Committee of the Whole — Finance, Administration, and Communications (Redmond City Council)

Meeting held Tuesday, September 8, 2026, beginning at 4:32 p.m. (the agenda listed 4:30 p.m.) at City Hall, 15670 NE 85th St., with remote participation. Presiding Officer Councilmember Kritzer led the meeting. Present were Council President Stewart, Council Vice President Nuevacamina, Councilmembers Forsyth, Parsi, and Sony, and Councilmember Prakriya online. One posted action item—the fully managed video production contract (CM 26-523)—was removed from the agenda and will return at a future meeting because more information is needed. No minutes were available for this meeting.

Consent Calendar

• CM 26-530 — Annual Physical Access Control (Genetec) Support Contract, $97,585. Placed on the September 15 consent agenda without objection. TIS CIO Michael Marchant and Infrastructure Operations Manager Jose Mayor presented. The current month-to-month contract no longer meets the city's needs. The new annual contract provides greater services at lower cost: the vendor provides critical parts (the current vendor does not), emergency response improves from 4 hours to 2 hours during business hours (after-hours remains 4 hours), and the city saves 15% of its current annual support costs. The prior yearly contract was just over $120,000; the new contract is $97,000 per year. Staff noted the vendor holds contracts with other agencies, including King County (transcribed as "Keene County"), and comes highly recommended. Councilmember Parsi asked about current costs and scope; Councilmember Sony asked whether the SLA metrics would be maintained. Staff confirmed no concessions are being made.
• CM 26-544 — Ordinance Updating RMC Subsection 9.30.060 to Remove Conflicting Code Language. Placed on the September 15 consent agenda without objection. Finance staff (deputy director, Finance Manager Adam O'Sullivan, and Business License Program Coordinator Denise Shanda) described a housekeeping correction to remove conflicting language on gambling taxes for social cardrooms. History: a 1999 ban on social cardrooms was followed by a 2000 gambling tax update that included social cardrooms but never removed them from the taxation table. The conflict was flagged by legal counsel representing an individual inquiring about business activities allowed in Redmond. Staff confirmed this is not a policy change: commercial social cardrooms remain banned, and Councilmember Sony noted that nonprofits and charitable organizations may still operate social cardrooms if licensed by the Washington State Gambling Commission. Council President Stewart supported moving the item forward, and Councilmember Prakriya expressed full support for the change.

