05-11-2020 Council Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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MINUTES OF THE ORONO CITY COUNCIL MEETING Monday, April 27, 2020 6:00 o’clock p.m. _____________________________________________________________________________________ Page 15 of 16 Crosby thanked Rief and said, as a Council, they appreciate his extra effort. Johnson said he looks at things a little differently and that people need to adjust. People have jobs to do. The City is set up to serve its citizens, and if the City is getting more calls from angry citizens, they should be asking what they can do differently, because it may be a result of a level of service the City is missing. He appreciates all the complexities that go into this for all of the families and noted it’s important that we keep doing our jobs. He asked what the volume has been for the City. Rief said they have had a larger number of inquiries related to remodeling and those types of permits for the month of April, although he does not have a number. There have also been calls relating to utilities, which generally happens after the quarterly billings go out. As a result, the month of April was busier than the previous 2 months combined just to meet those demands. Regarding why people might be angry, he dealt with 2 calls earlier about the brush site. Staff is addressing as much as they feel is safe to do because of the conditions. That is how the City is treating the golf course also. He stated they also had an emergency utility shut-off on Casco Point, which shuts off everyone. Because it was such a hurried situation, Staff did not have the time to get door hangers, which is usually handled by the part-timers who have been considered to not be essential. He said they posted a sign on the road, but noted if no one is driving, it would not be seen. Now they will be able to do it with the part-time staff, just like in the past. Walsh said he would not characterize 1 of the brush site calls as angry, because 1 person called him and he told the caller to contact Rief. He would consider it a more colorful conversation. He said sometimes people do not understand why and they think they have the solution and it is more of a talk-through. Printup noted if he had 2 angry calls a day, that would be a good day. Johnson indicated that his email address is not on the website. Rief stated he would fix that. Johnson told Rief he is interested in learning the data behind his report about numbers doubling in April. He said it would be very helpful to get some visibility as far as what Staff is undertaking and that if there was a more formalized process, it would be very beneficial. Seals agreed with Johnson and said a word like “double” could mean going from 1 to 2. It would be good to see data if the City Council wants to fully understand phrases like “things are getting crazy.” Johnson said that would allow the Council to see what department is struggling rather than a blanket statement such as “all the department heads indicated their people have low morale.” There may be areas that need more support and there may be areas that need recognizing for adjusting and adapting such as Police Officers and Public Works, who are being asked to do tougher things right now. Rief agreed and said he will compile some information. Printup wondered what the succession plan is for each position, who backs it up, and said if it requires a part-timer to back it up, they are going to back it up, because City business has to get done. CITY ATTORNEY REPORT