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Council staff proposes bimonthly newsletter to highlight council work; members back a pilot
Summary
Council staff presented a draft bimonthly newsletter to highlight council activities, legislative highlights and archival materials. Staff said the pilot would be fully digital, use existing city software and require no additional funding; council members offered feedback and supported moving forward with a pilot.
Jessica Hiltz, the council office’s management analyst, presented a draft bimonthly newsletter to the committee of the whole on Jan. 13, 2025. The proposed digital newsletter would highlight legislative summaries, member spotlights, archival items, community events and ways for residents to connect with council.
"The goal of the newsletter is to showcase opportunities for community members to connect with their representatives," Hiltz said. She said the product is intended to amplify council’s collective voice rather than individual members’ personal communications, and staff would partner with the city communications team for branding and distribution.
Hiltz told council the newsletter would use existing city software and templates and require no new funding. When Councilmember Schnitzer sought confirmation that the plan was fully digital and would not add postage costs, Hiltz replied, "A 100%. The software is something the city owns." She and other staff said they would provide social-media copy, QR codes for meetings, and links to council pages on the city website to build subscribers.
Council members asked about cadence and content. Hiltz said the pilot would be bimonthly to balance timely content with available staff capacity; she recommended two-month editions for the pilot and said staff would adjust cadence based on results and metrics such as open and click rates. Councilmember Padova, Councilmember Renner and others praised the design and said they would provide content to be included.
Council consensus: Members expressed broad support to try a pilot; staff requested that council provide material and guidance on items to feature for the initial issue covering January–February. Communications and marketing staff will support branding and analytics.
Next steps: Staff will finalize a pilot January–February edition, circulate it to council members for review and place the item on the consent agenda for the next regular meeting.
