City Council

Members Present: Jantzer, Olson, Podrygula, Straight, Wolsky, and Pitner Members Absent: Sipma The Census Complete Count Committee held a meeting which was attended by a quorum of the City Council. The meeting began at 9:00 am at Minot Auditorium, room 201. Mr. Billingsley, Community & Economic Development Director led the meeting and introduced all of the Committee members. He then added two items to the agenda, 8.1- Home and Garden Show and 8.2- NDLC Competition. IV. Kiosk Training Mr. Billingsley said, in the 2010 Census there was a 78% self-participation rate in North Dakota so his goal is to increase self-participation above 80%. There are three kiosks which are divided into one-week intervals so that each group or organization is responsible for one week. Kiosk #1 will be located at various grocery stores, Kiosk #2 will reach out to the hard to count population, and Kiosk #3 will revolve around events and churches. He announced, they are still looking for a group to volunteer for Week #9, May 4-10. At 9:09 Alderman Podrygula entered. Mr. Billingsley explained that volunteers handling Kiosk #1 need to call the grocery stores before setting up. Alderman Podrygula asked about ensuring group homes are counted. Joey Kittsman, of the U.S. Census Bureau, explained, it is part of the national campaign to reach out to group homes, jails, prisons, etc. The Census Bureau has the most complete list of licensed and unlicensed facilities in the United States. Mr. Billingsley said, the Kiosks are mobile and each comes in a duffle bag which includes the tablet, a tablecloth, and promotional materials. He also pointed out documentation which explains that all information is confidential. He reviewed paperwork that should be filled out by the volunteer at the Kiosk to track the number of people using each tablet. Mr. Kittsman further explained, everyone who lives here should be counted in order to get a snapshot of the number of residents. Legal status is not a factor and the Census Bureau does not release information to ICE, the FBI, or any other agency. He then said he would send a copy of the official rules. Mr. Billingsley then read aloud a quick introduction sheet which outlines many of the frequently asked questions about the census. The group discussed other locations the census could be completed including five permanent sites at the Minot Public Library and permanent locations at The Parker, Community Action, Minot Area Homeless Coalition, Independence Inc, Head Start, and Souris Valley United Way. Derek Hackett, Public Information Officer, then explained some information regarding the tablets. He advised the volunteers to keep the tablets charged since they will be on for a majority of the day. He provided the password and described how to use the browser to access the Census website. The Committee confirmed there will be wireless internet access at each of the grocery store locations but they will need to contact the store to find out a password. Upon questioning by Alderman Straight, Mr. Kittsman said there will be live data updated daily demonstrating participation throughout the city. V. Financial Update Mr. Billingsley provided a financial update in the materials he distributed. He said, about 20% of the budget has been spent so far and advertising will consume most of the additional funds. VI. Printing Project Update He then pointed out the promotional materials including banners, posters, pamphlets, t-shirts and other items available for the group to take with them. Alderman Olson stated, the City Council will wear the t-shirts to the first Council meeting in April. Billingsley said, they are still waiting for the stickers that will be adhered to pizza boxes around the city. Members of the Committee volunteered to reach out to other pizza restaurants to include in the distribution. VII. Advertising Update Mr. Hackett said, radio advertising begins the following week on the local stations through iHeart and Hometown Radio Group. The advertising uses $2,400 of the $4,000 budgeted for radio so they will assess the effectiveness and possibly add more. He also said he has been using social media pages to post reminders and short promotional videos but hasn’t used any funds to boost posts yet. Alderman Pitner mentioned promoting the Census on Facebook using the Share/Like/Comment to win with potential donations from local businesses. He said, people love the chance to win prizes so businesses could provide a small prize to a Facebook user who shares a post about the census or participates in the census themselves. Rianne Kuhn of Visit Minot cautioned they should review the Facebook rules on “paying” for likes. Mr. Kittsman also suggested Census trivia giveaways on the radio, which is being done in other cities. Alderman Pitner left the meeting at 9:53. Billingsley said, the City Sanitation trucks now have advertisements posted on them and the City bus was also wrapped with Census promotions. VIII. Census Day Event A Census Day event will be held April 1st at the Armory of the Minot Auditorium. It will likely take place from 4:00-7:00 pm and will have food vendors and activities for children. Alderman Jantzer left the meeting at 9:56. VIII.I. Home & Garden Show Billingsley asked for volunteers to attend the Home & Garden show taking place this weekend, to represent the Complete Count Committee and answer questions. Alderman Straight volunteered for Saturday from 3:00-5:00 and Karen Knowles volunteered from 12:00-1:00. VIII.II. NDLC Competition Billingsley mentioned a competition conducted by the North Dakota League of Cities in which a bracket was designed for ND cities to compete for the highest participation rate. The first-round places the City of Minot against the City of Grafton. IX. U.S. Census Bureau Update Mr. Kittsman showed a video demonstrating how to complete the Census. He said, assistance will be available from the U.S. Census Bureau throughout the Census period. He or his staff will likely be in Minot on Mondays throughout that time. The next meeting of the Census Complete Count Committee will be March 20th at 9:00 at Public Works. There being no further business, the meeting adjourned at 10:38 am. Respectfully submitted, Kelly Matalka, City Clerk