03.20.2017 Meeting Minutes
Mayor Dennis Boback was reinstated as mayor for another term in a 4 to 1 vote, with Council Member Anita Cereceda dissenting. Tracey Gore was selected as vice mayor in a 3 to 2 vote, with Council Members Bruce Butcher and Cereceda dissenting.
Former Mayor Dan Hughes gave the new council some “unsolicited advice” during public comment. By running for council, the council members demonstrated their willingness to serve the town, he said, but “unseemly contention” on council had caught the eye of the press and the consternation of town residents. As a former public servant, civil attorney, town charter member, council member and mayor, Hughes gave the council some wise words:
“Keep an open mind on all issues. Don’t make decisions until you’ve heard all of the facts. Follow the comprehensive plan and land development code but recognize they are living documents and at times amendments, variations and exceptions are appropriate where reason and common sense shall dictate. Maintain decorum and civility at town council meetings and respect for fellow council members.”
“Disagreement is okay, acrimony is not. You all share one common goal, whatever is in the best interest of our town,” Hughes said.
The town manager search is going through the selection process, but a final pick is still months away. The town received 77 applications from around the country to fill the shoes of Interim Manager JIm Steele. Council members selected their top 10 candidates, and if a candidate was marked on at least three of the council members’ individual lists, they were kept in the running, cutting the list to approximately 27. Now, the council will take the overall top 10 and conduct phone interviews with them during a special meeting scheduled tentatively for April 5. Each council member will bring about five questions to ask the candidates. Following the phone interviews, a short list of up to five candidates will be cut and those on the list will come in for one-on-one interviews with council. Steele predicted a contract could be offered to the final candidate by late May.
Upon Council Member Anita Cereceda’s suggestion, the council is going to try out a new meeting schedule. Instead of holding a work session before each regular meeting, the council will now have one all-day planning session the first Thursday of the month, with as-needed planning sessions or special meetings added to the month when needed. The planning session would begin at 9 a.m., break for an hour lunch, and reconvene and conclude by 5 p.m. or when business was finished.
Further, regular council meetings will now be scheduled at 9 a.m. for every meeting with the exception of budget hearings, which are required to be held after 5 p.m.
“All these meetings are tiresome to the public,” Cereceda said. She suggested that two work sessions could be planned a month until things evened out, but making them on a different day would make the work flow better. For those who work and can’t attend 9 a.m. meetings, she suggested they can watch them online instead.
“I love this idea,” Vice Mayor Gore said.
The next regular meeting is Monday, April 3 at 9 a.m. The first planning session will be Thursday, April 6 at 9 a.m.