[0:06] HELLO BLOOMINGTON. I’M MAYOR TIM BUSSE AND THIS  IS THE COUNCIL MINUTE FOR THE WEEK OF JULY 21.  [0:11] THERE IS A LOT OF STUFF GOING ON, SO INSTEAD OF  GOING IN-DEPTH TODAY, I’M GOING TO PROVIDE THE   [0:16] HIGHLIGHTS OF THE COUNCIL MEETING ON MONDAY NIGHT  AND UPDATE YOU ON A FEW OTHER THINGS AS WELL.  [0:20] ON MONDAY, THE CITY COUNCIL HAD A  DISCUSSION ABOUT THE LANGUAGE THAT   [0:23] WILL APPEAR ON THE BALLOT IN NOVEMBER ASKING  RESIDENTS IF THE CITY SHOULD CONTINUE TO   [0:28] USE RANKED CHOICE VOTING IN CITY ELECTIONS. NOW, IF YOU’RE THINKING “DIDN’T BLOOMINGTON   [0:32] ALREADY VOTE ON THE QUESTION OF RANKED CHOICE  VOTING AND HASN’T THE CITY BEEN USING RANKED   [0:36] CHOICE VOTING IN MUNICIPAL ELECTIONS FOR  THE PAST FOUR YEARS” YOU’RE EXACTLY RIGHT.  [0:40] BACK IN NOVEMBER OF 2020, BLOOMINGTON VOTERS  APPROVED A BALLOT QUESTION ASKING IF THE   [0:45] CITY SHOULD CHANGE THE CITY CHARTER AND USE  RANKED CHOICE VOTING IN ELECTIONS FOR MAYOR   [0:49] AND CITY COUNCILMEMBERS. THE BALLOT MEASURE  PASSED WITH 51 PERCENT OF VOTERS SAYING YES   [0:54] TO RANKED CHOICE VOTING IN A YEAR WHEN 92.4  PERCENT OF REGISTERED VOTERS CAST A BALLOT.  [1:00] BUT, JUST LIKE THE CITY CHARTER WAS CHANGED  TO APPROVE RANKED CHOICE VOTING, IT CAN BE   [1:04] CHANGED AGAIN SO THAT THE CITY WOULD GO BACK  TO THE MORE TRADITIONAL FORM OF ELECTIONS THAT   [1:09] INCLUDE A PRIMARY ELECTION AND A GENERAL ELECTION.  A GROUP OF BLOOMINGTON RESIDENTS COLLECTED ENOUGH   [1:14] SIGNATURES THROUGH A PETITION EFFORT TO PUT THE  QUESTION ON THE BALLOT ONCE AGAIN THIS FALL.  [1:18] OUR DISCUSSION ON MONDAY EVENING WAS ABOUT THE  SPECIFIC WORDING OF THAT BALLOT QUESTION. CITY   [1:23] STAFF PROPOSED A COUPLE OF IDEAS AND THE COUNCIL  OFFERED SOME SUGGESTIONS AS WELL, ALL WITH THE   [1:28] IDEA OF MAKING SURE THE BALLOT QUESTION  IS STRAIGHTFORWARD AND EASY TO UNDERSTAND,   [1:32] WHILE AT THE SAME TIME ENSURING THAT THE  LANGUAGE ACCURATELY REFLECTS THE INTENT   [1:36] OF THE RESIDENTS WHO PRESENTED THE PETITION. ULTIMATELY, WE CAME TO CONSENSUS ON THE LANGUAGE,   [1:42] BUT THE COUNCIL ASKED STAFF TO TAKE ONE MORE LOOK  AND BRING BACK FINAL RECOMMENDED LANGUAGE AT OUR   [1:47] AUGUST 5 MEETING. THE BOTTOM LINE IS THAT THE  QUESTION OF RANKED CHOICE VOTING WILL BE ON THE   [1:52] BALLOT AGAIN THIS FALL AND YOU’LL CERTAINLY BE  HEARING MORE ABOUT IT BETWEEN NOW AND NOVEMBER.  [1:58] ALSO ON MONDAY, STAFF PROVIDED STATUS UPDATES  ON THE THREE BLOOMINGTON FORWARD PROJECTS:   [2:03] THE COMMUNITY HEALTH AND WELLNESS CENTER;  THE RENOVATION OF BLOOMINGTON ICE GARDEN;   [2:06] AND THE NINE MILE CREEK CORRIDOR RENEWAL PROJECT. THERE’S A LOT GOING ON WITH THE COMMUNITY HEALTH   [2:11] AND WELLNESS CENTER. THE COUNCIL HEARD ABOUT  SUSTAINABILITY, A SUMMARY OF AMENITIES,   [2:15] AND SAW SOME VERY BASIC DESIGNS FOR THE  FACILITY AND PARKING. WE ALSO HAD A GOOD   [2:19] DISCUSSION ABOUT COST RECOVERY – TRYING TO  FIND A BALANCE BETWEEN ENSURING THAT EVERYONE   [2:25] HAS ACCESS TO THE HEALTH AND WELLNESS CENTER  AND ENSURING THAT ENOUGH REVENUE IS GENERATED   [2:29] THROUGH USER FEES AND MEMBERSHIPS SO THAT A  GOOD PORTION OF FACILITY COSTS ARE COVERED.  [2:35] THERE HAS BEEN A LOT OF COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT  ALREADY ON THIS AND THE COUNCIL WILL BE   [2:39] REVIEWING THE RESULTS OF A STATISTICALLY  VALID SURVEY AT OUR MEETING ON AUGUST 26.  [2:44] THE PROJECT TO MODERNIZE THE BLOOMINGTON  ICE GARDEN IS ALSO MOVING RIGHT ALONG. THE   [2:47] COUNCIL APPROVED A BID PACKAGE FOR REFRIGERATION  EQUIPMENT AND NEW DASHER BOARDS BID BACK IN APRIL,   [2:53] STAFF MET WITH OUR FRIENDS AT BLOOMINGTON PUBLIC  SCHOOLS IN JUNE TO TALK ABOUT HIGH SCHOOL LOCKER   [2:57] ROOM DESIGNS, AND THEY’RE LOOKING AT WAYS TO  REDESIGN THE PARKING LOT TO MAKE IT SAFER.  [3:03] AFTER LOOKING AT A NUMBER OF POSSIBLE OPTIONS,  IT WAS DECIDED THAT THE PROJECT SUSTAINABILITY   [3:07] FOCUS WILL BE ON SOLAR ENERGY AND ELECTRICAL  EQUIPMENT. THE ROOF OVER RINK THREE CAN HANDLE   [3:13] A SOLAR ARRAY AND STAFF IS LOOKING AT SOLAR  COMPATIBILITY ON THE REST OF THE FACILITY.  [3:17] THERE WAS AN OPEN HOUSE THIS WEEK WHERE FOLKS  HAD A CHANCE TO CHECK OUT CONCEPT DESIGNS AND   [3:22] HEAR MORE ABOUT CONSTRUCTION PLANS AND  TIMELINES. WORK WILL BEGIN THIS FALL   [3:25] ON THE REFRIGERATION EQUIPMENT AND AREA OF THE  BUILDING THAT WILL HOUSE THE NEW EQUIPMENT. FULL   [3:31] CONSTRUCTION WILL START IN MID-MARCH OF 2025. OVER AT NINE MILE CREEK, THE SITE ASSESSMENT   [3:36] OF EXISTING CONDITIONS HAS STARTED. THE  DESIGN TEAM IS DOING A TOPOGRAPHIC SURVEY,   [3:41] A NATURAL AREA ASSESSMENT INCLUDING WETLAND  DELINEATIONS, BRIDGE ASSESSMENTS, AND A CREEK   [3:46] ASSESSMENT. THAT WORK SHOULD BE DONE THIS FALL. UPCOMING EVENTS INCLUDE A NATURE AND ECOLOGY   [3:51] CREEK WALK ON JULY 30. THE WALK WILL BE LEAD BY  STAFF FROM PARK MAINTENANCE, WATER RESOURCES,   [3:56] AND NINE MILE CREEK WATERSHED DISTRICT.  IT GOES FROM 5:00 TO 6:00 AND EVERYONE   [4:00] IS WELCOME. THE NEXT LARGE ENGAGEMENT EVENT  WILL BE IN MOIR PARK ON WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 7.  [4:05] FOCUS GROUP DISCUSSIONS REGARDING ACCESSIBILITY  AND CONNECTIVITY WILL BEGIN BY EARLY AUGUST.   [4:10] THE PLAN IS TO HAVE CONCEPTS FOR THE  COMMUNITY AND COUNCIL TO REVIEW IN   [4:14] OCTOBER AND A RECOMMENDATION ON THE OVERALL  PROJECT CONCEPT ELEMENTS, SPECIFICALLY AS   [4:19] IT RELATES TO TRAIL USE, IN DECEMBER. AS I SAID EARLIER, THESE ARE JUST THE   [4:24] HIGHLIGHTS OF THESE THREE PROJECTS.  