by April Scheinoha
Reporter
What’s old may be new again for the Thief River Falls City Council. At their Committee of the Whole meeting Tuesday, June 6, council members seemed to be in agreement to move forward with the position of economic/community development director. The matter is expected to be discussed further at an upcoming Public Works Committee meeting before being placed on the council agenda for consideration.
Council members are considering the position since city consultant Mark Borseth would like to step down toward the end of July. Prior to working as a consultant, Borseth was employed as the city’s community services director and then public works director.
Council members briefly discussed having the position of economic/community development director versus the position of economic/community development planner.
According to the job description, the director position “performs a wide variety of research, development and supervising activities associated with economic development and housing. Responsible for the overall management of the community development and economic development activities, including the planning, code enforcement, zoning, development plans and liaison to city commissions and committees.” The director position, a supervisory position, would report to the council, council committee and city administrator as delegated.
At the meeting, the job description for economic/community development director included the supervision of the building official and the GIS/mapping technician.
Public Works Director Travis Giffen voiced displeasure about the GIS/mapping technician moving out of his department. He said that position was nonexistent when he started working for the city and he had put a lot of time into the position. Giffen added that he and Norman Betland, who holds the position, meet weekly to determine how to move forward. So far, they have created 150 different layers of maps. The public is able to see 14 layers of maps on the city website.
Giffen admitted his plate is full when it comes to his responsibilities, but he said he is more overloaded with overseeing government buildings than overseeing GIS/mapping.
The planner position would be “responsible for the overall management of the community development and economic development activities, including the planning, code enforcement, zoning, development plans and liaison to city commissions and committees.” The non-supervisory position would report to the city administrator.
Both positions require a bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution in public administration, urban or regional planning, geography, business management or related field.” However, the director position requires 10 years of relevant experience while the planner position requires five.
City Administrator Angie Philipp provided an update on the city’s population. Every June, the state demographer provides a population estimate for the city as of April 1 of the year prior. That estimate was 9,058 as of April 1, 2022. The 2020 census found there were 8,749 residents in the city.
Council members heard an update on the city’s strategic plan. Denny Elbert, Chuck Crummy and the late Galen Cariveau assisted the city in crafting the strategic plan as part of a two-year process. They helped the city revise the 2017 strategic plan with input from the mayor, council, city employees, community members and business owners.
Using the feedback as a guide, the 2023-28 strategic plan identified eight strategic issues:
• Communication and decision making
• Employee work culture
• Financial stability and growth
• Planned infrastructure investment
• Recreational asset stewardship
• Transparent/accountable governance
• Sustainable growing economy
• Citizen-focused service
Under each strategic issue are goals. Under each goal are objectives and actions that the city wishes to accomplish.
“You have a plan now,” said Crummy. “Now, it’s how do we get to that next stage?”
Crummy added that city leaders now have to work together and determine how to implement the strategic plan.
To assist in implementation of the strategic plan, Elbert encouraged the council to take a deep dive into the strategic plan to judge its progress eight to 12 months after it has been formally adopted. He also encouraged the council to consider placing a strategic issue on the agenda of each council meeting.