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06-15-92 agenda • CITY OF RICHFIELD MONDAY, JUNE 15, 1992 SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL MEETING 6:00 P.M. COUNCIL CHAMBERS AGENDA CALL TO ORDER 1. PUBLIC HEARING AND SECOND READING OF AMENDMENT TO CITY CHARTER COUNCIL LETTER NO. 143 • ADJOURNMENT CITY OF RICHFIELD, MINNESOTA . Council Letter No. 143 Agenda June 15, 1992 Issue Statement: Public hearing and second reading of an amendment to the City Charter. Background: The City Charter Commission has completed a review of Charter provisions regarding filling Council vacancies. The Council had requested Charter Commission review of this matter last year. The Charter Commission has recommended changes in the Charter which will clarify vacancy appointment issues. The clarifications basically provide for the following: ? A vacancy is deemed to exist (without the need for Council __action)..upon resignation or death of a Council Member or the Mayor. ? A requirement that the Council declare a vacancy to exist for reasons of: ? Failure of an elected candidate to qualify as required before the second regular meeting of the Council year following election. ? Lack of residency. ? Lack of residency within district of ward represented. ? Continuous absence for more than 90 days. ? Conviction of felony. ? Other reasons specified by law. ? Failure to perform the duties of a Council Member for 90 days. ? If 90 days or less remains in a Council Member's term after vacancy, the Council shall appoint to fill the unexpired term the person elected to that office for the term commencing January 1 of the next year. Appointment shall be made not later than the first order of business at the next regular Council meeting following filing of declaration of the results of the election with the City Clerk. ? If less than 180 days and more than 90 days remain in the Council Member's term of office after the vacancy, the Council shall appoint an eligible person to fill the vacancy for the • unexpired term. If the Council fails to agree upon an appointee to fill the vacancy within 30 days after the vacancy, the Mayor shall appoint the person to fill the vacancy. ? If 180 days or more remain in the Council Member's term of office after the vacancy, the Council shall call a special election to fill the vacancy for the balance of the Member's term. That special election shall be called at the same Council meeting at which the vacancy is declared. The special election shall be held not less than 30 nor more than 60 days after the Council meeting at which the election is called. Provision were also added for filling the vacancies in the office of Mayor. Those provisions include the following: ? Vacancy provisions will include the same as determined for Council Members. ? The procedure following vacancy will include that the Mayor Pro Tem shall assume duties of the Mayor until a Mayor is elected. ? If less than 180 days remain in the unexpired term of the Mayor, the Mayor Pro Tem shall assume the duties of the Mayor for the unexpired term. ? If 180 days or more remain in the term, a special election shall be held in the same manner as described for Council Members. Recommended Motion: Conduct a public hearing and approve second reading of the amendment to the City Charter. i Minnesota Statute 410.12, Subd. 7 states that adoption of a Charter amendment by the City Council requires an affirmative vote of all its members. Basis for Recommendation: 1. Request by Charter Commission to consider action. If the Council fails to unanimously (all four Council Members and the Mayor) approve this Charter change, then the Charter Commission shall have the option of submitting the matter to a vote of the electorate at a future election. 