This transcript features a meeting of the Hastings City Council. While some council members mentioned (Tina Folch and Trevor Lund) are not on your provided list, they are identified by name within the dialogue. [0:00] **Mary Fasbender:** i also want to remind everyone that this public comment period is not intended for extended dialogue is there anyone who wishes to speak to the council at this time anybody okay uh council members are there any council items to be considered okay and council i would accept a motion to approve the consent agenda council member folch and council member leifeld any discussion council all those in favor say aye aye and uh those uh post state by saying nay that motion has prevailed [0:48] **Mary Fasbender:** tonight we have a resolution for our emergency operations plan and for this item we have with us the city administrator dan wietecha [0:55] **Dan Wietecha:** thank you hopefully this piece of technology works tonight this was introduced last meeting at that point council asked to have some additional an additional workshop and some additional training and those are in process i anticipate we will have a council workshop on october 18th depending on other schedules it's possible it might move up but that one's certainly confirmed if [1:34] **Dan Wietecha:** needing a definite date also dakota county emergency management is working on an elected officials training program but at this time that's not scheduled but i anticipate it'll be later this year so those pieces are in in the works and i hope that council would be willing to act on the resolution tonight since it's a bit more of a formality there are changes in the current emergency operations plan from 2018 and although certainly not um [2:22] **Dan Wietecha:** unsurmountable it really would be best to have a current plan in place so that if there were some issue or question we're working under the current plan instead of an outdated plan or knowing that there's things that are outdated that we're ignoring it has the possibility not not extremely likely but does have the possibility of playing into some grant eligibility so really requesting that council would act on the resolution this evening and fully recognize that we will have additional training and workshop [3:08] **Dan Wietecha:** for council in the near future and with that i can stand for any questions thank you dan counsel any discussion okay councilmember lund [3:15] **Trevor Lund:** thank you honor and do you know how many times have we enacted this plan in recent years i mean is it i have never seen this say i just don't know i support moving forward knowing that we're working on it i just don't i don't know that i don't want to miss out on opportunities if we didn't approve it so i get it that we're working forward [3:53] **Dan Wietecha:** councilmember folks had some concerns on it but i and before the pandemic i don't remember us ever using the emergency operation plan so i i bring that as an awareness is that something that are we concerned that something might come up that we really got to have this or can it can it be delayed or what what's our concern really it's um i don't want to belittle it by calling it housekeeping but really it's a matter of having a current plan in place so that if an emergency were to occur we're acting under a current plan rather than an amalgamation of a outdated plan and [4:39] **Dan Wietecha:** known changes so it really it is largely a housekeeping formality but i think it's a significant and important one in terms of the specific question about a number of times that we've enacted it prior to kovid i do not know that i've not heard that it's been any numbers or that it's common but i do not know that we certainly did enact it with kovid this past year year and a half but in my 20 odd years i have seen emergency plans not here [5:25] **Dan Wietecha:** enacted two maybe three times prior prior to covet so the you know add it to a fourth so they're not hopefully they're not often they're emergency situations but their situations nonetheless to be prepared for [5:44] **Tina Folch:** let's remember thank you you know often emergency operations plans are you know with at the core of it they are they're thinking out scenarios in advance and practicing them so that when an emergency actually happens so that it's a natural more natural response you know who your um who your partners are and and you know chain of command and how communication and approvals are going to work and all of that and so um it's not like they would you know toss aside the new plan and say oh heck we can't do that because the council didn't you know pass it you know [6:31] **Tina Folch:** and so um so the thing that bothers me about it is just that in the resolution it says number one it says now therefore be it resolved by the city council in the city of hastings minnesota the city of hastings emergency operation plan has been reviewed and that it's been updated and that the council approves it and so i guess it just gives me heartburn whenever we have plans that are brought before us and we don't really actually get the opportunity to review them and we're more of a rubber stamp and that's how this makes me feel is that you know being on the council for five years that we've never been given even you know uh a brief you know a 45-minute briefing as to you know what is in the emergency operations plan and so that's not your fault and it's not [7:17] **Tina Folch:** anyone you know else's you know current fault but