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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2025/03/10 - ADMIN - Minutes - Charter Commission - RegularOFFICIAL MINUTES Charter Commission Meeting St. Louis Park, Minnesota March 10, 2025 5:30 p.m. – St. Louis Park City Hall 1. Call to order. Chair Dwyer called the meeting to order at 5:30 p.m. 2. Roll call and attendance. Members present: Gary Carlson, Lynne Carper, Jim de Lambert, Terry Dwyer, Andrew Rose and Henry Solmer. Members absent: Jim Brimeyer Others present: Melissa Kennedy (city clerk), Amanda Scott-Lerdal (deputy city clerk) 3. Approval of minutes. a. Minutes of April 29, 2024, Charter Commission meeting Chair Dwyer requested a minor correction to update the term “group” to “commission”. It was moved by Commissioner de Lambert, seconded by Commissioner Carlson, to approve the minutes with the change as proposed. The motion passed 6-0. 4. Old business Chair Dwyer asked the commission if there was any old business to consider. He confirmed no commissioners wanted to renew conversations around amendments to Chapter 12 that were previously discussed. 5. New business a. Election of officers Chair Dwyer suggested keeping the current officers in place since the commission had not met or conducted any official business since they were appointed in 2024. It was moved by Commissioner de Lambert, seconded by Commissioner Rose, to appoint Terry Dwyer to the position of Chair, Jim de Lambert to the position of Vice Chair and Lynne Carper to the position of Secretary of the Charter Commission. The motion passed 6-0. b. Approve 2024 annual report It was moved by Commissioner Carper, seconded by Commissioner Rose, to approve the 2024 annual report. The motion passed 6-0. Charter Commission minutes -2- March 10, 2025 c. Legislative update (verbal discussion) Ms. Kennedy updated the commission on the city’s current legislative platform and proposed legislation that is being monitored, particularly as it relates to elections and ranked-choice voting. The commission expressed a desire to ensure that local control was retained to be able to choose the electoral method for city offices to preserve the city’s ability to utilize ranked-choice voting for local elections. It was moved by Commissioner Rose, seconded by Commissioner Solmer, to direct staff to write a letter on behalf of the Charter Commission expressing continued support of ranked-choice voting and legislation that would allow cities to choose the electoral method for local offices. The motion passed 6-0. 6. Future meetings Chair Dwyer asked for an update on recruitment to fill vacancies on the commission. Ms. Kennedy and Ms. Scott-Lerdal reviewed the recruitment efforts to date, noting that while several applications had been received, there were still more vacancies than applicants. The timing of appointments and review of applications was under the purview of the district court. The commission agreed it was important to get new applications processed so that vacancies could be filled as soon as possible. Ms. Kennedy stated in terms of recruitment, one of the most effective strategies continues to be personal outreach from current members. Commissioner Carper proposed several outreach strategies, including advertising and promotion in the Sun Sailor. He noted speaking to groups and tabling at events, similar to the outreach efforts related to elections, could be effective as well. He agreed that current commissioners are also a great resource as they are all active in the community and can encourage others to get involved. Ms. Kennedy stated staff would continue to work to promote the opportunities on the commission. She noted that one thing that may help from a recruitment perspective was a more consistent meeting schedule. The commission discussed their primary role in management and oversight of the charter and stated it is hard to meet regularly if there is not a need or work for them to focus on. They noted they met more frequently when they were considering changes or the council asked the commission to look at specific topics, such as the change to implement ranked-choice voting. Commissioner Carper stated the commission could consider regular reviews of each section of the charter if they want to meet more frequently. Charter Commission minutes -3- March 10, 2025 Commissioner Rose stated he wants to make sure the council understands the commission is available and ready to assist if needed. Chair Dwyer stated he was not in favor of exploring changes to the charter simply to give the commission something to do. He noted that a lot of work has been done to get the charter to a place where it is fairly well written and does not need a lot of work. He suggested the commission could consider researching what other charter cities are working on or issues they may be having and then using that as a tool to look at our own charter’s language and practices. Vice Chair de Lambert stated the charter is a well written document and he does not feel the need to do continuous review to make up work or look for an issue. He appreciates that the commission is prepared to do work that is responsive and meaningful. Ms. Kennedy stated based on what she is hearing from the commission, perhaps they want to consider ways they could be active in the space of amplifying their work, increasing visibility in the community and educating people on what the charter is, why it matters, the role of the commission and how they complement the work of the council. Chair Dwyer appreciated the conversation and stated a more consistent cadence and meeting schedule may help, particularly in recruitment efforts. The commission set the next meeting for October 27, 2025, at 5:30 p.m. 7. Communications 8. Adjournment It was moved by Commissioner Carper, seconded by Commissioner Carlson to adjourn the meeting. The motion passed 6-0. The meeting adjourned at 6:25 p.m. Respectfully submitted by: Melissa Kennedy, city clerk