March 2023
City of Cotati
City Council Workshop
Held February 24, 2023
City Council Workshop
Workshop Report Baker Tilly
i
Table of Contents
Workshop Report........................................................................................................................................... 1 Workshop Overview................................................................................................................................ 1 Opening Comments ................................................................................................................................. 3 Icebreaker Exercise ................................................................................................................................... 4 Recent Accomplishments ........................................................................................................................ 4 Why We Are Councilmembers............................................................................................................... 5 Effective Governance ............................................................................................................................... 5 Teambuilding Activity: Personality Profiles ........................................................................................ 8 Teambuilding Activity: Life Timelines.................................................................................................. 9 Council Norms........................................................................................................................................ 10 Wrap-up and Next Steps ....................................................................................................................... 11 City Council Workshop
Workshop Report Baker Tilly
1 Workshop Report
The City of Cotati held a Council team building workshop from 3:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. on Friday, February 24, 2023 in the Council Chambers. The workshop provided an opportunity for Councilmembers to learn more about each other, review roles and responsibilities, discuss effective governance practices, and strengthen teamwork. This report contains a summary of the results of the workshop.
Rick Haydon and Michelle New with Baker Tilly facilitated the workshop.
Workshop Overview
Objectives
• Learn more about Council team members and build on Council relations,
• Discuss governance roles and practices of effective councils, and • Discuss potential Council norms.
Agenda
• Call to order
• Welcome and public comment
2 • City manager comments
• Agenda review
• Icebreaker exercise
• Reflect on accomplishments
• Discuss reasons for running for Council
• Effective governance
• Personality profiles
• Teambuilding exercise
• Council norms
• Wrap-up and next steps
Participants
Council
Executive Staff
• City Manager Damien O’Bid
• City Attorney John Bakker
• Deputy City Clerk Kevin Patterson
Mayor
Susan Harvey
Vice Mayor
Laura Sparks
Councilmember
Ben Ford
Councilmember
Sylvia Lemus
Councilmember
Kay Rivers
City Council Workshop
Workshop Report Baker Tilly
3 Workshop Preparation
In preparation for the workshop, the facilitators held individual interviews with Councilmembers, prepared an agenda and other materials, and reviewed the workshop plan with the City Manager.
Opening Comments
The workshop began with a call to order by Mayor Susan Harvey and roll call by Deputy City Clerk Kevin Patterson. Mayor Harvey welcomed everyone and invited public comment.
City Manager Damien O’Bid then offered remarks about the importance of the day’s discussions and what he hoped the team would get from the workshop. He explained that the workshop offered an opportunity to get to know each other, build a foundation and establish trust, so City leaders can tackle future issues together. Damien emphasized that this was not a strategic planning workshop.
Rick and Michelle reviewed the workshop agenda and objectives and suggested ground rules. They also explained the “bike rack” time management tool. The following item was added to the bike rack during the workshop:
• Review protocols for timing, duplicate pages, and attachments to City Council agenda items.
4 Icebreaker Exercise
The workshop included an icebreaker exercise which allowed participants to learn more about each other. Michelle explained that to be an effective team you need to understand who your colleagues are. Participants spent 15 minutes talking to as many colleagues as they could and identified nonwork-related commonalities with each person. Volunteers reported out fun, surprising, or unusual commonalities they discovered during the exercise.
Recent Accomplishments
City Manager O’Bid reviewed the recent accomplishments that were mentioned during the individual Council interviews. The purpose of this discussion was to celebrate and reflect on recent successes. The slide below was presented.
Rick asked if any accomplishments were missing. It was mentioned that the first housing development occurred as a result of the Cottage Housing Ordinance approval. The group then identified the following accomplishments as items they are most proud of:
• On call mental health support program (SAFE),
• Role within county programs like Clean Power,
• Cottage Food Ordinance win,
• The adoption of the equity and inclusivity objective that honors diversity at the Council level,
• Innovative housing policies and plans, and
• Gaining financial footing in the General Fund after years of uncertainty.
10 Recent
Accomplishments
(from Council interviews)
• Efforts to get the City on stable financial footing (including making the sales tax measure permanent) and having a good reserve
• The passage of the Urban Agriculture Ordinance
• Continued to retain excellent professional staff
• The City’s regional efforts within Sonoma County
• The on-call mental health support program (SAFE)
• Innovative housing policies and plans
• The response to national racial issues (still a work in progress) • The adoption of an equity and inclusivity objective that honors diversity at the Council level
• The creation of a Woonerf concept of standard to ensure safe road spaces • Restructured the pension obligation package
• Launch of the Public Works project tracking tool on the City’s website • Developed plans for asset replacement, including parks, infrastructure, preventative maintenance, etc.