it's just the way it has been and that these approvals just have gone every two years and as i had said i had a lot of like it gave me a lot of inks to see that the mirror was the incident commander you know within the within the chain of command structure and um so i just so it gives me it gives me a lot of heartburn to approve something that we haven't had the opportunity to review and really understand and uh and then furthermore then that does close the door i just i just know how these things work that if we go through the training then in october and we have any feedback then it'll be like okay we'll remember that for two years from now when we go to re update [8:02] **Tina Folch:** that the e-app and so um so i guess i've been around the block a few times now to know how these things work and [Music] um so i i don't i don't fully understand why it is that we couldn't wait until the council was actually um had reviewed it and had the opportunity to um know it is what they're really approving in the end so that's my two cents councilmember lund [8:35] **Dan Wietecha:** just as a quick point of clarification uh it would be a very remote likelihood the infinitesimally small likelihood that the mayor would actually be the incident commander that's typically the first responding person on scene which is going to most likely be police fire public works they may be relieved as it you know as the supervisor comes in but the mayor's role was not a great slide in the presentation last meeting but under minnesota statute chapter 12 the mayor's role is the authority for declaring a local emergency which then within three days council would would [9:21] **Dan Wietecha:** presumably confirm that's why that was at the top of that that org chart it was not intended to be that the mayor would be the emergency manager or the incident commander so just a quick point of clarification to that because when i did ask that question the response was yes that the mayor would be the incident commander but i would be interacting with chief or deputy or so i'd be the deliverer just making the statement or am i right dan depending on what that particular statement is the the the mayor's number [10:04] **Mary Fasbender:** [Addressing Dan Wietecha] Am i right dan? [10:07] **Dan Wietecha:** depending on what that particular statement is the the the mayor's number one role would be in um declaring the emergency which the council would then presumably confirm the mayor also would have a role with likely some sort of liaison type rule between the emergency management team so your command staff and the c-flop as you pointed out last meeting and the city council the mayor also probably although working with the public information officer would probably have something of a public face to the public and the media so there are certainly some roles there [10:53] **Dan Wietecha:** some interaction with the the command staff the emergency manager the incident commander but not specifically in their calling the shots or coordinating there certainly would be room for the mayor to give some input on council's never going to go for that budget approval or whatever it might be but it is not the coordinating role [11:24] **Tina Folch:** thank you dan and i understand what you just said but it just goes to um further my point about how it hasn't been explained it hasn't been reviewed and and so hence i guess it just goes to show exactly what i'm the point that i was trying to make and and as i had um said previously that when and then when a real event does occur that you're totally right that either the fire chief the police chief or the public works director probably is going to assume incident command depending on what what it is but um it would be it would be more ideal for the council to [12:11] **Tina Folch:** actually have things explained to them so that they are fully informed as mere hicks used to say um as to what it is that we're we're approving rather than just giving it a rubber stamp like yeah we'll get to it later and you know and move on so um i guess the the rest of the council can um take up a motion to approve the e app as it is and uh and hope for the best later but i personally am going to be voting no just because i'd like the opportunity to know exactly what it is that we're approving and to have the ability to um suggest changes if if we so um felt you know collectively that there was something that was needed in that for instance training requirements or something to that effect so so anyhow that's it for now thanks thank you councilmember folge [12:57] **Trevor Lund:** thank you ryder um just councilmember lund asked if it'd been used and it'd been used 2018 for the water issues um i believe but the are you suggesting that we table it or what you know if that's ultimately the better approach is to table it so that we can have more time to review it or or instead of just not supporting it what's the is that something that you're is that ultimately what you're trying to do is suggest that we need more time to review it and and and add to the clarity that maybe isn't there at [13:43] **Trevor Lund:** this point or is that something that we can do afterwards in some sort of workshop with some training you know i guess i'm just when i get a resolve to the comments that we've heard past couple of meetings so that everybody feels good about it because i don't want to rubber stamp things either but i think maybe what what the concerns are might be able to be addressed in just some communication