HomeMy WebLinkAboutStaff Report 4.A 02/01/2016Agenda Item. #4.A
DATE: February 1, 2016
TO: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council through City Manager
FROM: John C. Brown, City Manager
SUBJECT: Discussion and Direction Regarding Regional Issues of Significance for the
Mayors' & Councilmembers' Association of Sonoma County
RECOMMENDATION
It is recommended that the City Council select and provide a short list of issues of regional
significance to the Mayor, for use by the Mayors' & Councilmembers' Association of Sonoma
County in selecting programs for 2016.
BACKGROUND
The membership of the Mayors' & Councilmembers' Association is comprised of all elected
officials in the nine cities of Sonoma County. As part of their quarterly General Membership
meetings, a program is provided to bring them information of interest or updates to county and
regional programs. Mayor Glass is Chair of the Mayor's group this year, and Rohnert Park, as
Vice Chair, is in charge of programs.
DISCUSSION
At the October 8, 2015 Board of Directors meeting, the Mayors indicated interest in
concentrating on topics for all programs for the upcoming year, thus allowing for programs of
greater length and depth of subject matter. Cities were requested to submit suggestions for
regional issues of significance they would like the Association's General Membership to take up
as issues in 2016, which will be discussed at the Mayor's February 1 ltn Board meeting.
Input was solicited from Department heads, to determine which topics are of the most
importance to Petaluma and the region. Among those responses:
• Infrastructure Financing
• Affordable Housing
• Recruiting and Retaining Quality Employees in an Unaffordable Housing Market
• Stable -based funding for Public Safety staffing
• Sonoma County Waste Management JPA
• Climate change and sea level rise
The Mayor's and Councilmembers' Association will meet four times in 2016, and be able to
select three subjects from among all the ideas submitted by each of the cities, following its
February meeting. The preceding topics are submitted for your consideration and use in
selecting topics of interest to the Petaluma City Council members. The Council can use these as
submitted, or substitute at your pleasure.
FINANCIAL IMPACTS
None.