Laserfiche WebLink
<br /> <br />Mr. Pledger commented Commissioners are seen as advocates or representatives of their neighborhood and <br />were accountable to the people living across the street from them. He believed that Commission positions <br />were important as they were assisting in guiding the City forward. He indicated it was important for <br />Commissioners to provide information that was reliable while also being accountable for this information. <br /> <br />Councilmember Burg asked how he would respond if a member of the community were to contact him <br />expressing opposition to an item being addressed by your commission and questioned if this would change if it <br />was a life-long friend. <br /> <br />Mr. Pledger stated it would be better if it was a friend because he would have a one on one conversation. He <br />explained sometimes people just don’t agree but indicated he would listen to the person while remaining <br />accountable to the City. <br /> <br />Councilmember Dunsworth reported each commission is tasked with making recommendations to the City <br />Council. She asked how Mr. Pledger would respond if he disagreed with a policy or Ordinance already in <br />place. <br /> <br />Mr. Pledger indicated he has had many disagreements in his life and has a federal employee he doesn’t have <br />the final say with the things at work. However, in this role, he would serve at the pleasure of the City Council <br />and he understood he would be serving in an advisory role. He explained he would be making <br />recommendations to the City Council and not final decisions. <br /> <br />Mayor Johnson asked what the City’s biggest challenges were. <br /> <br />Mr. Pledger stated he believed the City’s biggest challenge was the aging population and the turnover <br />occurring in the community. He commented it was important for the City to connect with the younger families <br />that were moving into New Brighton, while also staying connected to the older residents that have established <br />themselves in the community. <br /> <br />Councilmember Burg asked if he was interested in land uses and variances; economic programs, retention and <br />development; the impact of recreation on the community; or the impacts of public safet y. <br /> <br />Mr. Pledger explained he was most interested in economic programs and redevelopment. <br /> <br />Mayor Johnson discussed the process the Council would be following for the committee me mber <br />appointments. She thanked Mr. Pledger for his interest in serving and asked if he had any questions. <br /> <br />Mr. Pledger had no further questions. <br /> <br /> <br />Mayor Johnson welcomed Jeremy Melquist. <br /> <br />Councilmember Burg asked Jeremy to tell the Council a little bit about himself and his experiences in the <br />community. <br /> <br />Jeremy Melquist stated he recently moved to the City in 2018. He noted he was a traffic engineer for Tayler J <br />Engineering in St. Paul. He explained he worked for cities and counties on engineering projects. <br /> <br />Councilmember Dunsworth asked why he had decided to apply to serve on a City Commission. <br />