[Vision2020] Moscow City Council
bill london
london@moscow.com
Wed, 28 Jan 2004 14:00:04 -0800
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J-
First, my thanks for using V2020 to explain this city action, and to
gather input.
Second, one of my concerns for a while was the way the committee
meetings functioned as defacto council meetings (without the oversight
of the public -- or until very recently TV coverage). So, I would
welcome this change, at least as an experiment. I would think those
"workshop" meetings would attract a reporter or two so we would get some
coverage of the issues, and I am also assuming that TV would cover
those workshops as well...
BL
John Dickinson wrote:
> Hi everyone,
>
>
>
> I would like to ask for some comments on the restructuring of Moscow's
> City Council working groups.
>
>
>
> At a Moscow City Council Workshop that was held Monday, January 26,
> The Moscow City Council voted to suspend the City Council
> subcommittees (Administration and Public Works) for a trial period of
> about 3 months. During this period the subcommittees would be replaced
> with a pair of regularly scheduled Council Workshops that would
> alternate on Mondays with normal City Council meetings. So normal City
> Council meetings would occur on the first and third Mondays of each
> month and City Council Workshops would occur on the second and fourth
> Mondays. This change requires a suspension of City Code sections
> 2-2-16 and 2-2-17, which will be brought up at the next regular City
> Council meeting on Tuesday February 3. (We are meeting on Tuesday next
> week because of the IDWR Public Meeting on Water Issues being held in
> the UI Law Court Room on Monday at 7:00 pm.) City business that once
> flowed through a particular subcommittee will now go through a
> "committee" of the entire City Council.
>
>
>
> One other issue that was discussed during the workshop was the times
> of these meetings. Presently City Council meetings begin at 7:00 pm
> and the subcommittee meetings begin at 4:00 pm. The discussion at the
> workshop appears to favor keeping these same times for the new meeting
> format. So normal City Council meetings would begin at 7:00 pm and
> City Council Workshops would begin at 4:00 pm. Are these times
> convenient for either attending these meetings or viewing them on TV?
> Are different times for these meetings helpful or confusing?
>
>
>
> The structure of subcommittees and workshops and the times of the
> various meetings will be set by a careful consideration of the needs
> of the public, the Council, and the City Staff. The most important of
> these is the public. What do you think of the proposed new
> organization? What do you think of the times for these meetings, both
> normal City Council meetings and City Council Workshops? I am very
> interested in your thoughts, your concerns, and your ideas. It might
> be helpful for everyone if you presented your thought to Vision2020,
> but you can also send any comments directly to me. Thanks.
>
>
>
> John
>
> --
>
> John Dickinson
>
> Moscow City Council
>
> Moscow, ID 83843
>
> 208-882-7977
>
> jdickinson@moscow.com
>
>
>
>
>
> P.S. Here is a bit more information about the reorganization of
> Council. As a lead in to the City Council Workshop, Gary Riedner
> (Moscow City Supervisor) provided the following rationale for the
> change to the workshop format.
>
>
>
> 1. How best to conduct Council business. From a review of the
> survey, each of the municipalities that responded has a slightly
> different method of conducting the public's business. It is
> interesting to note that other than Moscow, the only other city
> to have any sort of committee structure is Rexburg, which uses
> its "committees" as a sort of liaison with individual
> departments on a monthly, as compared to a weekly, basis. All
> other cities conduct their business before the full council,
> either in a workshop setting or at regularly scheduled council
> meetings. The intention is to insure that the entire council
> gets the same information.
>
>
>
> 2. Provide the most efficient use of Council and staff time. Is the
> frequency of meetings justified as a proper use of time for both
> elected officials and staff? In terms of time, elected officials
> are part-time public servants who usually hold outside
> employment. Staff prepares agendas, documentation and reports
> and must prepare for each meeting. From a managerial
> perspective, staff would prefer less frequent meetings with more
> opportunity to better prepare. Experience over the past decade
> has shown that staff spends a substantial amount of time
> preparing for Council and Committee meetings. Reports given to
> the Council as a body, rather than to a Committee of only three
> members increases information sharing and efficiency, ensuring
> that all members of the Council have the same information.
