Laserfiche WebLink
respected the great leadership provided by Chair Nichols-Matkaiti. He stated he liked the work he got to do <br /> and the recommendations that were made to the City Council. <br /> Councilmember Axberg stated each Commission is tasked with making recommendations to the City Council <br /> that comply with policies, rules or ordinances already adopted by the City Council. She asked Mr. McQuillan <br /> what he would do if he disagreed with a policy or ordinance already in place. <br /> Mr. McQuillan stated Ordinances that are in place he supported because the City Council has the final say. He <br /> commented for new Ordinances that were pending, the Commission has the opportunity to make comments <br /> and offer opinions. <br /> Councilmember Dunsworth requested Mr. McQuillan to speak to the City's biggest opportunity and biggest <br /> challenge in addressing inclusion in New Brighton. <br /> Mr. McQuillan reported he was Vice Chair of the Inclusive Community Committee. He believed it was a good <br /> thing the City would be moving to create a Commission to address inclusion. He stated some of the challenges <br /> the City faced was getting people of color and minorities involved in City government. He noted the task force <br /> looked at areas where people should be brought in for greater involvement. He indicated a City-wide <br /> celebration was discussed by the task force and he anticipated the new Commission would be able to move <br /> these ideas forward. He stated he was looking forward to see what this Commission does for the community. <br /> Mayor Niedfeldt-Thomas thanked Mr. McQuillan for coming in and applying for this position. She noted City <br /> Clerk Spangrud would be in touch with further information on how the Council was moving forward. She <br /> explained the next person to be interviewed was Todd Biedenfeld. <br /> Councilmember Abdulle asked Mr. Biedenfeld to provide the Council with a brief history on his background <br /> and community involvement. <br /> Todd Biedenfeld stated he works for a large company in the Twin Cities that was in the AG industry and he <br /> leads a sales and business team within the organization. He indicated he spent a handful of years serving as an <br /> election judge in New Brighton and was completing his first term on the Planning Commission. He noted he <br /> also served on a Board of Directors for an organization within his professional realm. <br /> Councilmember Allen asked what motivated Mr. Biedenfeld to reapply to serve on a City Commission. <br /> Mr. Biedenfeld explained when he initially applied, he was new to New Brighton and wanted to get to know <br /> the community and the people. He stated it has been fun to be a part of the development process and he has <br /> enjoyed seeing things going from request to construction over the years. <br /> Councilmember Axberg stated each Commission is tasked with making recommendations to the City Council <br /> that comply with policies, rules or ordinances already adopted by the City Council. She asked Mr. Biedenfeld <br /> what he would do if he disagreed with a policy or ordinance already in place. <br /> Mr. Biedenfeld commented as a whole a lot of the zoning ordinances were dated. He reported Ben Gozola <br /> does a great job going through this information and getting it organized. He explained his service on the <br /> Planning Commission has allowed him to become more familiar with City Code and noted staff was cleaning <br /> up the language at this time. He stated there was nothing he had a problem with at this time. He commented <br /> further on the task at hand and explained once the City Code was updated and more user friendly, he could <br /> look for dated our misguided areas that may need to be addressed. <br />