2. First reading of the amendment to the City Charter was conducted on May 11, 1992. Alternative Recommendation: The Council may wish to discuss this matter further with the Charter Commission. Discussion/Decision Mode: The public hearing and second reading have been scheduled for June 15, 1992. ly submitted, 0 Prosser JDP:ds Altornevs at Law ROBERT A. AI SOP ONALD H. BATTY ?TEPHEN J. BI'BI*I. JOHN B. DEAN MARY C. DOBBINS STEFANIE N. CALEI CORRINE. A. HEINE. JAMES S. HOI.MES DAVID J. KF.NNEDI JOHN R. LARSON WELLINGTON H. LAN' CHARLES L. I,FFEIERE: HOLMES & GRAVEN CHARTERED 470 Pillsbury Center, Minneapolis, Minnesota 55402 (612) 337-9300 Facsimile (612) 337-9310 WRITER'S DIRECT DIAL 337-9207 V JOHN M. LEFE.VRF., JR. ROBERT J. LINDA I.I. LAURA K. MOLLET BARBARA I.. PORTWOOD JAMES M. STROMMEN JAMES J. THOMSON, JR. LARRY M. WERTHE.IM BONNIE 1.. WILKINS GARY P. WINTER DAVID 1.. GRAVES (1929-1991) OF (01 NSF:I. ROBERT (. CARLSON 'ROBERT 1.. DAVIDSON V1, May 12, 1992 U ?. ?L? _ James D. Prosser Cierk V Ll ;_ ` City Manager City of Richfield 6700 Portland Ave. S. Richfield, MN 55423 Re: Charter Amendments Dear Jim: At the council meeting last night, Ivan Ludeman raised a question concerning • whether it was necessary, in connection with the vacancy filling process contained in the proposed amendments, to also amend Section 4. 0.1 at this time rather than wait for the next round of proposed changes from the charter commission. My response is, although Section 4.01 does need to be changed, the new provisions dealing with the filling of vacancies no,longer are keyed to a "regular municipal election" and consequently, Section 4.01 will not create any ambiguity with respect .to the new process for filling vacancies. The charter currently reads that the council, or the mayor in the case of a deadlock, appoints a person to fill a vacancy until the next regular municipal election when the vacancy is filled for the unexpired term. When this language is read together with the language in 4. 01, which calls for regular municipal elections each year, the difficult interpretation problem which Ivan was referring to is created. The proposed charter amendment sets forth three separate procedures to fill vacancies. If 90 days or less remain in the unexpired term of a council member, the person elected for the new term is appointed for the unexpired term. If between 91 and 179 days remain in the unexpired term, the council or mayor appoint someone for the unexpired term. If 180 days or more remain, the vacancy is filled at a special election for the unexpired term. Much the same provisions are contained in the new procedure for vacancy in the office of mayor. So the answer to Ivan's question is that Section 4.01, although in need of change, is not relevant to the vacancy filling process contained in the proposed amendments. JBD34763 RC160-1 Mr. James Prosser May 12, 1992 • Page 2 I understand that once the proposed amendments have been approved, the charter commission will be bringing a number of other charter changes to the council. These will defenitely include an amendment to Section 4.01. Respectfully yours, Jo B. Dean JBD : rsr 9 0 JBD34763 RC160-1 HOLMES & GRAVEN RECEIVED JUN Q 1 19?? CHARTERED Attorneys at Law ROBERT A. ALSOP RONALD H. BATTY EPHEN J. BUBUL N B. DEAN WARY G. DOBBINS STEFANIE N. GALEY CORRINE A. HEINE JAMES S. HOLMES DAVID J. KENNEDY JOHN R. LARSON WELLINGTON H. LAW CHARLES L. LEFEVERE 470 Pillsbury Center, Minneapoiis, Minnesota 55402 (612) 337-9300 Facsimile (612) 337-9310 WRITER'S DIRECT DIAL 337-9207 May 29, 1992 James Prosser City Manager City of Richfield 6700 Portland" Ave. S. Richfield, MN 55423 Thomas Ticen Chairperson Richfield Charter Commission 7011 James Avenue South Richfield, MN 55423 RE: Amendments to Charter 0 Gentlemen /ACour,cil N Iy. n. iv Cler!( JOHN M. LEFEVRE, JR. ROBERT J. LINDALL LAURA K. MOLLET BARBARA L.PORTWOOD JAMES M. STROMMEN JAMES J. THOMSON, JR. LARRY M. WERTHEIM BONNIE L. WILKINS GARY P. WINTER DAVID L. GRAVEN(1929-1991) OF COUNSEL ROBERT C. CARLSON ROBERT L. DAVIDSON Cor"'. Sbc. Liq_ -? Fib. Safely --^. Enclosed please find my draft of an ordinance covering the "second round" of amendments to the Charter. The ordinance is based upon the changes proposed by Mr. Doebler in his February 19, 1992 letter to Mr. Prosser. The following changes which were mentioned in Mr. Doebler's letter have not been incorporated in the draft ordinance. 1. 3.09 - The typo was corrected in prior codifications of the Charter. 2. 6.01, 6.03, 7.06, 11.03 and 13.06 involves typos which accurred when the 9/10/90 codification of the Charter was made. In previous codifications they were not present. Consequently, they can all be corrected without the need for formal amendment when the current rounds of amendments are codified. I have the following additional comments regarding the points of Bob's February 19th letter. 