>
>
>
> 3. Provide the public with as much input as desired into City
> decision making. At this time, all Council and Council Committee
> meetings are open to the public and are televised on the City's
> public, education, and government (PEG) channel. There may be an
> advantage to pursuing the concept of a workshop structure so
> that issues that are brought to the Council are presented and
> debated to the entire Council, rather than a separate committee.
> This would allow a member of the public to present input on an
> issue on one occasion, rather than to present to a committee at
> one time and to the Council at another time.
>
>
>
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J-<br>
First, my thanks for using V2020 to explain this city action, and to
gather input.<br>
Second, one of my concerns for a while was the way the committee
meetings functioned as defacto council meetings (without the oversight
of the public -- or until very recently TV coverage). So, I would
welcome this change, at least as an experiment. I would think those
"workshop" meetings would attract a reporter or two so we would get
some coverage of the issues, and I am also assuming that TV would
cover those workshops as well...<br>
BL <br>
<br>
John Dickinson wrote:<br>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><font size="2" color="navy" face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;">Hi everyone,</span></font><font
size="2" color="navy" face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;"><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font size="2" color="navy" face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;"><!--[if !supportEmptyParas]--> <!--[endif]--></span></font><font
size="2" color="navy" face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;"><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font size="2" color="navy" face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;">I would like
to
ask for some comments on the restructuring of Moscow’s City Council
working
groups.</span></font><font size="2" color="navy" face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;"><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font size="2" color="navy" face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;"><!--[if !supportEmptyParas]--> <!--[endif]--></span></font><font
size="2" color="navy" face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;"><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font size="2" color="navy" face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;">At a Moscow
City
Council Workshop that was held Monday, January 26, The Moscow City
Council
voted to suspend the City Council subcommittees (Administration and
Public
Works) for a trial period of about 3 months. During this period the
subcommittees would be replaced with a pair of regularly scheduled
Council
Workshops that would alternate on Mondays with normal City Council
meetings. So
normal City Council meetings would occur on the first and third Mondays
of each
month and City Council Workshops would occur on the second and fourth
Mondays.
This change requires a suspension of City Code sections 2-2-16 and
2-2-17,
which will be brought up at the next regular City Council meeting on
Tuesday
February 3. (We are meeting on Tuesday next week because of the IDWR
Public
Meeting on Water Issues being held in the UI Law Court Room on Monday
at 7:00
pm.) City business that once flowed through a particular subcommittee
will now
go through a “committee” of the entire City Council.</span></font><font
size="2" color="navy" face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;"><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span class="EmailStyle15"><font size="2"
color="navy" face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"><!--[if !supportEmptyParas]--> <!--[endif]--><o:p></o:p></span></font></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span class="EmailStyle15"><font size="2"
color="navy" face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">One other
issue that was discussed during the workshop was the times of these
meetings.
Presently City Council meetings begin at 7:00 pm and the subcommittee
meetings
begin at 4:00 pm. The discussion at the workshop appears to favor
keeping these
same times for the new meeting format. So normal City Council meetings
would
begin at 7:00 pm and City Council Workshops would begin at 4:00 pm. Are
these
times convenient for either attending these meetings or viewing them on
TV? Are
different times for these meetings helpful or confusing? <o:p></o:p></span></font></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span class="EmailStyle15"><font size="2"
color="navy" face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"><!--[if !supportEmptyParas]--> <!--[endif]--><o:p></o:p></span></font></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span class="EmailStyle15"><font size="2"
color="navy" face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">The
structure of subcommittees and workshops and the times of the various
meetings
will be set by a careful consideration of the needs of the public, the
Council,
and the City Staff. The most important of these is the public. <b><span
style="font-weight: bold;">What do you think of the proposed new
organization?