and education after the fact too like you know just being up to speed on the whole thing you know the what-ifs the does that make sense thank you councilman erlund um cory our attorney just stated that if it is passed tonight and we find that after our workshop and things need to be [14:19] **Mary Fasbender:** changed we could make an amendment to some of those things correct if that helps i mean i think tina we all see where you're coming from council member folch we all see where you're coming from but i think and dan's um in thoughts are to get it passed so he can move on with his part of it and if an emergency orders needs to be acted then we have something in in or in on paper does that help um your honor i do thoroughly understand and it um [14:42] **Tina Folch:** and and it does feel like it's just a checkbox at this point where it's like okay so we're just going to ask the council to approve a plan that we haven't you know really educated them about and and uh and just with the understanding that they're gonna approve it anyhow i i don't know it just just strikes me um i just hate to start the precedence because or continue the precedence you know for lack of a better lack of a better way to express it because you know like for instance um council member lund was just you know alluding to the fact about the the water incident that happened a few years ago our emergency operation plan was not actually enacted it was not invoked when [16:05] **Tina Folch:** that occurred and um and and so as i had stated earlier um chief shoot had actually made the decision not to not to start it and so um [Music] and so in that respect it made me feel a little bit better that the mayor was being included if there was an event but um i guess what i would really like to understand better is how does that decision making actually occur you know like when is it that the mayor of the council is actually brought in and consulted when there's an event that actually happens to trigger that decision-making tree so that that occurs and that doesn't make the mayor an actual incident commander it just makes you you're just the authority that pulls the trigger so to speak and so um [16:50] **Tina Folch:** and i think that it's really important as i had said in the previous meeting for you to fully understand what your roles are and not to be asking you know in the middle of a council meeting right but as you're being asked to approve it you know okay what is my role you know i guess i'm trying to i'm looking out for you i guess that's what i'm trying to do is that i think that it's a really important um training piece and that um the council should also understand then what their role is and and i think um many of us had already gone to the the county training that had happened but that was really so um generic in nature it was basically it just said to the effect okay this is how government works and this is how emergency management will work and you and his elected official will stand on the sideline and wait to be tapped [17:38] **Tina Folch:** basically you know that's the short summary of it and so um so it would be i think it's our role as elected officials to really understand how all of you know that works and and to and i felt like when the water incident had happened i thought that it was um unfortunate that we weren't included more in the decision-making planning because for instance i remember council member brock's was awesome she stood up and she contacted cub and was able to get water and and so i think that there there is a role for us to play also because i think that in many respects we're more in tune and networked with folks within the community who have resources readily available [18:23] **Tina Folch:** like that than necessarily staff would and so so that's where i'm coming from i just think that there would be opportunities for improvement for the council to be further utilized in events that occur like that and so i guess that's why i'm really dragging my feet on it more than anything is just that we have been excluded in the past from from any of the decision making and so so yeah i think that at the last council meeting that we had had we had discussed tabling it until we could have training and so maybe it's just me being a worrywart you know about it um and and hoping you know that for the best but um you know there's been too many times we've had conversations about having follow-up workshops and discussions and they never happen [19:09] **Tina Folch:** i need to be quite frank and that's not just in the last year and a half it's more of a long-standing you know habit that that happens and we don't get that follow-up and um and chance to really engage and so um i just think it is a really important function of um elected officials and uh and that we should have an opportunity to be um more a part of that decision-making process when you know as it fits i i don't believe whatsoever that the mayor should any and under any circumstances be calling the shots you know at the city level because we're you're not trained to be able to do that and so i'm not trying to say that at all but just for um there to be more you know communications and and the ability for us to work together in those kinds of situations so that's it thanks [19:54] **Mary Fasbender:** thank you councilman folch councilmember lund [19:56] **Trevor Lund:** yeah i'm going to make a motion that we move forward because that because i respectfully disagree i just don't think it's our role i think the