On Tuesday night the Council met to discuss a few significant items:
- We approved the installation of a plaque in memory of Bob Hoyer in the Grove Park. As our first Mayor, Bob Hoyer was instrumental in the City's incorporation. Even after leaving city government after four terms, Mr. Hoyer continued to work towards establishing a downtown park and what is now the Grove. It is only fitting that a tribute to Mr. Hoyer be placed in the Grove for all to appreciate.
- We authorized painting and flooring work in City Hall. The work will take place starting the week of December 16 and City Hall will be closed to the public during that time and through the holidays. This is a regular maintenance item that hasn't been done in many many years.
- We had a lengthy discussion about the organizational structure of City staff, the potential of adding new positions, and eliminating certain positions that were no longer needed. On balance, the proposal advanced by staff called for an addition of two FTEs. This proposal would be largely flat from a financial perspective in FY25, and increase the FY26 spend by approximately $130K.
I appreciated and supported the new org structure. It reduced the instances of a management position having only one person reporting to them. A siloed vertical structure that we currently have can be inefficient.
When the Council approved changes to the org structure earlier in the year, we did so with the intent of reducing the number of high level management positions, and increasing the number of staff level positions. In a small city like Clayton, we often need more people to be hands on doing work, rather than more administration managing. The newly proposed org structure reflects this.
And while I support the new org structure overall, there were a few items included where the work assessing the demand and level of those positions was still in flight. Ultimately the Council took no action but instead gave feedback to staff on what level of analysis we would like to see regarding job duties and level for example, as well as some modifications that were identified.
We asked staff to come back with updated recommendations.
