Council Subcommittee

MINUTES OF THE GILBERT TOWN COUNCIL SUBCOMMITTEE ON COMMUNICATIONS, IN SPECIAL MEETING OF WEDNESDAY, APRIL 5, 2023 AT 9:00 A.M., GILBERT MUNICIPAL CENTER I, COMMUNITY ROOM 202, 50 E CIVIC CENTER DRIVE, GILBERT, ARIZONA COUNCIL PRESENT: Subcommittee Chair/Vice Mayor Kathy Tilque, Councilmember Yung Koprowski and Councilmember Chuck Bongiovanni COUNCIL ABSENT: None STAFF PRESENT: Town Manager Patrick Banger, Town Clerk Chaveli Herrera, Chief Digital Officer Dana Berchman, Digital Engagement Coordinator Kelsey Perry, Council Aide Monica D'Ortenzio, Assistant to Town Manager Allyna Bay and Town Clerk Specialist Amy Beyleryan CALL TO ORDER Subcommittee Chair Tilque called the meeting to order at 9:02 a.m. ROLL CALL Town Clerk Herrera called roll and declared a quorum present. ADMINISTRATIVE ITEMS 1. MINUTES - Consider approval of the minutes of the Subcommittee on Communications Meeting of February 22, 2023, March 1, 2023 and March 7, 2023. 1 A MOTION was made by Councilmember Koprowski seconded by Councilmember Bongiovanni to approve the minutes of the Subcommittee on Communications Meeting of February 22, 2023, March 1, 2023 and March 7, 2023. Motion carried 3-0. 2. COMMUNITY OUTREACH/ENGAGEMENT EFFORTS a) Community Outreach Survey – results and evaluation Subcommittee Chair Tilque thanked everyone for their work and efforts. She said as they evaluated the information, she would like to consider some survey questions to ask the Mayor’s Youth Advisory Committee (MYAC) students. Digital Engagement Coordinator Perry shared the compiled survey results stating over 1,000 people took the survey which ran for almost one month and 95% of respondents were Gilbert residents. She discussed the survey questions and shared the topics that were selected the most stating that Facebook (Newsfeed) and Instagram were the most frequently used social media platforms she also shared this data tallied by age range. She provided the results showing email was the top choice for the preferred method to engage with Council and the top three choices for getting information about Gilbert news and events were by e-newsletter, social media, and the Town’s website. She spoke about maintaining infrastructure as the most selected local issue that mattered most stating that only 8% of respondents answered other to this question and their responses included apartments, feral cats, honesty, inclusiveness, and homelessness. She concluded her presentation by stating 1/3 of the survey participants shared additional thoughts on how the Council can better communicate with the community and the most common responses were traffic, growth, transparency, apartments, Council/staff feedback, and listening. Councilmember Bongiovanni commented on the ranking of feeling of safety as the third most rated local issue that mattered most and said he was curious why it was rated so highly stating Gilbert was a fairly safe place. Councilmember Koprowski commented saying that may have been selected to show level of importance and not necessarily 2 because they felt unsafe. Digital Engagement Coordinator Perry stated many comments were received on various social media posts where people expressed they felt safe. Chief Digital Officer Berchman commented on the Nextdoor app being rated higher than she expected stating it may be a good question to ask student government. Subcommittee Chair Tilque said she was not surprised by the general topics and seemed on track, she spoke about an opt-in campaign being an opportunity to explore. Councilmember Koprowski said people who attended the Town Hall meetings were not new residents and had already learned ways to get information from the Town. There was discussion regarding an opt-in campaign for the Town’s newsletter. Subcommittee Chair Tilque spoke about signing up customers and providing an option to opt out. There was further discussion on the newsletter and possibility of including links to other resources on the Town’s website. Chair Tilque spoke about the MYAC student survey questions, stating she wanted to ask about topics that would resonate with them. Town Manager Banger suggested to preface the survey advising the students to look into the future and what would be of importance. Councilmember Bongiovanni suggested asking if they planned to live in Gilbert ten years later and why or why not. b) Community Town Hall - evaluate information Assistant to Town Manager Bay discussed the Town Hall participation stating most of the attendees resided in Gilbert for over 10 years and stated only 20% had done the online survey. She said most people heard about the Town Hall meetings through email and social media was rated highest for the preferred method to get information about Gilbert news and events. She spoke of the top local Gilbert issues that mattered most and managing growth was rated as the top concern and transportation and traffic was the second most important. She spoke of the freeform responses which included 3 suggestions to hold Town Halls/Focus meetings, neighborhood/Homeowner’s Association (HOA) meetings, GIS Story Maps, and communication timeline information on projects. Subcommittee Chair Tilque discussed the information received from the survey and Town Halls, and summarized