Gathering at the Community Table: A Round-Up of the 2014 Regional Meetings

Lakeville City Clerk Kelly Rasche
was at the table this year!

Coffee and conversation are Minnesota traditions—and city officials in our state are just like the rest of us…happy to indulge in both whenever (and wherever) possible!

Municipal leaders had the chance to do just that when the League of Minnesota Cities staff held a series of statewide Regional Meetings this October. Held every fall in different Greater Minnesota Cities (east, west, north, and south), this year we had a chance to visit with more than 300 city officials in eight locations.

The agenda was heavy on two-way dialogue, as well as the usual options for cream, sugar, or artificial sweetener, of course! Along with mayors, councilmembers and city staff gathered around tables to ponder two timely topics: effective strategies for authentic citizen engagement (or, simply put, how to get residents involved in city government), and maintaining work-life balance.

Discussion highlights included tips on getting citizens to attend city meetings, effective sharing of information, taking the city's message to residents at other community group meetings, and managing mobile phones, among others.

The issue of civility was also addressed—in cinematic fashion, no less. Attendees were treated to a newly-produced LMC video that featured the mayor, council, and staff of the fictional city "Mosquito Heights."

Meeting attendees prepare to watch the
latest Mosquito Heights production.

The latest Heightian adventure showed our characters struggling through the issue of building a new public safety center in a hostile environment marked by personality conflicts, role confusion, and angry citizens. Following the video, meeting attendees convened into roundtable groups to reflect on the potential causes and costs of incivility in their own communities, along with possible remedies.

Each gathering also featured a learning session on technology and data security, along with an update on League legislative activities. And at the conclusion of the meetings in each location, city officials had an opportunity to meet and greet local candidates for the state legislature.

On the whole, not bad for a day's work—all in the name of tradition!

P.S. - There is still one meeting left for this year. The Metro Regional Meeting will take place on Thursday, Nov. 12 in Minneapolis...get details and see the agenda online!

Research Q of the Week: Flying The Stars and Stripes (11/6)

Question: Should my city fly the U.S. flag at half-staff on Veterans Day? How about other patriotic holidays?

Answer: The U.S. flag is one of our country’s oldest symbols and represents the principles of justice, liberty, and democracy. It is displayed at half-staff as a symbol of respect. (The term “half-staff” means the position of the flag when it is one-half the distance between the top and bottom of the staff.)

The U.S. flag should be displayed daily on or near the main administrative building of every public institution. But, cities should not fly the U.S. flag at half-staff on Veterans Day. Who says? The U.S. Flag Code (4 U.S.C. §§ 5-10) provides voluntary guidelines for the proper handling and displaying of the U.S. flag, as well as information on when the flag should be at half-staff.

Read on for some city-specific tips for flying the U.S. flag.

When should the flag be at half-staff?

• On Memorial Day, the U.S. flag should be displayed at half-staff until noon and then raised to the top of the staff.
• The U.S. flag should be displayed at half-staff by the U.S. president’s order, upon the death of principle figures of federal government or the death of the governor of a state.
• The U.S. flag should be displayed at half-staff by the governor’s order, upon the death of a present or former state official or the death of a member of the Armed Forces who dies while serving on active duty.

How long?
The length of time the U.S. flag should be displayed at half-staff varies from 30 days for the death of a U.S. president, to the day of the death and the following day for a member of Congress. When flown at half-staff, the U.S. flag should first be raised to the peak for an instant and then lowered to the half-staff position and should be raised again to the peak before it’s lowered for the day.

So with the upcoming holiday, take a moment to review the U.S. Flag Code and remember to keep the stars and stripes flying correctly.  [post updated 5/22/15]

Written by Susan Naughton, research attorney with the League of Minnesota Cities. Contact: snaughto@lmc.org or (651) 281-1232.

This blog post conveys general information. It’s not legal advice. Please check with your city attorney before acting on this information. 

Spotted: LMC Ambassadors Visit Waite Park Regional Meeting

LMC ambassadors (l-r) Bill Craig, Sev Blenkush, and H. Dan Ness were spotted at the Waite Park Regional Meeting last week. Great photo, guys!

