Archive: August 2011

I had a really good meeting last week with my friends at the Citizen’s League.  I met with them because the City Council has charged me with adding a new citizen engagement aspect to our annual budget formation process.  I …
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I attended the annual Edina Schools back-to-school staff kick-off event today at the Edina Performing Arts Center.  It’s my first time at this event, and I will say it was awesome!   Not only was the band awesome, the Superintendent Ric Dressen was …
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The consulting services agreement between the City and Personnel Decisions, Inc. for the recruitment of the new city manager (me) included a provision that after six months of employment of the new guy/gal, the consultant would facilitate a performance review …
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The Star Tribune reprinted an editorial in today’s paper from the Austin (MN) Daily Herald entitled “Cities are wasting money“.  Despite the bias of its title, the editorial raises an interesting premise:  Why should cities pay lobbyists to influence the …
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The term “inside baseball” is typically used by civilians (i.e. – normal people) to describe a discussion of technical jargon by wonks among civilians.  I think I’m guilty of it sometimes.  I don’t think of it as a term of …
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As you’ve probably heard by now, credit rating  agency Standard & Poor’s has downgraded the credit worthiness of the United States of America from their top rating of Aaa to the rating one rund down from Aaa:  Aa+.  The reverbarations from …
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Every now and then I get to be the recipient of very nice letters of appreciation for the efforts of City staff from local residents.  I was on the receiving end of such a letter this week.  It was a …
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All cities – whether they know it or not or whether they do it consciously or not - reward certain behaviors and discourage others.  That’s what law making is all about, and City Councils make laws just like state legislatures and Congress …
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Karen Kurt started her job as Edina’s new Assistant City Manager yesterday.  Karen comes to us from the City of Eden Prairie where she was the Human Resources Manager there from 2002-just a few weeks ago.  I hired Karen while I …
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