1. The change to 4.05 have not yet been made. As a result they have been included in the draft ordinance. It should further be determined by the Commission whether the petition filing fee is to be $5.00 or $25.00. 2. Bob's proposed language for the change to 5.21 was modified to conform • to the language contained in the proposed amendments to 2.05 and 2.06. Mr. James Prosser Mr. Thomas Ticen May 28, 1992 Page 2 Other than as noted above, the draft ordinance should include the changes proposed by Mr. Doebler. Respectfully yours, J B . Dean JB D : ckr I• r] L BILL NO. 1992- AN ORDINANCE RELATING TO CITY GOVERNMENT : AMENDING THE RICHFIELD CITY CHARTER CITY OF RICHFIELD DOES ORDAIN: Section 1. Background: Findings: Authority. 1.01. The City of Richfield (City) is governed by a home rule charter adopted November 3, 1964, pursuant to the Constitution of the state of Minnesota and Minnesota Statutes, Chapter 410 (Act). 1.02. The Charter Commission of the City has proposed the adoption of an amendment (Amendment) of the City Charter ("Charter") and recommended to the City Council that the Amendment be adopted by City Council ordinance in the manner prescribed by Section 410.12, Subdivision 7 of the Act. The form of the amendment is set out in Section 2.02. 1.03. A public hearing on the Amendment was duly held on , 19_, by the City Council after two weeks' published notice containing the text of the Amendment as required by the Act. The notice contained a brief description of the nature and scope of the Amendment. All persons desiring to be heard with reference to the Amendment were heard at the public hearing. 1.04. The Council finds and determines that it is in the best interests of the City and its inhabitants that the Amendment be adopted. Sec. 2. Adoption: Effective Date. 2.01. The Amendment, as proposed by the Commission, is adopted. 2.02. The text of the proposed amendment is as follows : 1. Chapter 4 of the Charter is amended in the following respects : A. By amending Section 4.01 thereof to read as follows: Section 4.01. The Regular Municipal Election. The regular municipal election shall be held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November of each even numbered year at such place or places as the City Council may designate. The City Clerk shall give at least two weeks previous notice of the time and place of holding such election and of the officers to be elected by posting in at least one public place in each voting precinct and by publication at least once in the official place in each voting precinct and by publication at least once in the official newspaper, but failure to give such notice shall not invalidate such election. B . By amending Section 4.02 thereof to read as follows : • Section 4.02. Primary Election. On the first Tuesday after the second Monday in September preceding the regular municipal election there shall be a primary election for the selection of two nominees for each elected e€€ieial office at JBD35751 RC160-1 regular municipal election unless no more than two nominees file for each elective office. The City Clerk shall give at least two weeks previous notice of the time and place of holding such election and of the officers to be elected by posting in at least one public place in each voting precinct and by publication at least once in the official newspaper, but failure to give such notice shall not invalidate such election. C. By amending Section 4.04 thereof to read as follows : Section 4.04. Nomination by Petition. All candidates for elective office provided for by this charter shall be nominated by petition. The name of any registered voter of the City shall be printed upon the ballot as a candidate for an office whenever a petition signed by at least ten registered voters has been filed with the City Clerk in a candidate's behalf not me-Pe t eight nei? less the sim within the time period provided by State law for such filings. No registered voter shall sign petitions for more candidates for any office than the number of persons to be chosen for that office at the election; should a signer do so, the signer's signature shall be void as to the petition or petitions last filed. Each petition presented shall be accompanied by a five dollar ($5.00) filing fee. -Bi 1987-44 6 26-87 II. Chapter 5 