What do you think of the times for these meetings, both normal City
Council
meetings and City Council Workshops?</span></b> I am very interested in
your
thoughts, your concerns, and your ideas. It might be helpful for
everyone if
you presented your thought to Vision2020, but you can also send any
comments
directly to me. Thanks.<o:p></o:p></span></font></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span class="EmailStyle15"><font size="2"
color="navy" face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"><!--[if !supportEmptyParas]--> <!--[endif]--><o:p></o:p></span></font></span></p>
<p class="MsoAutoSig"><font size="2" color="navy" face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;">John</span></font><font
size="2" color="navy" face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;"><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoAutoSig"><font size="2" color="navy" face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;">--</span></font><font
size="2" color="navy" face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;"><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoAutoSig"><font size="2" color="navy" face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;">John
Dickinson</span></font><font size="2" color="navy" face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;"><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoAutoSig"><font size="2" color="navy" face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;">Moscow City
Council</span></font><font size="2" color="navy" face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;"><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoAutoSig"><font size="2" color="navy" face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;">Moscow, ID
83843</span></font><font size="2" color="navy" face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;"><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoAutoSig"><font size="2" color="navy" face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;">208-882-7977</span></font><font
size="2" color="navy" face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;"><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoAutoSig"><font size="2" color="navy" face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;"><a class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated" href="mailto:jdickinson@moscow.com">jdickinson@moscow.com</a></span></font><font
size="2" color="navy" face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;"><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span class="EmailStyle15"><font size="2"
color="navy" face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"><!--[if !supportEmptyParas]--> <!--[endif]--><o:p></o:p></span></font></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span class="EmailStyle15"><font size="2"
color="navy" face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;">P.S.<span style=""> </span>Here
is a bit more information about
the reorganization of Council. As a lead in to the City Council
Workshop, Gary
Riedner (Moscow City Supervisor) provided the following rationale for
the
change to the workshop format.<o:p></o:p></span></font></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span class="EmailStyle15"><font size="2"
color="navy" face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"><!--[if !supportEmptyParas]--> <!--[endif]--><o:p></o:p></span></font></span></p>
<ol style="" start="1" type="1">
<li class="MsoNormal" style=""><b><font size="2" color="navy"
face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy; font-weight: bold;">How
best to conduct Council business</span></font></b><font size="2"
color="navy" face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;">. From a
review of the survey, each of the municipalities that responded has a
slightly different method of conducting the public’s business. It is
interesting to note that other than Moscow, the only other city to have
any sort of committee structure is Rexburg, which uses its “committees”
as a sort of liaison with individual departments on a monthly, as
compared to a weekly, basis. All other cities conduct their business
before the full council, either in a workshop setting or at regularly
scheduled council meetings. The intention is to insure that the entire
council gets the same information.</span></font><font size="2"
color="navy" face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;"><o:p></o:p></span></font></li>
</ol>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.25in;"><font size="2"
color="navy" face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;"><!--[if !supportEmptyParas]--> <!--[endif]--></span></font><font
size="2" color="navy" face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;"><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<ol style="" start="2" type="1">
<li class="MsoNormal" style=""><b><font size="2" color="navy"
face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy; font-weight: bold;">Provide
the most efficient use of Council and staff time</span></font></b><font
size="2" color="navy" face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;">. Is the
frequency of meetings justified as a proper use of time for both
elected officials and staff? In terms of time, elected officials are
part-time public servants who usually hold outside employment. Staff
prepares agendas, documentation and reports and must prepare for each
meeting. From a managerial perspective, staff would prefer less
frequent meetings with more opportunity to better prepare. Experience
over the past decade has shown that staff spends a substantial amount
of time preparing for Council and Committee meetings. Reports given to
the Council as a body, rather than to a Committee of only three members
increases information sharing and efficiency, ensuring that all members
of the Council have the same information.</span></font><font size="2"
color="navy" face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;"><o:p></o:p></span></font></li>
</ol>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font size="2" color="navy" face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;"><!--[if !supportEmptyParas]--> <!--[endif]--></span></font><font
size="2" color="navy" face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;"><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<ol style="" start="3" type="1">
<li class="MsoNormal" style=""><b><font size="2" color="navy"
face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy; font-weight: bold;">Provide
the public with as much input as desired into City decision making</span></font></b><font
size="2" color="navy" face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;">. At this
time, all Council and Council Committee meetings are open to the public
and are televised on the City’s public, education, and government (PEG)
channel. There may be an advantage to pursuing the concept of a
workshop structure so that issues that are brought to the Council are
presented and debated to the entire Council, rather than a separate
committee. This would allow a member of the public to present input on
an issue on one occasion, rather than to present to a committee at one
time and to the Council at another time.</span></font><font size="2"
color="navy" face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;"><o:p></o:p></span></font></li>
</ol>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span class="EmailStyle15"><font size="2"
color="navy" face="Arial"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"><!--[if !supportEmptyParas]--> <!--[endif]--><o:p></o:p></span></font></span></p>
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