No Vacancy
Deciding how to handle Council vacancies will be important to do now, before it happens
This week
City Council Meeting
The Council met on Monday for its first meeting of the year. Prior to the meeting, we took photos which should be on the city website within the next few weeks. The Mayor also made the annual appointments for liaison and subcommittee positions.
Those appointments are as follows:
Planning Commission: CM Dunlap; Alternate Mayor Stockamp
Parks and Recreation Commission: CM Lund; Alternate CM Tanner
Heritage Preservation Commission: CM Tanner; Alternate CM Lund
Public Safety Commission: CM Goede; Alternate Mayor Stockamp
Public Works Subcommittee: CM Dunlap & CM Lund; Alternate CM Goede
Administrative Subcommittee: Mayor Stockamp & CM Tanner; Alternate CM Goede
During the meeting, I requested that staff prepare an ordinance for how to handle council vacancies. Although it's a rare event, it does happen - and has happened in Otsego in the past. Filling these vacancies can sometimes bring out a lot of partisanship and political maneuvering depending on when those vacancies occur. My goal is to solve that issue before it becomes a problem.
Prior to the end of last year, Orono had a vacancy on the Council after 3 of the 5 members of the Council were replaced by individuals who vowed to re-establish a relationship with their neighbor for contracted fire service. The creation of a municipal fire department in Orono has been a contentious, expensive, and largely unsuccessful venture. The voters sent a clear message, and the lone supporter of the municipal fire department perhaps saw the writing on the wall and decided to resign. With only two meetings left in the year, the lame duck Council could have waited for the new Council to fill the vacancy. However, the outgoing Mayor of Orono wanted to push the issue, knowing that a tie vote would grant him the authority to put anyone he wanted in that spot. However, he perhaps thought that person would be able to hold the seat for the 2+ years since the city had no ordinance on special elections. The incoming mayor disagrees and has stated that a special election will take place.
Nowthen had a vacancy at the end of last year, with the Council also attempting to fill that seat immediately. The Mayor and two remaining Council Members were ending their term. In a situation similar to what Orono experienced, the vote would have been 2-2 to appoint someone to fill the vacancy - which means the Mayor would then have the ability to appoint anyone they wanted. Unlike Orono, however, two of the Council Members left prior to the vote taking place, which resulted in there no longer being a quorum and the meeting had to end, leaving the seat still vacant.
After Nowthen came back in the new year, there was still a lot of confusion and disagreement over how the process should be handled. A vote to go through a process of interviewing candidates did not succeed because two of the four Council Members believed a special election should first occur.
Anoka, Hanover, and Isanti have vacancies that are perhaps less controversial. Isanti will need to fill a mayoral seat, which has been temporarily done until a special election can be held. Anoka and Hanover have a vacancy due to a member of the Council being elected to the mayor position. Anoka will fill their seat after interviews, and it's not yet clear how Hanover will fill theirs.
Interviewing candidates to fill a vacancy is not a requirement by law, yet it can increase transparency in the process. The law also does not state when a special election needs to be held except that it must occur if the remainder of the term is more than 2 years, and it must occur on or before the next general election.
Filling a vacant seat on a five person council can be somewhat time sensitive. With only four elected officials in office, a three person quorum becomes more likely and only two people would then become a majority - what that means is any decision that requires a simple majority could be decided by just two people if one of the four remaining council members don’t show up. Often, issues are unable to be resolved with split votes since a majority (more than 2 votes) is needed on a council of four. There are only a few decisions that a council makes that have requirements beyond a simple majority.
Public Safety Commission Meeting
The Public Safety Commission met on Tuesday as part of their regular meeting. A representative from Allina was available to go over the ambulance response metrics. There was also a representative from the Wright County Sheriff's Office to go over recent events.
The meeting that will be held on March 11th is tentatively scheduled to be a joint meeting with the City Council to go over the staffing model for the fire department.
Next Week
City Offices Closed on Monday
Due to the holiday, City Offices will be closed on Monday.
Commission Meetings Canceled
The Planning Commission and Parks and Recreation Commission would normally meet next week as part of their regular meetings. However, both of those meetings have been canceled due to a lack of agenda items.
Public Works Subcommittee
The Public Works Subcommittee will meet next week to discuss several important items. Below is a list of the items on the main agenda:
2025 Mill and Overlay / Paint Striping Project - Plans and Specifications
Martin Farms Lift Station - Agreement
Mt. Simon Aquifer Monitoring Well - Agreement
South Central Wellfield Development - Bid Authorization
Wellhouse 3 Water Treatment - Geotechnical Quotes
Fleet Procurement: Dump Box Trailer for Parks Department
Fleet Procurement: Air Compressor Trailer, Roller Trailer, Traffic Management Trailer, and Utility Task Vehicle for the Public Works Department