Next week is a busy week for the Council –
Monday, January 26 there is NIMS training at 6 pm before the Council Meeting/Worksession. What, you may ask, is NIMS? NIMS stands for National Incident Management System and it is a FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) program “provides a consistent nationwide template to establish Federal, State, tribal and local governments and private sector and nongovernmental organizations to work together effectively and efficiently to prepare for, prevent, respond to and recover from domestic incidents, regardless of cause, size or complexity, including acts of catastrophic terrorism. NIMS benefits include a unified approach to incident management; standard command and management structures; and emphasis on preparedness, mutual aid and resource management.” As elected officials, Council members must recieve training to be able to respond to these emergencies.
Monday, January 26: Council Meeting and Worksession. Council agendas and packets are available on the City website each week as well as at the Northfield Public Library for those who prefer not to access them on-line. The highlights of the meeting portion are a request by Carleton College to amend the Land Development Regulations to allow wind turbines and selecting a task force and creating a work plan for a new Safety Center. The work shession includes a discussion with the Library Board about their goals including the library expansion, more budget disucssions and additional information about how we’ll proceed with the City Administrator position.
Wednesday, January 28: Intergovernmental meeting. These quarterly meetings with Rice and Dakota Counties, Dundas and the 4 townships surrounding Northfield address issues of common interest and concern. This meeting will begin at 7 pm at the Greenvale Township hall.
Thursday, January 29: The Council will have a closed meeting to consider proposals regarding the liquor store.
The complete city calendar is here.
Other events which might be of interest: The Northfield Union of Youth is holding a 15th anniversary open house at the Key 303 South Water St, from 5-8 pm.
Other observances which have no relevance for the City Council and may be of no interest to anyone:
- January 26 is Wayne Gretzky’s birthday. Happy 48th Wayne!
- January 29 is Kansas Day. Kansas became a state on January 29, 1861. Happy Birthday Kansas! (I went to high school in Leavenworth, Kansas…)
Betsey : At your NIMS training I hope the three levels of law that control the initial notification will be honored with clear explanation, as the proper procedure did not occur at the train wreck last year.
At the time of that train wreck, the city administrator was called by the police, and the Mayor did not even know about it for several hours.
The charter, emergency response docs, and the city code (i need to check if that’s the third directive; it seems plausible) all require the Mayor to be the first person contacted. Then it is up to the Mayor to put in place, or call in, whatever expertise is needed , or required by law depending on the level of emergency.
The fact that the former city administrator did not follow the correct procedure was either lack of knowledge, or part of the power struggle between him and the Mayor.
‘Emergencies’ can be thankfully minimal, or very very serious. It’s imperative that the proper procedure be followed as the lack of doing so can negate any federal assistance needed.
Thanks, Kiffi. Certainly we’re trying to get things done and done right on the Council, so I’ll ask questions as the training (there will be several sessions of which the one Monday is the first) goes along.