• Had an ad hoc committee on equity, and work begun from the ad hoc recommendations.
• Supported small businesses during the pandemic
• Repaved city streets
City Council Workshop
Workshop Report Baker Tilly
5 Why We Are Councilmembers
Councilmembers participated in an exercise to reflect on the reasons why they ran for Council. The purpose was to develop a shared understanding of the passions that drive the Councilmembers. They took few minutes to reflect on their own reasons for running, their passions related to local government, and what they hope to personally achieve while on Council. A summary of the results of the exercise is provided in Table 1 below.
Table 1. Why We Ran for City Council
What are your passions
related to local government?
What do you hope to personally
accomplish while on City Council?
• Racial equity issues
• Bring a new lens to City Council
• Opportunity to give back/contribute
• Climate change
• Affordable housing
• Sewage
• A way to continue service in a new manner
• Make connections
• To see things through an equity lens or different lens in general
• Establish civilian engagement with the Police Department • Provide excellent customer service
• Make headway on infrastructure
• Develop creative housing options
• Establish partnerships with other public agencies (like SAFE)
• Be a good steward
• Review projects with equity and climate change in mind.
Driving actions.
• Assist disadvantaged business enterprise (DBE)
• To reassess the City Seal
• Build a library in Cotati
Effective Governance
Rick then engaged the group in a discussion about effective governance. The purpose was to reflect on the practices of effective governing bodies and discuss operating norms for this Council.
Rick explained that effective governance is a team sport, and that personal commitment to working together is required for good governance. Council reviewed the Institute of Local Governments (ILG) article entitled, 6 “Attributes of Exceptional Councils.” Rick explained that effective councils share a unity of purpose; understand roles and responsibilities; foster a positive governance culture; and thereby establish norms, protocols, and procedures. The six attributes of exceptional Councils are listed below.
Rick asked the group if there was anything that resonated, from the ILG article. A summary of the responses is provided below.
• This current Council is not as contentious as the previous Council. • We have a good culture; Susan (the Mayor) does a great job running meetings.
• Things that resonate include conducting effective meetings, being a continual learner, establishing clear roles and responsibilities, and fostering a positive governance culture.
• The need to have clear policies.
City Council-City Manager Relationship
Rick emphasized the importance of a good working relationship between the City Council and City Manager. He explained that effective communication builds trust, and trust in turn, helps establish a successful relationship. The group reflected on the article that was provided in advance of the workshop, entitled “A Key Ingredient for Success: An Effective City Council/City Manager Relationship,” by Kevin Duggan
During this discussion, a Councilmember asked how they can know about existing priorities. The City Manager talked about the process and explained that the process can change depending on the size of the item. He mentioned that Council will discuss priorities further during the upcoming meeting on March 7, 2023.
Another Councilmember asked about having a list of projects that the City isn’t currently pursuing so they are not forgotten. The City Manager said there is a list and mentioned there is a formal process where Council can add projects to that list.
Exceptional City Councils…
1. Have a sense of team - a partnership with the city manager to govern and manage the city
2. Clear roles and responsibilities that are understood and adhered to
3. Honor the relationship with staff and each other
4. Routinely conduct effective meetings
5. Hold themselves and the city accountable
6. Have members who practice continuous improvement
City Council Workshop
Workshop Report Baker Tilly
7 They also discussed how they are viewed differently now that they are Councilmembers compared to before they ran for Council, and how important it is to work through the City Manager for most items. Rick agreed and mentioned the article, “Six Reasons to Work Through the City Manager,” by Ken Hampian and gave an example of why it is a best practice for Councilmembers to work through the City Manager.
Rick posed the following two questions to the group. A summary of the responses is provided below.
What does Council need from the City Manager to be most successful? • List of upcoming projects.
• A calendar for future events requiring Council attendance. • Context and history (which City Manager O’Bid does).
• A City Manager that does a great job of providing informational updates and is very responsive (which City Manager O’Bid does). • That we have what we need.
The Mayor also mentioned that Council has a community perspective while staff has a technical/business perspective. Rick then shared that the City Manager has a professional obligation to tell Council things they don’t always want to hear but need to be aware of. He mentioned that it is important to not jump to conclusions based on what the public says as there are two sides to every issue.
