Memo- Council Orginizational Issues
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Administrative Services -
Office of the City Manager
Memorandum
To:
From:
Date:
Subject:
Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
Steven C. Mielke, Hopkins City Manage~
January 6, 2000
Council Organizational Issues
With the changes at the council level it is appropriate to consider the current
approaches Hopkins has taken on a variety of things. Mayor Maxwell asked that I
schedule time on the worksession so the Council can consider how it wishes to conduct
business over the next year or two.
Meeting Formats / Styles
. The council agenda has from time to time been amended to alter the timing
of various activities. The question is whether the council is comfortable with
the agenda format?
. Are the methods used in dealing with staff, presenters, audience members
appropriate? How about the formality of the discussion, do we need to be
more formal in recognizing speakers to avoid talking over each other?
. Worksessions are generally informal. Should they be altered in some way?
Do discussions need to be better facilitated? Are the topics appropriate and
are they chosen/scheduled correctly?
. Seating at worksessions encourages informality, but can be difficult for
audience members. Should we alter seating to a U-shaped arrangement?
. Are there other questionslissues about the meetings of the council?
Email
. The staff have expressed a desire to utilize email with the Council. The
implementation of email at the staff level has led to efficiencies in the way
staff communicates with each other. Would the council be open to email as
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an additional method of council staff communications? If so, we should
discuss how it is used and how "available" council wants their email.
"Community" Group meetings
There are a variety of meetings that are held on a monthly or bi-monthly basis. In the
past the City Manager and/or the Mayor have attended these meetings, although they
are open to all on the council.
. City I School meetings
These are held on the third Wednesday of each month from 11 :30 - 1 :00.
The cities of Minnetonka, Hopkins, Golden Valley and Plymouth along with
School District 270 meet to discuss issues and look for ways to work
collaboratively.
. TwinWest Mayor/Manager meetings.
These meetings are on the first Wednesday of each month from 11:45-
1 :00. The purpose of the meetings is to discuss a variety of business
community topics. The attendance consists of the City of Hopkins, HBCA and
TwinWest Board and staff members.
. School and Communities in Partnership
SCIP is a community collaborative that works toward solving community
needs in areas that no one organization can address alone. A variety of
community organizations and individuals attend with a focus, currently on
community needs planning. SCIP meets on the third Tuesday of each month
from 11:30-1:00
Mayor Pro-Tempore
The Mayor Pro Tempore acts as the Mayor during the absence of the Mayor.
Historically the position has fallen to the senior member of the council, although there
is no written guidelines requiring it to be so. A specific council action is necessary to
establish this position.