Through the Ambassadors Program, retired city officials and staff (a.k.a. the folks that have seen it all) work to connect you and your city with the right LMC services and make sure your city's needs are being addressed. Want to get in touch with an LMC ambassador? Learn more about the LMC Ambassador Program here.

Photo credit goes to LMC staffer Heather Corcoran

Research Q of the Week: Behind the Not-So-Scary Scenes of Election Day (11/30)

Question: Oh my gosh, it’s almost time for perhaps one of the spookiest days of the year for city staff. ELECTION DAY! It’s so terrifying, I’ve blocked it out. What is it that happens on that day again?

Answer: Don't be afraid! City staff plan year-round to take the "eeee!" out of elections. What are city staffs doing behind the scenes to avoid a fright? Here are some of the more important things that must be done by city staff on and around Election Day:

• Election judges get election materials, including precinct voter rosters and absentee ballot applications, from the clerk before 9 p.m. the night before (Nov. 3) or the clerk can arrange to have them delivered to the polling places before voting begins.
• Before voting begins on Election Day, election judges prepare the polling place with a variety of duties required by law, such as posting the Voters’ Bill of Rights.
• The city clerk must post a sample municipal ballot at each polling place.
• Polls must be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.
• Where the city administers absentee ballots, individuals returning absentee ballots on behalf of another voter must deliver these ballots by 3 p.m.
• After polls close, two members of the ballot board must count the ballots, “tabulating the vote in a manner that indicates each vote of the voter and the total votes cast for each candidate or question.” The results must indicate the total votes cast for each candidate or question in each precinct and report the vote totals tabulated for each precinct. The count must be recorded on a summary statement.
• Within 24 hours after the polls close, election judges must deliver the summary statements, ballots and other materials to the county auditor or clerk. Also within 24 hours of the polls closing, the absentee ballot board must accept or reject absentee ballots that arrived after rosters/supplemental reports were generated.
• Within 48 hours after the polls closing, the clerk must return polling place rosters and completed voter registration cards to county auditors.
• Nov. 7 is the first day the city council can meet as canvassing board for the municipal election this year. A canvassing board reviews the results of an election and either certifies vote totals as official, or orders and administers a recount if necessary.

The Secretary of State’s election division is always the best one-stop shop to help plan your not-so-scary Election Day: 2014 City Clerk Election Guide

Written by Edward Cadman, special counsel with the League of Minnesota Cities. Contact: ecadman@lmc.org or (651) 281-1229.

This blog post conveys general information. It’s not legal advice. Please check with your city attorney before acting on this information. 

Spotted: City Staff 'At the Table' for Regional Meeting in Madelia

Who was at the table for Madelia's Regional Meeting last week? Here are just a few city officials who dedicated their day to learning more about current city issues and networking with others. Thanks for joining us and other city officials at the table.

Up this week are Regional Meetings in Thief River Falls, Vergas, and Waite Park. If you're attending one of our "fresh and local" Regional Meetings, be sure to get a photo with one of our prop signs and show that you're at the table, too!

Sleepy Eye Councilmember Joann Schmidt

Mountain Lake City Administrator
Wendy Meyer

Marshall Councilmember
Joe DeCramer

Lakefield City Clerk Kelly Rasche

 

Photo credit goes to LMC staffers Laura Harris and Heather Corcoran

Research Q of the Week: Bicyclists on Motorways (10/23)

Question: A bicycle pulled up behind my car yesterday and it got me wondering—what are the rules for bicycles on roads?

Answer: We have had such a beautiful fall season that there have been many people on bicycles enjoying the crisp, fall air. While a bicycle in traffic probably isn’t there solely to soak in the sights, it also isn’t there to get in the way of cars either. Let's go through some basics of bikes on roadways that just might surprise you: 

Bicyclists on the Roadway
Bicycles are allowed to operate on roadways right alongside other vehicles. They are regulated by Minnesota Statutes 169.222, which grants them all the rights and duties applicable to automobile drivers. This means yielding to pedestrians, obeying traffic signals, and moving in the same direction as traffic.

