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12-5-11 public mtg v MINUTES OF THE PUBLIC MEETING BETWEEN COMMISSIONER MARK BECKENBACH AND COMMISSIONER CAROLYN WOODS OF THE ATLANTIC BEACH CITY COMMISSION HELD IN THE COMMISSION CHAMBER ON DECEMBER 5, 2011 AT 1:00 PM City Commission Members present: Carolyn Woods Mark Beckenbach Staff present: Nancy Bailey, Recording Secretary The meeting, which was held for the purpose of gathering information from Commissioner Woods by Commissioner Beckenbach regarding deferred agenda items from the 11/28/11 Commission Meeting was called to order at 1:00 p.m. Commissioner Beckenbach stated he would like to discuss the motions that were tabled, what happened at the last meeting and how they can try to alleviate that over time. He stated he was looking at how to circumvent the procedural rule and was informed by City Attorney Alan Jensen that after it is voted on and you are not part of the winning side you can ask for a motion either to rescind or amend, at any time. He stated if they had moved forward with a motion to amend then they could have moved it through without any procedural problem. Commissioner Woods stated she called the Florida League of Cities to discuss this and to see if this issue has come up before in other cities and was told it had not. She stated they agreed with her that since it was a new commission that no one on the Commission was held to that two -week time period. She stated she believes a motion to amend would be the easiest thing to do at this time. Commissioner Beckenbach read a clarifying statement of what action could be taken. Commissioner Beckenbach stated it was his understanding that she could amend the motion so they will not consider hiring someone prior to a particular date. Discussion ensued regarding the Redevelopment and Zoning Coordinator position and the options available for the motion. Commissioner Woods stated she will get with Donna to make a motion to amend and to set the timeframe for the hiring of the position until after the Strategic Planning workshop. Commissioner Beckenbach asked Commissioner Woods to explain the organizational report she requested. Commissioner Woods elaborated on Troy, Michigan's organizational review stating it basically streamlined and made things more efficient. She stated they looked at things like software, restructuring for greater efficiency, and employee morale. She stated this is not a witch hunt, but with the economic changes going on around the world she believes it is best to be proactive. Discussion ensued on what they are looking for in an organizational review, what they expect from the review and how to make the motion. There was discussion on the procedure for RFPs. Commissioner Woods explained she envisions this will be a comprehensive review of the entire organization. Commissioner Beckenbach stated before making a decision on this he would like to hear a presentation from a couple of these firms. Discussion ensued regarding the Assistant City Manager position. Commissioner Woods stated she believes it is shortsighted to just eliminate that position without an overall organizational review. Minutes December 5, 2011 Page 2 It was discussed that perhaps they should not make a motion to hire but rather to select some groups and interview. They stated they may also want to workshop this. Commissioner Beckenbach discussed how Neptune Beach's meetings include a workshop each month stating he likes this format. Discussion ensued regarding the issues with changing the meeting formats, i.e. agenda items that require two readings, and whether it would be feasible to do something like this in Atlantic Beach. Mitch Reeves, from the audience, stated there are a lot of pros and cons to doing this. Commissioner Beckenbach explained the reason he would like this changed is that he believes there is not enough time when they get the agenda on Wednesday, look at it on Thursday, and speak with Jim Hanson about the motions on Friday and on Monday are voting on the item. He stated this is why he believes a workshop in between meetings will not push the information back but will give the opportunity to the citizens to talk to their Commissioners. Mitch Reeves, 1663 Sea Oats Drive, stated he appreciates them having this open sunshine law meeting. He stated what he sees from the Commission meetings is that many Commissioners come up here and introduce a motion and don't even understand their own motion, how to give it, or how to vote on it. He stated Alan Jensen was doing everything he could the other night to give an out for how they could make the motion. He stated a lot of times he doesn't disagree with things that come up, he just disagrees with how they are handled. He stated he doesn't like the idea of "this city does this, that city does that"; we are all in different worlds. He stated they spoke about Troy earlier and asked if anyone looked at Troy's finances, are they in the red or are they in the black, do they have a good government. Commissioner Woods stated she did look at them; they have turned around and are doing a lot better. He stated he doesn't want his Commissioners to take on personal issues /projects but should represent what the people really want. He agreed with Commissioner Beckenbach's concern about the City spending $25,000- $60,000, which is a big spread. He stated he cannot imagine any consulting company not coming into this City saying I'll give you a presentation of what we can do for you at this price. He asked when does the City Council cross the line of managing the government of a city and micro - managing the city. He stated he believes every Commissioner needs to know when do they cross that line. He stated there is so much out there and knows there is the enthusiasm of the newly elected people. He cautioned them to stop, take a deep breath and think things out. He stated he is really tired of this bickering. He stated they have to move on and do what is best for the City and bickering is not good for the City. He stated he doesn't want to go to these workshops and have them turn out to be a big "I'm against this; I'm against that, etc." He stated he wants people who speak at a workshop to be honest and say things like, "have you ever thought about doing this ". He reiterated he appreciates them having open discussions. Commissioner Woods stated she would take their advice and keep it simple. Mitch Reeves suggested they line up some companies to give a presentation on an organizational review with an estimate of their cost to see if we want to move forward. Commissioner Woods stated the whole point of this exercise is the exponential savings over time. Commissioner Beckenbach stated he agreed but believes they would want to see what that exponential savings is going to be and before making decisions hear somebody who is in that business come in and explain how this is going to save them the money. He stated he wants them to be able to tell them what they will do and how they will do it and how much it is going to cost and then there can be a motion at that point. Mr. Reeves stated he believes Commissioner Woods is looking at a reorganization of staff. He stated what happens if the study results in something like, you and Neptune Beach could team up on waste management, or instead of Neptune Beach hiring an animal control person and Atlantic Beach has two, why not just share ours, etc. He stated those are Minutes December 5, 2011 Page 3 organizational things that cities can share. He stated he would be excited about those kinds of organizational changes because that is a savings to the taxpayer, too. Commissioner Woods stated she keeps saying comprehensive and really believes all of that needs to be included. Mr. Reeves stated she knows in her mind what she is thinking but she hasn't expressed it for everybody else to understand what she is saying and believes that is what needs to be done. Commissioner Beckenbach stated Donna Bartle spoke to him about the amount of time and effort there is to do sunshine meetings. He stated it does take staffs time and thanked Nancy Bailey for spending the time over here. He stated he is going to continue to ask the questions, whether it be a one on one, a one on four or whatever it will be. Commissioner Woods stated she believes it is a shame the Mayor wouldn't join them in the beginning so they could develop a working relationship. She stated she believes Mitch Reeves would be seeing a lot less of what bothers him at the Commission meetings if that would happen. Commissioner Beckenbach stated he has the draft for the opinion he requested from Alan Jensen and will make sure he sends that out today. There being no further discussion, the meeting was adjourned at 2:15 p.m. 7 � WA \ Nancy E. Baley Recording Secretary