Loading...
12/04/2009 - City Council SpecialCityofEaQali 1110 TO: MAYOR AND CITY COUNCILMEMBERS FROM: CITY ADMINISTRATOR HEDGES DATE: DECEMBER 4, 2009 SUBJECT: DECEMBER 8, 2009 BUDGET OPEN HOUSE Per the direction of the Council, a budget open house is scheduled for Tuesday, December 8 from 5:30 -7 p.m. in the Eagan Room. The set up for the open house will include departmental stations, which will include large boards summarizing the services that each department provides. The department directors and additional staff will be available at each station to respond to questions and accept feedback from attendees. There will also be a Council station with a board highlighting the services and role of the City Council. While there is a Council station, the Council can certainly feel free to move around and interact with residents throughout the room and staff from Administration can respond to any questions pertaining to the services offered by the Council. Guests attending the open house will be met at the door by a staff' greeter" to welcome them and provide guidance on who they can speak to with specific questions. In addition to having the opportunity to dialogue with Councilmembers and staff, there will be a "suggestion box" where guests can fill out a form to share any budget recommendations they may have. There will also be a handout summarizing the services provided by each department within the City, which includes some numeric examples such as the amount of equipment and vehicles maintained by the City, zoning cases per year, Police calls for service, etc. Lastly, a Power Point presentation has been prepared to play on a continuous loop throughout the evening, which will explain the budget challenges the City is facing, how the City has addressed those challenges to date, and how the City's budget compares to other municipalities. As a reminder, this budget open house has been promoted and advertised extensively. Notice of the open house was included in the two most recent Experience Eagan newsletters and has been featured on the City's website for the past couple of months. Additionally, press releases were sent to both local newspapers, and stories were run in the two newspapers. The open house was also referenced in the Mayor's recent Op Ed piece regarding the City's budget and was advertised via the City's electronic reader board on Pilot Knob Road. All of these efforts were in addition to the many references made at the December 1 City Council meeting, at which constituents were invited to attend the December 8 open house as an informal opportunity to ask questions and make recommendations to the Council regarding the budget for 2010 and beyond. If you have any questions about the logistics or plans for the December 8 Budget Open House, please feel free to contact the City Administrator. /s /Thomas L. Hedges City Administrator