of the Charter is amended in the following respects : A . By amending Section 5.02 thereof to read as follows : Section 5.02. Expenditures by Petitioners. No member of the initiative referendum, or recall committee, no circulator of a signature paper, and no signer . of any such paper, or any other person, shall accept or offer any reward, pecuniary or otherwise, for service rendered in connection with the circulation thereof, but this shall not prevent the committee from paying for legal advice and from incurring any expense not to exceed $200.90 $400.00 for stationery, copying, printing, and notarial fees. Any violation of the provisions of this section is a misdemeanor. {-} 1982-204 7-26-82 B . by amending Section 5.19 thereof to read as follows : Section 5.19. Form of Recall Ballot. The form of the ballot at such election shall be: • "Shall be recalled?" The name of the Council member whose recall is sought and his or her office shall be in blank. The electors shall be permitted to vote separately "Yes" or "No" upon this question. If a majority of those voting on the question of recall in favor of recall, the official shall be thereby removed from office. (Bill 1982-904 7-26-89 Section 5.20. Procedure to Fill Vacancy. In the event that a Council member is recalled by the electors or resigns after a petition has been filed for his or her recall, the vacancy shall be filled in the following manner: If less than six months remain in the Council member's term of the office at the time of the recall election or at the time of resignation in response to a recall petition, as the case may be, the vacancy shall be filed by the remaining members of the City Council for the unexpired term pursuant to Section 2.05. • If six months or more remain in the Council member's term at the time of such recall or resignation, the Council shall call a special election to fill the vacancy for the balance of the Council member's term. Such election shall be called within ten JBD35751 RC160-1 2 (10) days after such recall or resignation, and the special election shall be held not . less than thirty (30) nor more than feoty-Ave sixty 60 days after the meeting at which the election is called. Candidates to fill the unexpired term shall be nominated in the usual way and the election and the election shall be conducted as far as possible in accordance with procedures in municipal elections except that there shall be no primary election and the candidate receiving the highest number of votes for the office shall be elected in fill the unexpired term. 'R 11 1982-29) 7-26-82 C. By adding a new Section 5.21 to read as follows : Section 5.21. When Term Starts. The term of the candidate selected by the voters at the regular or special election to fill the unexpired term shall start as soon as the declaration of the results has been filed with the City Clerk, and the person has qualified for office. III. Chapter 9 of the Charter is amended by amending Section 9.02 thereof to read as follows : Section 9.02. Proceedings in Acquiring Property. The necessity for the taking of any property by the City shall be determined by the Council and shall be declared by a resolution which shall describe such property as nearly as may be possible and state the use to which it is to be devoted. In acquiring property by exercising the power of eminent domain, the City shall proceed according to the laws of this state, except as otherwise provided in this Charter. Sec. 2.03. This ordinance is effective ninety (90) days after its publication, provided that if within sixty (60) days after publication a petition requesting a . referendum on this ordinance, signed by the number of registered voters of the City required by the Act is filed with the City Clerk, this ordinance will not be effective until approved by 51% of the voters voting on the question of its adoption at the special election called by the Council for that purpose. See. 2.04. On the effective date of the Amendment the City Clerk is authorized and directed to file copies of the Amendment with the Secretary of State of the State of Minnesota, the Hennepin County Recorder, and in the City Clerk's office, together with the certificate required by Section 410.11 of the Act. Martin J. Kirsch, Mayor ATTEST: Thomas P. Ferber, City Clerk JBD35751 RC160-1 3