City Council Regular Meeting

Detailed briefing

CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING — NOVEMBER 3, 2025 • Council approved the consent agenda and discussed a traffic-control order that will prohibit parking in the affected area once effective. The transcript does not clearly identify the street or segment. Staff said signs were ready. Council also amended the agenda to address a private meeting held the previous Thursday involving two council members, the city clerk, and former city manager Tom Richards. • The private meeting dominated discussion. Participants said it was called after the current city manager announced plans to leave and was intended to gather information about ongoing work and the process for hiring an interim or permanent replacement. They said no decision was made. The city clerk confirmed that ending the manager’s service before December 16 was discussed briefly, but that allowing the retirement period to conclude was considered wiser. • Other council members and several residents questioned why the full council, current city manager, and city attorney were not consulted. Concerns included compliance with the city charter, transparency shortly before the election, and Richards’ status as a witness in ongoing litigation. The city attorney’s preliminary response was that the meeting likely was not a charter violation and did not affect the election, although he said holding it was not the wisest course. • Council directed the city clerk to prepare a written account of the private meeting and recommended that the two participating council members do the same. Those materials are to go to the city attorney for review. Council scheduled a follow-up meeting for November 6 at 3 p.m. in council chambers. • Council supported an exception to the city’s 70-decibel noise limit for generators operating during power outages. Staff said generators permitted under zoning rules can exceed the limit when close to a property line. Staff and counsel will bring ordinance language to the next meeting. Routine generator test cycles were not included in the proposed exception. • Reports noted that substation material bids were due November 4 and are expected before council November 17. The Planning Commission will hold a November 13 public hearing on the zoning ordinance update. Recruitment for city boards is underway, and council was advised to begin the city manager hiring process. Public Works said leaf collection generally continues until weather prevents it. Worth watching: • Whether the written accounts resolve conflicting or incomplete recollections of the private meeting. • Whether council uses a professional search process with public input for the next city manager. • Final wording and enforcement details for the generator noise exception. Upcoming: Private-meeting review November 6 at 3 p.m.; zoning hearing November 13; substation bid selections expected November 17. Why it matters: Council is addressing emergency-power rules while facing immediate questions about transparency and leadership succession.

Agenda items

• 3 · Approval of Agendadiscussed
• 4 · Consent Agendaapproved
• 5A · Amendment to Noise Ordinance for Generatorsdiscussed
• 5B · Discussion of October 30 Meeting - Mayor Graham, Councilperson Reeve, Clerk Whitaker, and Previous City Manager Richardsdiscussed

No open public follow-ups are linked to this meeting yet.

Related issues

• Electric Infrastructurediscussed