Laserfiche WebLink
City Council Minutes <br />June 17, 2020 <br />Page 3 <br />Mr. Portner asked about their perception of property taxes. What is high? What is <br />fair? <br />Council and staff responded: <br />■ It is challenging to compare houses in one community to another <br />■ Some cities have taxes for services such as transportation, wastewater, <br />planning, or mosquito control built in but, in Elk River, those things are <br />provided by the city <br />■ Taxes are divided among city, county, and school district <br />■ Residents need more education on what their property tax includes <br />■ Higher industrial and commercial base can help cover part of taxes <br />■ The city needs to be a good steward of the money they collect <br />■ If people want streets plowed, cracks fixed, and a good response in <br />emergencies that is 2/3 of the budget <br />Customer service vs compliance <br />Mr. Portner began a discussion on customer service. <br />Council agreed customers include anyone who owns a business in the city, lives in <br />the city, someone who purchases goods or services, or an outside developer looking <br />to be in Elk River. <br />l ) <br />Council addressed the following points: <br />■ Empathy is important <br />■ Explain why something needs to be done a certain way <br />■ Everyone's input is valid and heard <br />■ Make customers part of the process and solution <br />■ Customer service is essential for anyone working in government <br />■ The main job of staff and Council is to answer questions and facilitate <br />resident requests <br />■ When possible, offer flexible and creative solutions <br />■ Social media or email communication could be misconstrued, face to face <br />conversations may be more effective <br />■ A warm handoff or reference to the best resource is helpful <br />Mr. Carlton talked about working with developers and balancing the desires of the <br />developer, community, and council. <br />Mayor Dietz asked if there was some sort of guide for first time developers. <br />Ms. Fischer stated the city offers pre -application meetings upon request. <br />Communication with newer developers can help them realize if the council would <br />approve their project. <br />0 <br />P 0 w E R E 0 O r <br />FNATURE <br />