role how i how i envision this and how i've seen it work and i've heard of it work but during like drink a storm the mayor declares it probably with support from the department heads and then we get out of the way unless they need to come back and ask for some funding otherwise the experts are in i'm not an expert in emergency operation i don't want to be an expert that's what we have department heads and people to do so i think we need to move forward the staff has asked us they've given it to us we had a chance to read this i don't know why we would stop it if we want to continue to have a discussion sure it's a good discussion to have but [20:40] **Trevor Lund:** today staff's asking us to get this up to speed if we need to make an adjustment we have it sounds like our attorney says we can so be it let's move forward and i would hope that the mayor just declares it and they're probably going to bounce off a few people saying i'm going to declare an emergency yeah go get them that's probably what you're going to get if not it still needs support from the council three days later so i think it's set up to work the way it is so um with that you're gonna make a motion that we approve the emergency operations plan [21:14] **Mary Fasbender:** council member lund seconds any additional discussion or new discussion all those in favor say by saying i i opposed okay all right and that motion prevails tonight under administration we have the kova 19 and delta variant update dan [21:28] **Dan Wietecha:** there is not a specific recommendation or request of counsel really it's a matter of recognizing that um one of the prominent headlines over the last couple of weeks has been the delta variant throughout the country as well as dakota [22:01] **Dan Wietecha:** county here over the last couple of weeks dakota county moved into the substantial category and right now it is just short of the high category but with that the cdc recommends that anybody that is indoors would be masked we have put in place for employees that were in there in the workplace to be masked certainly some exceptions with being in a large meeting room with a fairly small group [22:48] **Dan Wietecha:** and being able to social distance there's a not a cdc exception but following protocols from the expired governor's executive orders there were exceptions for legislative bodies to be able to meet so you can have ongoing discussions like we are now but a matter of that's as far as without an emergency declaration that's as far as i can really call the shots as is city employees if the council had any thoughts of other or even just wanted to get ideas out there and off their chest or have a chance to discuss [23:35] **Dan Wietecha:** here's a chance to talk about it because absent a special meeting we're not getting together again for three weeks so just trying to have that opportunity for some dialogue and hear what council's thoughts might be what we're looking at or going forward thank you dad counsel any comments discussion council member leifeld [24:02] **Lisa Leifeld:** thank you honor i just have one question dan i'm not sure if this is the time to ask or not if we'll be putting back up our plexiglas for our meetings and will that be in place in time for our next meeting [24:24] **Dan Wietecha:** at this point was not planning on it but we certainly particularly if that's the direction council like to go we can certainly add that um i would believe that we could certainly take care of it within three weeks for the next council meeting there might be other week other meetings before then you know other committees in here that we can't get ahead of them but it's certainly something that could be added unless somebody has a strong opinion otherwise to not put them up [24:43] **Lisa Leifeld:** i would like to make the recommendation that we do that even for those of us who are vaccinated we can still get the delta variant and we can still pass it on to other people so in an effort to not do that i would really like to see because this is pretty close proximity to each other [25:10] **Lisa Leifeld:** i work all day with people but i'm in and out i'm near you i'm away from you i'm moving around this is the longest at any point i've sat with anybody outside of my family unless i was getting my hair cut you know so unless somebody has a reason not to i don't know if you need more than that to to do that thank you dan appreciate it councilmember lightfield comments councilmember folch [25:13] **Tina Folch:** thank you your mayor i i think it makes a lot of sense to follow the lead of the county of dakota county in in the masked mandate just for consistency purposes you know so that the city and the county particularly considering the county presence here in hastings where i think [25:56] **Tina Folch:** they're if they're not the largest employer um i think they are yeah one of the for sure one of the the biggest and so um for consistency purposes for the public that were mirroring their their steps so in the memo that we were provided it says on monday august 9th dakota county was requiring employees to wear masks and on wednesday august 11th extended the requirement to visitors and county buildings until the incident rate drops below substantial and so i don't know if everyone has seen it that there's no the way that public health is doing it is that there's four levels and so the high so that so of the four categories high is the highest and then substantial is the second to the highest and i can't [26:42] **Tina