Discussion Items

• Payroll Transition Update and HR Assessment Consulting Contract (CM 26-524). Assistant Chief Operating Officer and interim HR Director Lisa Maher requested approval of a $318,500 sole-source consulting contract with Project Core for a three-phase, 20-week assessment of HR structure and processes, including discovery, current-state data gathering, payroll structure/process analysis, and a final prioritized report and roadmap. Funding would come from the executive leadership budget via salary savings. Staff stated no competitive bids were received; the consultant was selected through referrals from other entities, including Seattle SPD, and was sole-sourced. Finance Director Cochrane reported that payroll staff transitioned to the Finance Department on July 16, that the city has validated continuing with the UKG payroll implementation, and that staff are researching a managed-services payroll model. She stated a backward-looking forensic payroll audit would begin in early 2027 under a separate contract and would examine both pay accuracy and internal controls. Councilmember Parsi questioned how the assessment would inform specific decisions and, given the lack of a competitive bid and the scope, said he was not comfortable moving it to consent. Councilmember Prakriya noted the contract costs more than a year's FTE budget and that the contract language does not include an explicit deliverable ensuring every Redmond employee is paid fairly; he requested a list of other jurisdictions the consultant has assisted and clearer deliverables and scope definitions. Councilmember Forsyth confirmed the former HR director's short-term contract is limited to the new department reorganization proposal and a few legal trainings and ends this year. Council Vice President Nuevacamina asked about budget risk; staff noted the salary and benefit contingency totals $4 million ($2 million one-time and $2 million ongoing), with additional funds added due to uncertainty. Councilmember Sony questioned whether deep dives on only two of seven HR processes is sufficient scope; staff said the lighter-touch reviews can flag red flags for future work. Councilmember Parsi proposed exploring a policy to ensure timely pay and notification of affected employees when discrepancies are identified; Council President Stewart and Councilmember Forsyth supported the intent, with Forsyth requesting that time be built in for those policy conversations when the forensic audit returns.
• 2027 Pay Plan Updates (CM 26-545). Staff presented the 2027 pay plans: all 17 union and non-represented pay plans receive the same 4.1% COLA (based on first-half CPI-W)—described as extremely rare—and there are no new classifications. The only changes are three classifications moving to higher bands in the executive and non-represented pay plans. The item had been proposed for the September 15 consent agenda. Councilmember Forsyth noted the draft ordinances still list former City Attorney Daniel Kinney and need updating. She stated the council is now one of the lowest-paid councils in the region, with the president and vice president both around $55,000, urged salary commissioners to reflect the co-led president/vice-president role, and argued a flat percentage raise is inequitable: a 4% increase on a salary around $174,000 is roughly $6,000, while on a salary around $30,000 it is roughly $1,000, compounding pay gaps over time. Council Vice President Nuevacamina asked whether market comparisons account for total compensation, noting that an FTE slotted at, for example, $120,000 costs the city just over $300,000 in total. Staff said the item could be approved in the November timeframe (targeting the November 10 budget adoption date), but that delaying compacts back-end work; pay plans must be in effect January 1, and the item is typically approved at the first meeting in December. Delaying would not affect negotiated increases, per Councilmember Forsyth's question. The committee chose to bring the item back for further discussion rather than move it to consent.
• Update to Elected Official (EO) Pay Plan — Mayor's Salary (CM 26-538). Chief Operating Officer Melissa Files presented the biennial review required by Ordinance 3166, to be taken with the budget; no ordinance was attached because changes would be made through the budget process. The mayor's current salary is $173,914, plus a $500-per-month car allowance; the last increase was a 2.3% COLA in 2026. Comparables exclude Bellevue, Kirkland, and Bothell because they use city-manager forms of government. Options presented: a 4.1% COLA would raise the salary to approximately $181,000; the all-cities average would be approximately $195,000 (a 12% increase); and the match-cities average would be approximately $218,000 (a 25% increase). Files recommended the middle option—the all-cities average of approximately $195,000. Councilmember Sony asked that new council members receive more explanation of how the comparables are calculated, including budget and revenue factors. Councilmember Kritzer noted the last larger increase was in 2024, from $153,000 (2024) to $170,000 (2025). Council President Stewart stated her primary concern is ensuring all Redmond staff are being paid correctly and on time, and she wants to address that before continuing with this item. The committee decided to bring the item back for a future Finance, Administration, and Communications meeting—possibly a study session—and councilmembers may submit questions by email for a response matrix.
• Respect, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (REDI) Program Update (CM 26-522) — Informational. REDI Program Administrator Teresa Lee reported that, as of August 26, 12 of 36 total REDI training sessions have been held (all 36 to be delivered by year-end); 48% of the workforce has either attended or signed up (33 attended and 15 signed up); and 65% of participants completed the post-training questionnaire. KPI reporting uses a top-two-box methodology (agree plus strongly agree) and a color-coded status key (on track, in progress, needs touch-in, not yet reported); current data reflects only training participants, not the full workforce. Strengths: 84% of respondents feel connected to their team and community, 83% feel connected to their immediate team, and 80% feel safe at work. Gaps: 34% witnessed a strong culture of respect in the workplace in the past 12 months, 40% reported leaders are held accountable for their actions, and 43% reported leaders follow through on commitments. Upcoming activities include Welcoming Week (September 10–19), with a city event on September 16 from 5 to 7 p.m. at Together Center featuring performances, food, and a panel with the mayor and community-based organization leaders; the Welcoming Redmond team's monthly meetings resume in September; and Lee is meeting with community-based organizations, the King County Library System, and regional equity-focused groups. Council Vice President Nuevacamina asked whether participation is top-down; staff said a director/leadership-focused REDI training will be held in September, with leader-specific data collected after it. Council President Stewart said the data reinforces the need to reinvest in the organizational health assessment and hopes it is in the preliminary budget next month; if not, the council may take it up.

Key Outcomes

• Moved to the September 15 consent agenda: CM 26-530 (Genetec support contract, $97,585) and CM 26-544 (RMC 9.30.060 housekeeping ordinance).
• CM 26-524 (HR assessment consulting contract, $318,500) was placed on new business rather than consent; staff will provide additional information, including the consultant's prior jurisdictions and clearer deliverables and scope, before a vote.
• CM 26-545 (2027 pay plan updates) and CM 26-538 (mayor's salary update) were held for further committee discussion, with a target of November for adoption decisions.
• CM 26-523 (fully managed video production contract) was removed from the agenda and will appear at a future meeting.
• The REDI program update was received as informational, with monthly reporting to continue.