman · Noticed and recorded · On choosing goals, need consensus (7/8) · One goal with unanimous consensus? Implementation strategies · Community visioning and values should be done by community · Critical · Norms and interaction · Expectations MINUTES--Eugene City Council January 14, 2004 Page 5 Process Session Poling · Central location OK Meetin~ A~enda Possibilities · ½ action plan consensus. ½ council effectiveness ?? Friday at 2 p.m. Saturday at 9 a.m. -5 p.m. (no later than) OR Friday 9 a.m. - 11:45 a.m. - 2 p.m. - 5 p.m. & Saturday 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. OR Friday 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.. & Saturday Noon - 4 p.m. Look at streamlining to reduce time - maybe 8 hours in one day? 4. Skill Building: Active Listening The council was joined by Drs. Peter and Susan Glaser for a skill-building session on active listening. The meeting adjourned at 8:29 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Dennis M. Taylor City Manager (Recorded by Kimberly Young) MINUTES--Eugene City Council January 14, 2004 Page 6 Process Session