Council debates how to handle a long list of initiatives; staff to retool discussion for January workshop

Councilmembers and staff spent the bulk of the meeting discussing how to organize and prioritize a long list of council initiatives. Heather told the committee she is gathering feedback from prior conversations and proposed pausing the item for a more discussion-focused, workshop-style meeting in January so staff can incorporate initiatives into department goals and the budget process.

Councilmembers raised practical concerns and alternatives: some suggested splitting initiative topics across standing committees (for example, Planning and Development for land use items and Government Operations for finance) to move items forward more quickly; others cautioned a Committee of the Whole could become a long night and might exclude public-comment features in the same way. Councilmember Jamie noted one local business had to wait nearly two months for a liquor license under the current meeting cadence, using it as an example of operational delay under the existing structure.

Staff emphasized the strategic-plan process is council-driven and recommended a January return to prioritize items and fit them into the fiscal cycle. Several members suggested retreats or dedicated off-Monday sessions to allow deeper exchanges rather than quick operational updates at the end of long meetings.

Outcome: Staff will collect remaining council feedback, separate and retool initiative items into a format intended for more robust discussion, and bring the item back in January (or early in Q1) to align with budget and department planning.

Sources: Committee discussion led by Heather and comments from council members recorded during the Government Operations Committee meeting.