City of Bloomington Committee of the Whole met Oct. 17.
Here are the minutes provided by the committee:
The City Council convened in regular session in the Government Center Chambers at 6:00 p.m. Mayor Mboka Mwilambwe called the meeting to order and led the Pledge of Allegiance ending with a moment of silent prayer/reflection.
Roll Call
| Attendee Name | Title | Status |
| Mboka Mwilambwe | Mayor | Present |
| Grant Walch | Council Member, Ward 1 | Present |
| Donna Boelen | Council Member, Ward 2 | Present |
| Sheila Montney | Council Member, Ward 3 | Present |
| Nick Becker | Council Member, Ward 4 | Present |
| Julie Emig | Council Member, Ward 5 | Absent |
| De Urban | Council Member, Ward 6 | Present |
| Mollie Ward | Council Member, Ward 7 | Present |
| Jeff Crabill | Council Member, Ward 8 | Present |
| Tom Crumpler | Council Member, Ward 9 | Present |
Public Comment
Mayor Mwilambwe read a public comment procedure statement. No emailed public comment was received. Laraine Rice spoke in-person.
Consent Agenda
Items listed on the Consent Agenda are approved with one motion; Items pulled by Council from the Consent Agenda for discussion are listed and voted on separately.
Council Member Ward made a motion, seconded by Council Member Boelen, to approve the Consent Agenda as presented.
The following item was presented:
Item 4.A. Consideration and action to approve the Minutes of the August 15, 2022, Regular Committee of the Whole Meeting, as requested by the City Clerk Department. (Recommended Motion: The proposed Minutes be approved.)
Item 4.B. Consideration and action to approve the Minutes of the September 9, 2022, Special City Council Meeting, as requested by the City Clerk Department. (Recommended Motion: The proposed Minutes be approved.)
Item 4.C. Consideration and action to approve the Minutes of the September 10, 2022, Special City Council Meeting, as requested by the City Clerk Department. (Recommended Motion: The proposed Minutes be approved.)
Mayor Mwilambwe directed the Clerk to call roll:
AYES: Walch, Boelen, Montney, Becker, Urban, Ward, Crabill, Crumpler
Motion carried.
Regular Agenda
The following item was presented:
Item 5.A. Council Discussion of the September 9 -10, 2022, Strategic Planning Retreat Final Report as prepared by Strategic Government Resources, as requested by City Council.
Mayor Mwilambwe introduced the Item and showed a presentation regarding the Council Retreat. He spoke about reputational drivers and explained what Council envisioned the City to being known for. He stated that Council had decided on six key strategic priorities of focus and also described several milestones within the list of priorities that Council wanted to focus on.
Council Member Crumpler complimented on how straight-forward the report was. He spoke about how each milestone had the potential to be a multi-year endeavor and wondered how the priorities would be measured for success. He expressed interest in establishing clear benchmarks to measure progress and stressed the importance of showing the community how the City was a good steward of the taxpayer dollars.
Council Member Boelen stressed the importance having a community with neighborhoods that the City could be proud of; ones where everyone belonged. She found the current strategic goals noteworthy in that they were very similar to the current goals. She spoke about the various plans Council had for improvements and the implementation of those improvements. She commented the Infrastructure Category being marked as a duplication as it was in multiple sections. She then spoke about diversity of housing, downtown housing, and rental options. She expressed interest in partnering with McLean County to help provide a better well-being to the City. She preferred changing the use of "reduction of violence" to something more positive.
Council Member Montney stated that the word “efficiency” in #5: Improved Efficiency and Service Delivery, didn’t correctly capture the excellence and effectiveness with which the City actually delivered services. She recommended modifying it to “Improved Efficiency and Effectiveness in Service Delivery”.
Council Member Ward expressed appreciation for the report and requested that it was an ongoing dialogue between Council and City staff. She asked staff to reach out to Council to get a sense of the nuancing behind each topic. She then spoke about a presentation she attended that discussed life expectancy in certain areas in Bloomington and concluded, by noting that violence was an issue in our community.
Council Member Walch briefly spoke about the plans and wondered what the community thought about the items and ranking. He stressed the importance of including public input and expressed his belief that while Council was responsible for creating plans, they also needed to identify things in the plans that could happen right away.
Council Member Boelen spoke about how she preferred the term "address violence" instead of "reduction of violence". She commented that the life expectancy of various plans depended on variety of factors.
City Manager Tim Gleason discussed yearend reports including accomplishments. He explained that staff would look to Council to provide clarity on deliverables of the plan and commented on the success of the recent Council retreat.
Mayor Mwilambwe asked for a timeline on delivering a working plan. Mr. Gleason explained that for the past two years, the City had been in crisis-mode with COVID-19, and that he was excited to get back to planning. He stated that Council would receive an update that in the coming week regarding next steps.
Council Member Crumpler and Mayor Mwilambwe discussed voting. Mr. Gleason stated that he hoped to deliver an updated report to Council by the end of the year.
City Manager's Report
City Manager Gleason highlighted upcoming events around the City and celebrated the City's new hires.
Executive Session
No Executive Session was held.
Adjournment
Council Member Boelen made a motion, seconded by Council Member Becker, to adjourn the meeting.
Mayor Mwilambwe directed the Clerk to call roll:
AYES: Walch, Boelen, Montney, Becker, Urban, Ward, Crabill, Crumpler
Motion carried (viva voce).
The meeting adjourned at 6:35 p.m.
https://cityblm.granicus.com/DocumentViewer.php?file=cityblm_38c993b98a15557d9103c60e2f696f00.pdf&view=1
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