City Council Worksession

Watertown City Council Work Session Mayor Steve Washburn Lindsay Guetzkow Adam Pawelk Michael Walters Dan Schuette 4/27/2021 - Minutes 1. Call To Order And Roll Call Mayor Steve Washburn called the Watertown City Council workshop to order at 5:31 p.m. on Tuesday April 27, 2021 in the council chambers of City Hall. Council Members Present: Washburn, Michael Walters, Dan Schuette, Lindsay Guetzkow and Adam Pawelk. Staff Present: City Administrator Shane Fineran and Administrative Services Director Lynn Tschudi. 2. New Business 2.I. Transition Discussion City Administrator Fineran explained that he is finalizing his employment with the City of Waconia. Fineran said his final resignation with the City of Watertown will be May 4, 2021 with his last day being June 4, 2021. Fineran said the recruitment for a new City Administrator can take time, so having an interim City Administrator is recommended. Fineran is looking to council for feedback before making any phone calls. Council Member Walters asked if current City Planner Mark Kaltsas would be available as an interim City Administrator since he previously held this role. Fineran said that Kaltsas is extremely busy with his other engagements. Walters said it would be nice to have Kaltsas even if it is on a part-time basis. Mayor Washburn would like a full-time interim City Administrator rather than a part-time interim City Administrator. The Council agreed to use a search firm to look for a new interim and permanent City Administrator. Washburn suggested using David Drown & Associates for this task. Fineran listed four other firms that could be used. He said most interim Administrators work around 25 hours a week. Council member Guetzkow is in favor of using a search firm that is based in Minnesota so they are familiar with the needs of the City. Mayor Washburn said it is important that the City’s contracted services such as Bolton & Menk and the City of Delano know the increased needs of Watertown during this time. Council member Schuette asked if the City can place an independent ad for an interim City Administrator. Fineran said you can either do that or hire a firm. Guetzkow would like to solicit quotes from David Drown & Associates and Baker Tilly for the City  services such as Bolton & Menk and the City of Delano know the increased needs of Watertown during this time. Council member Schuette asked if the City can place an independent ad for an interim City Administrator. Fineran said you can either do that or hire a firm. Guetzkow would like to solicit quotes from David Drown & Associates and Baker Tilly for the City Administrator search. She would like to see an overlap of at least a week with an interim City Administrator. Walters said the Council will need to move fast if that is the case. Washburn suggested to solicit quotes from all four firms for the interim Administrator as soon as possible. He would like to see a contract in place for the search for a full-time City Administrator by the next council meeting. City Administrator Fineran asked Council if he should continue the work on the staff development and organization chart. Washburn asked if there would be any value for a City Administrator to be involved in the small group work. Fineran said it would be more team building across departments and he would find value in continuing the process. The risk is losing the leadership aspect of the program. Council discussed the pros and cons of the staff development process. Council is in favor of moving forward as planned. 3. Adjournment Meeting adjourned at 6:27 p.m. 309 Lewis Avenue South; P.O. Box 279, Watertown, MN 55388