YOU CAN FIND A LOT MORE INFORMATION   [4:28] ON EACH ON THE BLOOMINGTON FORWARD WEBSITE. I ALSO WANT TO TAKE A MINUTE TO RECOGNIZE   [4:33] YOUR GREAT BLOOMINGTON CITY STAFF. LAST WEEK, OUR OUTSTANDING BLOOMINGTON   [4:37] COMMUNICATIONS STAFF RECEIVED 10 AWARDS AS  PART OF THE MINNESOTA ASSOCIATION OF GOVERNMENT   [4:42] COMMUNICATORS 2024 NORTHERN LIGHTS AWARDS CONTEST. THERE WERE 162 ENTRIES SUBMITTED TO THIS YEAR’S   [4:49] CONTEST FROM ORGANIZATIONS FROM ACROSS MINNESOTA.  BLOOMINGTON WON FOUR FIRST-PLACE HONORS AND ONE   [4:56] INDIVIDUAL SPECIAL ACHIEVEMENT AWARD. OVERALL,  BLOOMINGTON COMMUNICATIONS RECEIVED THE MOST   [5:01] AWARDS OF ANY SINGLE ORGANIZATION IN THE CONTEST. THE FIRST PLACE AWARDS WERE FOR THE BLOOMINGTON.   [5:06] TOMORROW. TOGETHER. STATE OF THE CITY EVENT; THE  BLOOMINGTON. TOMORROW. TOGETHER. CORPORATE REPORT;   [5:11] THE TOP FUN: HIGHWAY TO THE OPEN HOUSE  PROMOTIONAL VIDEO; AND A VIDEO EXPLAINING   [5:16] THE CITY’S SIDEWALK SNOW REMOVAL PRIORITIES. ALSO RECOGNIZED WITH SECOND AND THIRD PLACE   [5:20] AWARDS WERE THE BLOOMINGTON FORWARD PUBLIC  INFORMATION WORK; THE BLOOMINGTON BRIEFING;   [5:24] AND THREE VIDEO SERIES BLOOMINGTON TODAY  REFRESHED, NOTABLE NEIGHBOR, AND SNOWPLOW HEROES.  [5:30] AND A REALLY COOL AWARD; BLOOMINGTON  COMMUNICATIONS ADMINISTRATOR JANINE   [5:35] HILL RECEIVED THE MINNESOTA ASSOCIATION  OF GOVERNMENT COMMUNICATORS HIGHEST HONOR,   [5:40] THE LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD. JANINE STARTED WITH BLOOMINGTON   [5:43] AS A PART-TIME COMMUNICATIONS SPECIALIST IN  1999, WENT FULL TIME IN 2003 AND WAS PROMOTED   [5:49] TO COMMUNICATIONS ADMINISTRATOR IN 2007.  SHE MANAGES THE CITY’S PRINT PUBLICATIONS,   [5:55] VIDEO PRODUCTION, WEBSITES, SOCIAL MEDIA AND  CABLE TV FRANCHISE ADMINISTRATION. JANINE   [6:01] HAS LED THE COMMUNICATIONS DIVISION TO MORE  THAN 100 LOCAL AND NATIONAL AWARDS AND SHE   [6:07] IS A ROCK STAR. CONGRATULATIONS JANINE. AND FINALLY, A BIG MAYOR’S SHOUTOUT TO   [6:14] COMMUNICATIONS INTERNS AMBER LATZKE AND WEEMON  YEAKESON FOR CREATING A NEW CITY OF BLOOMINGTON   [6:20] INSTAGRAM REEL SERIES FEATURING OUR PETS! MY BOYS JAKE AND ELWOOD HAD THE HONOR OF BEING   [6:25] THE FIRST GUESTS ON PAW-SPECTIVES, A NEW SERIES  HIGHLIGHTING THE FURRY FRIENDS OF BLOOMINGTON.  [6:31] HEAD OVER TO THE CITY OF BLOOMINGTON INSTAGRAM  PAGE TO SEE THE FULL REEL. AND IF YOU HAVE A   [6:36] DOGGONE CUTE PET PHOTO TO SHARE, WE WANT  TO SEE IT. YOU CAN SUBMIT YOUR PET PIX   [6:42] AT BLM DOT MN SLASH PHOTO. BE SURE TO WRITE A  SHORT DESCRIPTION ABOUT YOUR FOUR-LEGGED FRIEND   [6:48] FOR A CHANCE TO BE FEATURED IN PAW-SPECTIVES. THAT WILL DO IT FOR THIS WEEKS COUNCIL MINUTE.   [6:53] THANKS SO MUCH FOR JOINING ME TODAY.  UNTIL NEXT TIME, STAY SAFE BLOOMINGTON.