City staff presented proposed ordinance edits for Title 1 (administration) and Title 12 (subdivisions) on July 16 and asked the council to move Title 1 forward for council action July 30 and to accept the Title 12 review schedule, which delays final action to later in the year.

Director Gunderson said the rewrite consolidates definitions, removes outdated chapters (including a chapter for a fire department the city no longer has) and simplifies enforcement and appeals language. On code enforcement penalties, staff recommended replacing the current tiered civil infraction scheme with a single civil infraction penalty of $250 to simplify administration.

Two topics drew sustained council discussion. First, staff asked whether the municipal code should require a physical quorum in City Hall for regular meetings, or allow remote members to count toward a quorum. Council members expressed mixed views; several said remote participation should be allowed and others said they prefer most members attend in person. Council requested staff to keep flexible language and to present options.

Second, staff asked whether the council wanted to revisit the mayor and council salaries codified in Title 1. Staff made no recommendation but offered to provide salary comparables (for example, Pierce County cities) and noted that any change would not take effect until a seat’s next election. Councilmembers asked that the finance committee review comparable salaries and bring a recommendation during budget discussions.

Another policy point generated debate: staff recommended moving certain appeals that had been heard by the council to the superior court/hearing‑examiner process as a best‑practice approach to avoid perceived biases. Several councilmembers objected and said appeals by local residents should remain within the elected body; a majority of council expressed a preference to leave the current appeals language in place and to allow the adoption process to proceed without shifting all appeals to superior court.

Action and next steps: Staff will place Title 1 amendments on the July 30 agenda for council action. The council asked staff to route salary comparables to the finance committee for consideration and to continue the Title 12 rule‑making and public‑hearing schedule through the fall.