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HomeMy WebLinkAbout03.07.22 Work Session Minutes City of Farmington City Council Work Session Minutes March 7, 2022 1. Call to Order Mayor Hoyt called the work session to order at 5:00 p.m. Present: Hoyt, Bernhjelm, Lien, Porter, Wilson Also Present: Leah Koch,City Attorney; David McKnight, City Administrator; Lynn Gorski, Assistant City Administrator; Chris Regis, Finance Director; Gary Rutherford, Police Chief,Jim Constantineau; Deputy Police Chief;Justin Elvestad, Fire Chief; Samantha DiMaggio, Community Development Director; Kellee Omlid, Parks and Recreation Director; Peter Gilbertson, IT Director; Cynthia Muller, Administrative Assistant Audience: Kara Hildreth, Reporter 2. Approve Agenda MOTION by Wilson, second by Porter to approve the agenda. APIF, MOTION CARRIED. 3. Discussion Items a. 2022 City Council Pictures— Heikkila Studios City Council photos were taken at Heikkila Studios. b. American Rescue Plan Act Funds The city was allocated $2,523,436 from ARPA (American Rescue Plan Act). The city elected to treat these funds as revenue replacement, which allowed using the funds for government services. City staff developed a list of projects to be funded by the ARPA funds. The list included running fiber to various areas in the city, upgrading the access control system to city buildings, recreation scheduling software, all- inclusive playground at Rambling River Park, demolition of bathhouse, LED message display, fencing around the entire police department property, emergency operations center upgrade. The total estimated project costs are $2,845,837. Staff considered the city council's priorities when determining the projects. Council asked about the fencing around the police department and if it would still appear welcoming. The fencing will encompass the entire property, not just around the building, to allow for future building expansion. Councilmember Wilson noted we don't need to designate funds until 2024 and spend the funds by 2026. He does not support the police department fencing. In looking at the next police department facility, would we look at a different location to open that corner to commercial development. Instead of spending$870,000 on a fence, he would like to see that put towards a new building. Staff noted the soil in that area was not great when the police department building was built. Soil was added to correct the entire area for expansion. Councilmember Bernhjelm did not see a new building in the next five years. That would be a massive financial undertaking. There are many maintenance items on the list developed by Wold that are not done. Council looked at the funds as being Covid-related and asked if we can use the fiber extensions to entice business. Staff replied no, we cannot share fiber lines with private businesses. We could get fiber to parks and hire a utility company to install fiber to neighborhoods. Council Work Session Minutes March 7,2022 Page 2 The county will go 50/50 on the fiber projects with ARPA funding. Mayor Hoyt asked staff to come back with a better analysis of pending infrastructure needs —are they eligible—and cost. An alternative to the police department fencing is to put the funds toward a new building. We don't have a good enough picture to make a good decision overall. Councilmember Porter asked if staff could prioritize the projects and explain why. Mayor Hoyt asked if some of this work could be done in conjunction with another project. Staff recommended doing the fiber audit project now. This will be done by LOGIS and they will document all city and school fiber to determine what is available for future project build outs. He also recommended doing the new liquor store Farmington Mall Suite 945 to city hall fiber project. This would allow us to connect our new liquor store to the city's network. Council asked about running fiber along 195th Street from Akin to Hwy 3 and if we would see an indirect economic benefit. Staff explained by doing a backbone line, we can bring in a fiber company to install fiber. Council asked about a timeline for replacing playground equipment at Rambling River Park. Staff explained there is no timeline to replace it, but the price goes up the longer we wait. If we were to start now,the earliest it could be installed would be August 2022. Council asked if there is a police building plan in place for 2040 or 2050. Staff replied no, we only have the original plan showing the building would be good for 20 years before an expansion would be needed. Councilmember Bernhjelm felt we should not use the money to create new projects. Use it for the 5-10 year plan that is already in place. Staff noted as far as the playground equipment, if we did not use ARPA funds, we would still replace the equipment, but it would not be an all-inclusive playground. Council agreed to go ahead with the fiber audit project. c. City Administrator Vacancy Due to the resignation of City Administrator David McKnight, this position will be open after March 11, 2022. The city council discussed how to proceed with recruiting and filling the position. Mayor Hoyt provided three options: Option A: Assistant Administrator Gorski works as city administrator on an interim basis and we post the vacancy. Option B: Appoint Assistant Administrator Gorski as city administrator on a long- term basis. Option C: Appoint Assistant Administrator Gorski as the city administrator. Councilmember Bernhjelm felt council should appoint Assistant Administrator