different subjects stating her goal was to identify action items to present to Council. She spoke briefly of some of the completed items, which included the color-coded Request to Speak cards and online Comment cards. There was discussion about exploring the option to allow public comments for Consent, Administrative, Policy and Study Session items. Subcommittee Chair Tilque asked Town Clerk Herrera to research rules for allowing questions from the audience during Study Sessions. Chair Tilque discussed closing the loop with public speakers, and asked if their email address was provided on the request to speak form, if an email could be sent thanking them for their comments. Town Clerk Herrera spoke about which email address the email would be sent from and said she would look into it further. Councilmember Bongiovanni asked about digitizing the Request to Speak cards. Town Clerk Herrera responded that it could be further explored but the issue currently was finding a way to transfer the information to the dais. Subcommittee Chair Tilque spoke about decorum and making rules clear. There was discussion on decorum and clapping in relation to First Amendment rights. There was further discussion about allowing ten minutes to speak on behalf of a group and Subcommittee Chair Tilque stated she would research the topic and bring the information to the next meeting. She spoke about consistency on all agendas across all Boards and Commissions. Town Clerk Herrera stated some of the agenda process was manual and some was from the software and said she would speak to all staff liaisons and provide a template for consistency. 4 Subcommittee Chair Tilque shared a list of recommended action items which included active participation from Town Attorney, orientation and annual training for Boards and Commissions staff liaisons, clarification on voting, also on Council Communication form, reducing last minute agenda items, and letting people know final decision on items Council asked for feedback. Town Clerk Herrera spoke about the Action Sheet stating it was a document posted internally for Town Staff the next day following Council meetings. There was discussion about the possibility of making Action Sheets publicly available and emailed to the Council. Subcommittee Chair Tilque discussed communication using several options and different constituents such as meeting with those impacted by Capital Improvement Projects (CIP). Councilmember Koprowski suggested a flowchart showing dollar value of construction, right of way easement projects, working with consultants, stating direct mail may be valuable in certain cases and a better way to approach. Subcommittee Chair Tilque recommended to explore that stating it would be a great opportunity to get out ahead. Subcommittee Chair Tilque discussed some of the things that were underway such as the Public Works Advisory Retreat and hiring an in-house communication professional. There was discussion about CIP projects and notifications, re-engaging stakeholders and Business Advisory Committee, and hosting development services. There was discussion regarding the Town website being difficult to navigate and exploring best practices and using QR Codes to direct people to information, directory, and Contact Us page. There was further discussion on recommending process for topics for in person Town Halls, developing a calendar, hosting at Council Chambers with virtual option for questions. 5 Subcommittee Chair Tilque stated Council meeting decorum and protocol was also being reviewed by the Ethics Subcommittee. She spoke about the recommendation for etiquette for Council to speak and process for requesting items on a future agenda. She also spoke about general training providing difference between tabling and continuing an item, and civil discourse training. She briefly discussed the Council being an environmental model at meetings. c) Timelines Subcommittee Chair Tilque stated the next Subcommittee meeting will be on April 19, 2023 at which they would follow-up on the public comment follow-up and Council Meeting Procedural Information video. 3. PUBLIC COMMENTS AND COUNCIL MEETING PROCEDURES a. Council Meeting Procedural Information Video b. Public comment follow-up Chief Digital Officer Berchman stated the video outlining Council meeting processes was done and would be presented to the Subcommittee soon. 4. ACTION ITEMS a. Set dates for future Subcommittee meetings b. Other action items as assigned Subcommittee Chair Tilque stated the next Subcommittee meeting will be held on April 19, 2023. FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS No discussion. ADJOURN 6 Subcommittee Chair Tilque adjourned the meeting at 12:01 p.m. ATTEST: ___________________________ ___________________________________ Kathy Tilque, Chair Amy Beyleryan, Town Clerk Specialist CERTIFICATION I hereby certify that the foregoing minutes are a true and correct copy of the minutes of the special meeting of the Subcommittee on Communications of the Town of Gilbert held on the 5th day of April, 2023. I further certify that the meeting was duly called and held and that a quorum was present. Dated this ____ day of ____________________2023. ___________________________________ Amy Beyleryan, Town Clerk Specialist 7