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Session 1934 <br />September 20, 2004 <br /> <br />Councilmember Brot asked that a Public Hearing be held at the next City Council <br />meeting on the issue of political sign ordinances, particularly in respect of <br />enforcement of ordinance procedures and she wants all political candidates <br />notified of these measures. She wants to clarify how this issue relates to <br />freedom of speech and the City's procedures for removing signs. <br /> <br />Mayor Adams pointed out that political signs can be removed by State and <br />County as well as the City. Mr. Ollendorff reported that when a sign violation <br />occurs and a political sign is removed, everyone connected to the violation is <br />notified. Signs can only be removed from the public right-of-way. <br /> <br />Councilmember Brungardt noted there is a problem with political signs being <br />removed from polling places and some citizens had complained of "police <br />harassment" over this issue. <br /> <br />Mr. Ollendorff asked what would be the substance of the discussion at the Public <br />Hearing, whether it would be theoretical or focused upon an actual issue, and <br />Ms. Brot said her purpose was to establish a policy and procedure so that <br />citizens know how and when the City has acted. Mr. Ollendorff advised that it is <br />the City Manager, not the City Clerk, who composes the agenda for City Council <br />meetings. If the City Council wants to change a law, it must begin with the <br />Planning Commission, followed by a Public Hearing. He stipulated that it is the <br />City Manager who enforced the sign law, not the City Council, and he suggested <br />that a Study Session might be a more effective means of embracing this issue. <br />Ms. Welsch said she wants to hear from the public regarding changing or <br />enhancement of the ordinance. <br /> <br />A public hearing on this issue will be placed on the September 27, 2004 agenda <br />to be held on October 11, 2004. <br /> <br />Boards and Commissions Policy <br /> <br />Councilmember Welsch suggested a Study Session for the future on this issue <br />because she feels there is lack of background for making decisions. While good <br />advice comes from the Boards and Commissions, she wants to know the pros <br />and cons of their decisions, specifically how they decided upon their <br />recommendations. She understood there was supposed to be reports from the <br />various commissions to the full Council. She also asked for communication of <br />the staff involvement in the commissions, as to their roles and the roles of the <br />citizen members. <br />Mayor Adams stated that in the past commission reports were made at Council <br />meetings by Councilmember liaisons, but the practice proved to be unsatisfactory <br />and was discontinued. Mr. Sharpe suggested that minutes of commission <br />meetings be taken and shared, with summaries of their decisions provided to <br /> Page 3 <br /> <br /> <br />