Gorski as interim and post the vacancy (option A). She can apply and it would provide council an opportunity to see what candidates are available. She felt this is a better way to go. Council Work Session Minutes March 7,2022 Page 3 Councilmember Lien noted option A would provide an opportunity to learn her skill set. Councilmember Porter stated Farmington is in a unique situation and would prefer option B. We have an internal candidate that is a rock star. Give her 3-6 months and see if she meets expectations. She has been here nine months. We have an option to retain a rock star over taking time to look. Councilmember Wilson suggested option A or C. In the past, council used an outside recruitment firm and it was a disaster. We cannot measure during an interview how well Assistant Administrator Gorski is adapting to the culture. We might see an applicant with glowing experience. It's important to see how Assistant Administrator Gorski interviews. There is value in having a dialogue. We should prepare for a weak candidate pool. Councilmember Bernhjelm noted Assistant Administrator Gorski will probably be the interim for six months anyway. She felt council should lean strongly towards a search firm. We are not HR experts. Attorney Koch noted a search firm costs $15,000—20,000. If you don't spend the money, who will do the recruiting? Councilmember Porter asked if it was appropriate to pull department heads into the discussion. One person can change the culture of the organization. Mayor Hoyt noted council can listen to their feedback, but it's like choosing your own boss. It is council's decision. Option C is out. A search firm provides the highest quality and the most applicants. Hiring for the other departments (HR and Engineering) should be made by the city administrator. At what point do we address HR and Engineering? Councilmember Bernhjelm wanted department heads to be part of the process. Mayor Hoyt stated the department heads will support Assistant Administrator Gorski. Why waste time when we know the outcome? Councilmember Bernhjelm noted we can have a great internal candidate, but it would be dumb not to hire a great candidate. Mayor Hoyt suggested we post the position and tweak the job description. Councilmember Bernhjelm stated if we bring in a firm, they would work with us on posting the position and the job description. Attorney Koch can research firms or do an RFP. Mayor Hoyt asked if the time frame is 3-6 months to final section. Attorney Koch noted that depends on who applies and whether they fit your needs. City Administrator McKnight stated it would take six months to a final selection. Councilmember Porter noted this is a high-level position and people are burned out. Councilmember Bernhjelm felt there is no harm in posting the position. Mayor Hoyt agreed we should retain a firm and re-write the job description. Councilmember Bernhjelm noted if we hire Assistant Administrator Gorski, we will have this process for transparency. Mayor Hoyt added part of this is the next Assistant Administrator. Councilmember Bernhjelm stated council should sit down with Assistant Administrator Gorski and discuss what her interim role is and come up with a plan Council Work Session Minutes March 7,2022 Page 4 about what to delegate. Councilmember Wilson stated our most urgent concern is the HR department. In the pool of candidates, we might tap a candidate for assistant city administrator. Do we want someone who will blend in with the culture or change the culture? Mayor Hoyt noted we should get the firm involved. Councilmember Porter stated in six months we are also looking at an election. Mayor Hoyt noted two of the five councilmembers are up for election. City Administrator McKnight cautioned council to not put staff in the corner today. If you hire Assistant Administrator Gorski, she will hire an assistant. We have a rock star with a different skill set than we expected. She has learned a lot about how to do the job. He believed Assistant Administrator Gorski would succeed. She also has two years experience as an elected official in Lakeville. We have to fill the HR positions now. We are bringing in a temp on Monday to help out. You should take advantage of a rock star when you have one. Using a search firm is a long process for the candidates. Councilmember Bernhjelm noted she has no problem with Assistant Administrator Gorski hiring for the HR position now. City Administrator McKnight noted Assistant Administrator Gorski is a long-term solution. Councilmember Bernhjelm stated option B drags out the process. We should go with either option A or C. Election season is coming and no one wants to tackle this in the fall. Mayor Hoyt stated let's hire a firm, have Attorney Koch be part of selecting the firm, managing the process and re-writing the job description. Attorney Koch noted the legal firm could provide a recommendation for a firm, but not manage the process. Councilmember Bernhjelm suggested finding out from the League of MN Cities if the Mayor is allowed to take on that role. Councilmember Wilson stated he would prefer to hire Assistant Administrator Gorski. She is clearly geared to our goals. We should think about this and come back on March 21. Councilmember Bernhjelm agreed to wait until March 21, but in the meantime the attorney should look at search firms. 4. Adjourn MOTION by Bernhjelm, second by Wilson to adjourn at 6:55 p.m. APIF, MOTION CARRIED. Respectfully submitted, Cynthia wiulCer Cynthia Muller Administrative Assistant