Folch:** remember what the third moderate and then low right and then it's based on the percentage of people who are testing positive when they actually take a covid test and so if i think it's don't quote me but i want to say it's like if you if you if it gets to five percent of folks who are taking the covid test then that's considered high and so dan had put in the um in here that i think you said washington county is already requiring um yeah you had washington counties requiring employees and visitors to wear masks when in county buildings and then so dakota county is i know the city of red wing is requiring all visitors in public buildings to also be wearing masks and so i think that it [27:29] **Tina Folch:** makes sense for consistency purposes to follow suit as as the counties are for the public and i think that we also have um you know an obligation to our employees to ensure that they have a safe work environment and so that they feel comfortable themselves being you know in the office i already had a co-worker um she came to work and she was telling us she was getting married this last weekend and her fiance had had a serious exposure and so and she had a little scratchy throat and so they both decided to go in because they were getting married within two weeks and he was fine and she had covid and she's like 27 years old fully vaccinated [28:14] **Tina Folch:** and and but sir she's a server on the on the side and she she came down with covet and she didn't get you know like seriously ill where she needed to be hospitalized or anything like that but she was knocked down hard right before her wedding and poor thing um so anyhow so i i've seen it happen and the scare go through then the office about okay we've all been exposed we're always in the same ladies room and we were talking in the lunchroom and things of that nature and then the whole process that had to then go into place about people having to go get tested and um and folks trying to work at home again until things clear up and so i just think that that there's uh the situation where where we could be going on that roller coaster again and so um i just think that it we should do [29:01] **Tina Folch:** what we can to you know protect our employees from those kinds of exposures so that's it any other discussion console any other discussion putting up the plexiglas yes i'm seeing head okay i think i think you're i think we're all right we all want to be safe for each other and and our staff so um a couple weeks okay no additional okay thanks council um so tonight we'll be going into a closed [29:02] **Mary Fasbender:** meeting pursuant to minnesota statute uh 13d point zero five five subdivision three to discuss the performance evaluation of the city administrator first as council have any announcements i have a few well first of all as he did not want us to mention it is trevor lund's birthday today so of course we're going to mention it also coming up we have makers alleyway market which will showcase area markets and artisans in the next three thursdays in the alley between 2nd street and levy park music in the park also occurs each thursday evening this thursday august [30:33] **Mary Fasbender:** 19th we have a kickoff for the merrell project merle project and an opportunity to see the artist daniela biancoccini at work and a mural celebrating hastings history and diversity will be located at the rear wall of the hastings family service facing levy park city offices will be closed on monday september 6th in observance of labor day sunday programs at levee park wednesday august 18th is story time in the park the theme is food in partnership with pleasant hill library thursday august 19th is music in the park with chara chiraranga [31:18] **Mary Fasbender:** tropical supported by ruth and george doffing charitable foundation tuesday august 4 24th the performance in the park with katha dance sponsored by smead manufacturing company and the metropolitan regional arts council wednesday august 25th is story time in the park the theme is rhythm in partnership with pleasant hill library thursday august 26th is music in the park with the minneapolis commodores supported by ruth and george doffing charitable foundation friday august 27th is music in the park i'm sorry movie in the park and the movie is onward sponsored by ardent mills [32:05] **Mary Fasbender:** thursday september 2nd is music in the park with the southern express supported by ruth and george daughting charitable foundation friday monday friday through monday september 3rd through the 6th is story walk along the trail from levy park to jc park meetings coming forward are tuesday august 17th there's a finance committee meeting at 12 30. [32:34] **Mary Fasbender:** monday august 23rd for the planning commission is 7 p.m thursday august 26th is the charter commission at 6 00 pm tuesday september 7th is a 5 30 city workshop and that will be discussing our budget and 7 pm city council regular meeting the council had a closed door session on august 2nd to discuss the process for performance evaluation of the city administrator to complete this process council will be going into a closed door session this evening to continue performance evaluation of the city administrator prudent to 13d .05 subdivision 3a [33:21] **Mary Fasbender:** with that we will be moving into a closed door session and may i have a motion to approve council member leifeld and a council member lund second no additional discussion and all those in favor state by saying aye