What does the City Manager need from Council to be most successful? • Information in advance; no surprises (it is a two-way street). • Ability to solve issues at the lowest level possible. • To work through the City Manager.
• Good communication.
8 The Brown Act
City Attorney John Bakker presented an overview of the Brown Act (California Government Code §§ 54950). He explained that public agencies in California must conduct their deliberations openly. He also shared that in the public sector there are many grey areas, and Council should reach out to him or the City Manager if they have any questions.
Mr. Bakker emphasized the importance of still getting to know one another, while complying with the Brown Act. He cited the following examples that are permissible:
• Discuss a City issue with a fellow Councilmember, but only one Councilmember.
• Attend community functions with other Councilmembers. You can even all sit together, just don’t discuss City business. • It is permissible to have coffee, lunch, dinner, or attend a function with another Councilmember.
Teambuilding Activity: Personality Profiles
Following a 30-minute break for dinner, during which the group participated in a get to know you activity (two truths and a lie), the Councilmembers reconvened to review personality profiles. Rick presented a slide that explained four personality types. Councilmembers were instructed to review the different types and identify their type. The Councilmembers then shared the personality type they identified with. The personality types are shown in Figure 1 below.
City Council Workshop
Workshop Report Baker Tilly
9 Figure 1. Personality Profiles
Teambuilding Activity: Life Timelines
The Councilmembers participated in another teambuilding activity, in which they drew a timeline of their life’s journey to date. They were instructed to include key milestones (both highs and lows) that have influenced who they are today. The purpose of this exercise was to develop trust and openness among one another and learn what factors have influenced each other. After working for about ten minutes, the Councilmembers presented their life timeline posters to the group.
10 Council Norms
Rick facilitated a discussion about Council norms, which are agreed-upon standards of behavior and practices. The purpose of this segment of the workshop was to reach agreement on norms that will help this Council be as successful as it can be. He asked the Councilmembers to think of one word that they would like the community to use to describe this City Council. The answers to this exercise are listed below.
• Thoughtful,
• Respectful,
• Collaborative,
• Caring, and
• Inclusive.
Rick then presented the City of Cotati’s current Council Rule Topic Areas and the City Council Code of Ethics. He commented that Cotati’s City Council Code of Ethics was exceptionally comprehensive and well written.
In particular, the section on conducting Council meetings was one of the best he has seen. Rick then presented for their consideration, six additional norms that are typical in other cities. These are listed below.
1. Move from I to we, and from campaigning to governing.
2. Work together as a body, modeling teamwork and civility for our community.
3. Assume good intent.
4. Disagree agreeably and professionally.
5. Utilize long-range plans to provide big picture context that is realistic and achievable.
6. Stay focused on the topic at hand. Ensure each member of Council has an opportunity to speak.
Rick asked whether Councilmembers liked any of the other typical norms.
The group agreed that they liked number six. One Councilmember also asked that they consider adding a norm to air on the side of over-explaining new processes since the public and new Councilmembers may appreciate the additional information. The Mayor also suggested using the announcements section of the agenda to announce board openings.
City Council Workshop
Workshop Report Baker Tilly
11 Wrap-up and Next Steps
To wrap up, Rick explained that Baker Tilly would prepare this summary report. The City Manager will prepare for the strategic planning session in March and the two budget study sessions in April (General Fund session on April 4 and Enterprise and Special Revenues session on April 18). Damien said that budget adoption would be scheduled for either May 23 or June 13, 2023.
Closing Comments
To conclude the workshop, each participant offered an observation or key takeaway from the session. The comments are listed below. • It was great getting to know all the Councilmembers.
• Everybody brings so much to make it a rich City Council. • I enjoyed hearing the life stories. You all have done a lot. Some come from hardship but have learned from it.
• I liked brainstorming the one word to describe how the public will see us. • I loved building trust with all of you.
• I liked the timelines and gaining a fuller picture of everybody. • I liked the timelines. Everyone was open and vulnerable, which builds trust. Thank you.
• I enjoyed the two truths and a lie exercise. When I laugh with people I care about I feel closer to them.
• Timelines were more poignant.
• We’ve been locked up the last couple of years. Seeing everyone in person and talking and sharing has been important. It’s hard to get to know one another when we are all in a box on a screen and don’t have time before or after meetings to talk to one another.
The City Manager agreed that he liked the timeline exercise. He thought it was very interesting to see where people came from and who they are today. He pointed out that people communicate in all sorts of ways, and part of that is because of who they are but part of it is where they came from. He encouraged the group to try to be aware of how people like to communicate and change your own communication style to better communicate with others.