Additionally, bicyclists have a right to use the full traffic lane—yes, really. Cars cannot pass a bicycle unless there is at least a three-foot buffer between the car and the bike, which is more than an arm’s length for most people. Not enough room? Then a driver may not pass.

Bicyclists on Sidewalks
It is sometimes suggested that bikes should be on the sidewalks; however, this is problematic for a couple of reasons. First, state law prohibits the use of bicycles on sidewalks within business districts. That law does grant cities the power to pass a local ordinance to allow bikes on sidewalks, but cities cannot prohibit bicycles from city streets, regardless of the district. Second, it can actually be more dangerous to ride on sidewalks because cars often fail to look for fast-moving cyclists when approaching intersections and using driveways.

Visibility and Signals
In terms of visibility, bicycles are required to have a front light and rear deflector when operating at night. I was surprised to learn that a tail light is actually not required. It is also interesting to know that bicyclists need to use hand signals to indicate their turns, however, if both hands are required to maintain control of the bike then hand signals are not necessary.

Because our roads are shared spaces it is important to understand how to travel in harmony. I know that I learned some things while researching the question, so if you ride a bicycle, know someone that does, or drive in an area that has a lot of bicycle traffic, please share this information and someone else can learn from it too!
  
Written by Jake Saufley. Contact the League's Research and Information Service staff by emailing research@lmc.org, or by calling (651) 281-1200 or (800) 925-1122.


This blog post conveys general information. It’s not legal advice. Please check with your city attorney before acting on this information.

Building Inspection Law Shows LMC Policy Process in Action

The League’s policy committee process can take challenges facing cities and create policy solutions to tackle them—but it doesn’t work without you. The 2015 Draft City Policies are now available for review and comment by all Minnesota city officials through Oct. 24. Not sure how the policy committee process can make an impact on your city? Read on for just one example of the policy process in action:

Building inspectors sidelined
Many Minnesota cities need to have a licensed building inspector to enforce state building code—ideally this is a position paid for by fees resulting from their work. But in recent years these cities have found that when a state project such as a school is being built, that their city inspectors have been rejected in favor of Department of Labor and Industry (DLI) inspectors, who then earn the fees from these local and regional projects.

When city officials began inquiring about what qualifications their inspectors would need to complete these larger inspection jobs, they found little in the way of consistent standards or a process for obtaining what is called a “delegation agreement” with the state to allow local inspectors to inspect state projects.

Seasoned city building inspectors were particularly miffed at missing out on projects that were being built just a few blocks away from their City Hall. 

Rob Wolfington has been the city manager in Benson for 19 years. Benson’s building inspector, Mike Jacobson, splits his time between the cities of Benson, Pennock, and Grove City. Without a delegation agreement, Jacobson was passed over for several major local projects in recent years.

“Out here in western Minnesota the only real building that’s been going on in the past three years have been schools and hospitals. And the state was taking all the permit fees and then doing the inspections,” said Jacobson.

Giving cities a voice
Wolfington, who served on the Improving Service Delivery Policy Committee in 2013, brought the problem to the attention of LMC lobbyist Patrick Hynes.

Over the following weeks, other city officials were encouraged to share their experiences with the building inspection process for state facilities. It turns out the city of Benson was not alone, and a position on the issue was added to the 2014 City Policies.

Hynes was able to work with the Association of Minnesota Building Officials, state officials, local inspectors, and legislators to get everyone on the same page, and to begin work on legislation that would start to address the discrepancy.

“Patrick—frankly he’s the one that gets the credit,” said Wofington. “He grabbed onto it like a bulldog and shook it.”

The law passed in the 2013-2014 legislative session as a result of this process allows for three types of delegation authority, and clearly spells out what qualifications are needed for these projects. It’s a step in the right direction, say city officials, and couldn’t have happened if any city were to go it alone.

“The policy committee process gives you voice,” said Wolfington. “It’s a measurable goal if it makes it into the League’s policy book.”

See what policies are being proposed for the future of Minnesota cities at www.lmc.org/draftpolicies. Submit your comments on the 2015 Draft City Policies to policycomments@lmc.org,