Council adopts structured evaluation framework for appointed leaders, schedules process timeline

Councilmembers presented a new performance evaluation framework for council‑appointed positions on April 14 that combines self‑assessment, peer review and council scoring tied to charter duties and job descriptions. Councilmember Brown described the proposal as "a more structured, consistent, and accountable framework" intended to strengthen governance and public trust.

Elements and scope: The proposed evaluation covers the city manager, city attorney (firm‑level assessment), city secretary and municipal judge; categories include charter alignment, strategic execution, financial management, organizational leadership, and compliance. Council discussed how municipal judge reviews rely heavily on peer review because councilors do not routinely attend court, while the city attorney evaluation will measure firm‑wide service delivery (including timeliness of responses to council and staff).

Timeline and process: Staff said the system could be activated and the self‑assessment period run on the proposed timeline; council recorded a motion to approve the evaluations with an explicit addition of a timeliness metric for the attorney evaluation. The mayor and staff indicated the goal to have evaluations entered and the compilation ready in time for a final evaluation discussion before the May 31 charter deadline.

Motion: A council motion to approve the evaluation materials (with the timeliness addition) and to return the item to the first May meeting passed through motion and second; staff will input the scorecard and circulate it to council for familiarization and feedback before council scoring.