Monday afternoon’s Charter Review Commission meeting included quite a debate between its members and City Manager Tom Bonfield.
Much of the legal-like questioning centered around leadership in the city and opportunities for citizen input and initiatives.
Bonfield said it’s untrue to say he and the City Council exclusively set the agenda.
The city manager pointed to the $120 million expansion of the Pensacola Regional Airport and the storm water program as examples of projects that didn’t originally stem from the City Council.
In response one of CRC chair Crystal Spencer’s questions about leadership, Bonfield said: “I think there’s a big difference between leadership and who’s setting the policy.â€
Mark Crutcher, Robert Holmes and Jim Reeves were late to the meeting. DeeDee Ritchie was absent.
Spencer, consultant William Haraway and others will meet next week to discuss a new CRC website, as they have found someone who will do the work pro bono.
Spencer also assigned members the following topics to research and then give presentations on to the group:
Incumbency issues and City Council elections — Holmes
The top issues facing the professional community — Ritchie
The top issues facing area businesses from a community and economic development standpoint — Ed Ranelli
Identify comparable municipalities — Floyd Armstrong
The top issues of citizens in the community — Megan Pratt and Sam Horton
Private or matching funds for CRC — Jim Reeves
CRC members said they have a budget, but they want to plan ahead in case of any additional expenses.
“There’s going to have to be an expenditure of getting this info out to the public†at the end of the process,†Spencer said.
The group might also need funds for an additional speaker, the chair added.
After those discussions, Bonfield gave a PowerPoint presentation called a “Governance Review,†which included data on form and structures, substance (laws, policies and projects), and challenges and opportunities.
CRC members stopped Bonfield throughout the presentation to ask questions.
The city manager said the duties of the mayor and at-large council members include to “maintain a city-wide perspective on all issues.â€
Crutcher asked why at-large members are needed.
Bonfield said, with them, “You infuse a different perspective on issues.â€
The city manager said the district council members are “ombudsmen†who identify and advocate for issues in their districts and “provide for representation of minority and non-minority interests.â€
The city manager noted the “personal relationship†between the district council members and the 55,000 or so city residents.
“That is the way of assuring minority participation,†Bonfield said of having the district council members.
The city manager called the number of city officials “at the high end of average. Ten is the most I’ve ever worked for,†he said in response to a question about the number of officials.
Reeves pointed out that a court ruling established the number.
After Bonfield’s slide on how work is mainly conducted through a committee process, Ranelli asked about the alternatives.
“That every issue goes before the City Council,†Bonfield said.
“There’s an opportunity for each of these chairs (on the six committees) to take a leadership role.â€
