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HomeMy WebLinkAbout07/20/2009 City Council-SS 005824 July 20, 2009 Special Joint with EDC MINUTES OF A JOINT SPECIAL SESSION OF COUNCIL HELD ON JULY 20, 2009 Me Joint Special Session of the City Council and the Economic Development Corporation Board of Directors of the City of The Colony, Texas, was called to order at 6:35 p.m. on the 20th day of July 2009, at City Hall, 6800 Main Street, The Colony, Texas, with the following roll call: Jae McCourry Mayor Present Allen Harris Councilmember Present Richard Boyer Councilmember Absent Jeff Connelly Councilmember Present (arrived 6:38pm) Kirk Mikulec Mayor Pro-Tem Present Perry Schrag Councilmember Present Joel Marks Councilmember Present Also in attendance were 4A board members Tom Tvardzik, Kevin Braby, David Peerson, David Smith, and Femi Omonije. And with five council members present a quorum was established and the following items were addressed: 1. Discuss and consider the responsibility and procedure by and between the Economic Development Corporation (4A) Board of Directors and the City for the search and appointment of a new Economic Development Director. 2. Discuss and consider adoption of a policy establishment of a vision and methodology for recruitment of future business and economic development prospects. Mayor McCourry read the agenda items. After calling the EDC meeting to order, EDC President Tom Tvardzik stated the purpose of their meeting is to determine the role of the EDC in regard to replacing the current director [Tom Terrall has tendered his resignation effective October 1, 2009], who that person will report to, and added they need some direction from the city council on these issues as well as how aggressive the board should be regarding offering economic development incentives. Mayor McCourry stated 4A should play a role in developing requirements and deciding how to seek applicants. He added that the director position could be combined with the search for a new city manager [Dale Cheatham tendered his resignation effective October 12, 2009.] Assistant City Manager Tony Johnston advised the council and board that the draft Request For Proposals for a search firm is nearly complete and should be ready for city council and board review, possibly the next day. Councilmember Schrag suggested that before they move on, they should first decide who will have final hiring authority for the new director. After considerable discussion on the process involved with finding a replacement director and who this person should report to, the council members and board members offered their individual opinions. Board members Tvardzik, Peerson, and Smith were in favor of the board having control over the hiring, firing, evaluations, reporting, etc. of the EDC director. Member 1 OOSS25 July 20, 2009 Special Joint with EDC Braby said he would like more input from the council and clarity on how the board works with the city staff. Member Omonij e did not state his opinion. City Manager Dale Cheatham stated that the new EDC director needs to have clear direction as to who to report to, adding that if the director will report to the city manager then the city manager should be involved in the hiring process, and, it is unlikely the hiring process will be complete prior to October 2009. Councilmember Connelly stated he would like more time to consider the options, Councilmember Schrag said he can go either way, and council members Marks and Mikulec indicated the board should be in control of the director replacement and related issues. Councilmember Harris stated he is in favor of the board being involved in the hiring process but feels the final hiring decision should be made by the city manager, and that director should report to the city manager. Mayor McCourry stated that the board is capable of taking over the responsibility of the director. He suggested if it is decided for the board to take over the process that the city manager provide a semi-annual evaluation of the director to the board. City Attorney Joe Gorfida advised that if these changes are made then the EDC By-laws will need to be changed. The general consensus of the council regarding incentives was for the board to be more aggressive in bringing businesses to the city. Any city council action on these issues will be considered on the regular session to follow. Tom Tvardzik expressed his thank to EDC Director Tom Terrall for his many years of service to the EDC and the city. And with no further business to discuss the meeting was adjourned at 7:17 p.m. APPROVED: G Ikity McCo , Mayor of Th Colony ATTEST: _ y Christie Wilson, TRMC, CMC rf City Secretary' 4 ~ 2