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Anna Olsen, with the Second Harvest Food Bank, an eight-year resident of the City, asked that the Council not reduce the grants to this organization. She said they have seen an increase of 46% in calls to the center. She mentioned the benefits of such assistance and how the need for food seems to be increasing. Mayor Foust called for a 10-minute break at 9:05 p.m. The Council resumed at 9:16 p.m. Various Council Members stated that they wanted to move forward with the budget and hold off on the options. Some wanted staff to look at core services and the long-term impacts of the vacancies and cuts. One Council Member would like a more proactive versus reactive attitude and a more premeditated approach. Overall Council Members concurred and appreciated all those who made a lot of compromises for these recommendations to be on the table. One Council Member would like to have a discussion on what the state budget reform could entail and he supports a strong look and review of economic development strategies in the city. In general, all Council Members supported the City Manager's recommended budget cuts and holding off on the options until September 14, 2009. Some Council Members would like to understand the short term and long term implications of these cuts and getting information on sun setting certain initiatives. Council consensus was to have staff investigate the costs of the following items for the meeting of September 14, 2009: costs associated with the Tree Board, information on the parking fund, how to increase revenues, and evaluate retiree benefits. One Council Member would like to build organizational capacity by possibly capitalizing on volunteers. One Council Member thanked City Manager Ingram for his leadership and for the work of the Department Heads. She said this was easy to follow and acknowledged this is a larger issue than our city, our region, and our state. She thanked prior Councils' that built reserves for a rainy day and made sure there were enough funds for the future - which is today. One Council Member appreciated the various issues that Council Members brought up. He suggested that in September it might be necessary to look at additional options due to the seriousness of the situation. Staff commented that at that time there will be more information on the state finances as well. Council appreciated the option of being kept informed through quarterly checks or updates. One Council Member was pleased with the vacancy management program and he mentioned that on the matter of wages and benefits he believes the Grand Jury report should be addressed with real data that relates to Redwood City. He also questioned if private sector positions should be part of the analysis. He suggested a committee of former mayors (five or seven) who are active in the community and that they be given accurate data and possibly make recommendations to the Council on the matters brought forth by the Grand Jury report. One Council Member emphasized that business is good and benefits every community member. Comments were made about the reduced resources and its impacts on the residents' quality of life. Vice Mayor Howard thanked City Manager Ingram and the Department Heads for their work. She acknowledged the toughness of the process. She supports a more proactive SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL MEETING JUNE 15, 2009 MINUTES PAGE 6 MINUTE BOOK NO. 62 Page No. 389