Cotati City Council
Agenda Staff Report
Item type: REGULAR AGENDA (ACTION)
To: City Council
Subject: DISCUSS REVISED DEPARTMENTAL WORKPLANS FOR
FISCAL YEAR 2024-2025
Date: April 2, 2024
Written by: Damien O'Bid, City Manager
Recommendation
It is recommended the City Council discuss and provide feedback, if any, on the proposed final Departmental Workplans for fiscal year 2024/25.
Background
The City conducted a Strategic Planning Workshop on February 20th to discuss City goals and objectives for the upcoming fiscal year 2024/25. For this year, the City is using an updated format that explicitly links the projects/programs to City Council Strategic Goals and provides an estimated time schedule for completion of the project/program. During the session, Council provided several recommendations for updates to the departmental goals for classification, formatting, and prioritization. Staff committed to returning with updated program/project priorities for the General Fund Study Session.
Analysis/Discussion
At the Strategic Planning Workshop, the City Council reviewed the new workplan format, provided direction on programs and projects and discussed the potential move to 2-year budgeting with the FY 25/26 budget cycle. In general, the City will be continuing to move ongoing work into the day-to-day activities, captured in the timesheet system. This will allow for a more focused summary of programs and projects. Regarding the proposed 2-year budget, the City Council agreed to move that way, stating that the year after an election is the correct timing for this (FY 25/26), but requesting an extra day for strategic planning. The intent is to have the new City Council come together for a facilitated strategic planning or team building exercise, similar to the one conducted with the new City Council in 2023. This would then be followed, on a separate day, by the Strategic Planning Workshop where specific programs/project priorities are discussed.
For the updated FY 24/25 Workplan, the base assumption is that everything discussed is a priority, but some things are higher or lower relative priorities depending on City Council Goals, regulations, grants, etc. Additionally, the City Council has requested that all projects be listed, even if they are in the ”parking lot” for now.
Therefore, using available staffing as a gauge, each department has their projects grouped in 1/2/3 (Green/Yellow/Red) priority, as it is difficult to draw a discrete “red line“. The staff focus will be on accomplishing priority 1 projects in green during the fiscal year. Priority 2 and 3 items (yellow and red) are not expected to be completed during the year. However, if grants or other opportunities arise during the year, it‘s possible that some of these elevate and get accomplished.
Additionally, the workplan includes a new column indicating Lead/Support department to ensure that the resource request is accounted for, but clear which department is leading the effort. As a small agency all departments work together on many of the projects. If a supporting department is expected to spend significant time on an effort, that department has the program/project listed on their workplan in a supporting role.
Attached are the City Council Strategic Goals and Objectives, as well as the proposed final FY 24/25 Workplans for each of the departments.
Financial Considerations
No direct fiscal impacts. Departmental goals and projects are used to develop and focus City operations and budgetary planning which are separately presented to City Council for adoption.
Environmental Issues
This action is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) because it is not a project which has a potential for resulting in either a direct physical change in the environment, or a reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment, pursuant to CEQA Guideline section 15378.