HomeMy WebLinkAbout2010-01-30 City Council Agenda Packet1 01/30/10
Agenda posted according to PAMC Section 2.04.070. A binder containing supporting materials is available in the Council Chambers on
the Friday preceding the meeting.
Special Meeting
Palo Alto Unified School District
Board Room — Administration Building
25 Churchill Avenue
January 30, 2010
9:00 AM
ROLL CALL
STUDY SESSION
1. Council Retreat for the Purpose of Identifying Council Priorities for 2010
ORAL COMMUNICATIONS
Members of the public may speak to any item not on the agenda; three minutes per speaker. Council reserves the right
to limit the Oral Communications period to 30 minutes
ADJOURNMENT
Persons with disabilities who require auxiliary aids or services in using City facilities, services, or programs or who would like information on the City’s compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990, may contact (650)
329-2550 (Voice) or 650-328-1199 (TDD)24 hours prior to the meeting.
CITY OF PALO ALTO
MEMORANDUM
TO: HONORABLE CITY COUNCIL
FROM: CITY MANAGER
DATE: JANUARY 30, 2010
MEETING: List of Potential Topics for the Purpose of Identifying
Council Priorities for 2010.
MEMORANDUM
SUBJECT: Council Retreat Outline and Schedule
On Saturday, January 30, 2010 we will be holding the annual Council Retreat to
set your priorities for the year. We will be meeting in the Board room at the Palo
Alto Unified School District offices at 25 Churchill Avenue. The meeting starts
promptly at 9:00 a.m. Please plan on arriving early as coffee and pastries will be
served from 8:30-9:00 a.m. An outline and suggested schedule for the day
follows below.
This year the retreat has been expanded to a full day to allow for more discussion
and dialogue by Council. This seems especially important, given the demands
of the times and the critical decisions facing the Council that will shape Palo Alto
for years to come. Additionally, four new members joining the Council suggests
that we provide enough time for speaking and listening; to begin forming a
collective direction; and then to identify the priorities or themes that are the best
expressions of that direction.
The Morning
In particular, there is a morning planned with briefings on “Where We Are”, as
reflected by the City’s Financial Outlook and “Where We Are Going” as
represented by the City’s Comprehensive Plan Update. We hope these briefings
will provide the new Council with a common platform from which to launch
dialogues about the future you want to see for Palo Alto and how we might best
get there.
Obviously, those two topic briefings are not the sole subjects for initiating
dialogue on priorities but they represent two 2010 processes and decision
opportunities (Budget & Comp Plan) Council will be facing in the coming year.
They symbolize the kind of dynamic tensions all strategic priority setting sessions
should attempt to address or reconcile.
As you work towards identifying your priorities, it might be helpful to answer the
questions: What will success look like for Palo Alto in the years I am on the
Council? What are the decision opportunities we may face this year that can
contribute to that success, and how do they inform the priorities we need to set?
The Afternoon
In the afternoon, the Council will discuss and identify priorities for the year.
Questions of how broad versus specific the priorities should be may arise. You
may wish to review how your 2010 priorities relate to last year or years before.
You may also want to visit the “See-It” web page on the City website
(http://www.cityofpaloalto.org/depts/cou/see_it.asp) Here we illustrate the
City’s priorities for last year and the strategies and actions linked to those
priorities.
In addition to the priorities you settle on, as time allows, it would be helpful to
have some discussion and direction on how to develop the strategies and
actions you envision to track the progress and results you want for 2010. You
may want to talk about what forums and formats the Council wants to establish
for ongoing discussions throughout the year.
On behalf of the staff, we look forward to supporting you in your conversation on
Saturday and in the year ahead. As always, there will be opportunity for public
comment/input at the retreat.
Two times for the public to speak are planned.
1 PM before the Council begins its discussion and selection of priorities is the
preferred place in the schedule. However, if someone is not able to make the
meeting at the time, the Council will receive comments at the start of the
meeting.
Suggested Working Schedule – Council Retreat (times are approximate)
8:30 – 9:00 a.m. Breakfast/Gathering
9:00 – 9:15 a.m. Mayor Welcome/Overview to Day
Public Comment for those who cannot make afternoon session will be invited at
this point
9:15 – 9:30 a.m. Overview/context for morning/value of
priorities (Staff) This section will begin following public
comment.
9:30 – 9:45 a.m. Historical context of priorities and how we’ve
tracked them (Staff)
9:45 – 10:00 a.m. Break
10:00 – 11:00 a.m. Financial Outlook of City/Comprehensive Plan Briefings
(Staff)
11:00 – 12:00noon Council Conversation (Council)
12:00 – 1:00 p.m. Lunch
1:00 – 1:30 p.m. Reconvene/Preferred Public Comment period
1:30-1:45 p.m. Explain priority setting process (Mayor)
1:45 – 2:30 p.m. Council brainstorms priorities (Council)
2:30 – 2:45 p.m. Break
2:45 – 3:30 p.m. Winnowing and selection of priorities --traditional dot
voting process (Council)
3:30 – 4 p.m. Wrap up/next steps (Mayor/Staff)
__________________________________
JAMES KEENE
City Manager