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Record of Proceedings

Charter Commission Meeting - March 11, 2026

Boards and Commissions — Wednesday, March 11, 2026
BodyRochester, Minnesota
SessionBoards and Commissions
DateWednesday, March 11, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 1:01:39

Original source
Transcript — VerbatimClick a timed line to jump · ⧉ to share it
0:02

I can't find a place to park.

0:03

I can't remember board, so a heart.

0:06

You don't get parking.

0:07

Oh, no, no, just push it.

0:09

Right.

0:12

It is crowded back.

0:13

But that's going to be let's uh we'll get rolling here.

0:19

Um the first order business.

0:21

I'll call the meeting order and ask Jody to do roll call.

0:26

Jeffrey?

0:27

Here Sylvia, president Michael?

0:34

Yes, here.

0:36

Rachel, present Malachi.

0:40

Here.

0:41

Well, me?

0:42

Here.

0:42

Walt?

0:43

Here.

0:45

Here.

0:46

Brandy?

0:47

Here.

0:47

Fred.

0:48

Here.

0:49

John Wade.

0:50

Here.

0:51

Nancy Zawarski.

0:52

There.

0:55

And we have a quorum.

0:57

All right.

0:58

Thank you.

0:59

Um one item I want to mention out of the gate.

1:03

I apologize that I should have looked at my calendar more closely.

1:06

The second Tuesday of March is the annual uh elections and voter meeting for all the townships throughout the state.

1:16

I wondered how you're gonna pull that off.

1:18

And uh township by default on the head election judge.

1:23

So we're gonna try to move things along.

1:26

If we're not done by around 5:30, Nancy's gonna take over.

1:29

Great.

1:30

So you got another one.

1:31

Oh, but me or Walt, I thought, well, let's fight with it.

1:34

No, I'm just gonna go.

1:37

I forgot closest.

1:40

So with that in mind, we'll we'll move along here.

1:43

And first order of item or of business is uh to welcome John Wade as our newest member.

1:49

Uh I'm sure no one knows who he is.

1:52

Um I've been around so long, Fred was the city attorney when it's so yeah.

1:56

This is probably one of the few groups you've not served on.

1:59

So it's an honor to be here at really yes.

2:02

I appreciate it.

2:03

Welcome.

2:04

Thank you.

2:04

All right, let's move in to our other business of uh approving the minutes.

2:09

Uh you could all have those.

2:11

Um I would entertain a motion for approval unless there are changes.

2:17

I would make the motion to approval seconds.

2:20

Okay.

2:23

Sylvia and then Walt.

2:25

All right.

2:26

Any discussion?

2:28

All in favor, then say aye.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Procedural██████████████████████████████████34%
Ethics And Governance████████████████████████24%
Personnel Matters█████████████████17%
Community Engagement████████████12%
Election Procedures██████████10%
Pending Litigation███3%
Summary of Proceedings

Charter Commission Meeting - March 11, 2026

The Charter Commission of Rochester, Minnesota, held a meeting on March 11, 2026, to welcome a new member, approve previous meeting minutes, and discuss two major items: the review of the roles and responsibilities of the Mayor and City Administrator, and the process for determining ward boundaries. No public comments were received. All actions were taken with 12 members present and 3 absent (Marcia Marcoux, Fran Bradley, Hasn Mir).

Consent Calendar

  • Welcome of New Member: Commissioner John Wade was formally welcomed to the Commission.
  • Approval of Minutes: The meeting minutes of November 20, 2025, were approved unanimously (12 ayes, 3 absent).

Public Comments & Testimony

  • No members of the public spoke during the open comment period.

Discussion Items

  • Review of Mayor and City Administrator Roles (Item 5.A): The Commission discussed a document from the Mayor containing approximately 20 questions seeking clarification on the roles and responsibilities of the Mayor and City Administrator as defined in the charter. Members debated the appropriate scope of their review and whether certain questions were legal interpretations better addressed by the City Attorney. A motion was made to table the item and send the document to the City Attorney for comment, then distribute it to the full body. This motion was amended to continue the item to the next regular meeting (May 2026) to allow the City Attorney adequate time to provide feedback. The amended motion passed unanimously.
  • Ward Boundary Process Discussion (Item 6.A): The Commission discussed the charter's provisions for ward boundary determinations, including their compliance with Minnesota Statute 204B.135 and the backup process that could allow two individuals to make final decisions. A motion to continue the discussion to the next regular meeting was denied (0-12-3). A second motion to continue the discussion to the September 2026 meeting, giving the City Attorney additional time due to an April trial and other commitments, was approved unanimously.

Key Outcomes

  • The Mayor/City Administrator roles review will be continued to the May 2026 meeting. The City Attorney will review the Mayor's comments and provide feedback to the Commission beforehand.
  • The ward boundary discussion will be continued to the September 2026 meeting.
  • The meeting was adjourned unanimously.

Meeting Transcript

I can't find a place to park. I can't remember board, so a heart. You don't get parking. Oh, no, no, just push it. Right. It is crowded back. But that's going to be let's uh we'll get rolling here. Um the first order business. I'll call the meeting order and ask Jody to do roll call. Jeffrey? Here Sylvia, president Michael? Yes, here. Rachel, present Malachi. Here. Well, me? Here. Walt? Here. Here. Brandy? Here. Fred. Here. John Wade. Here. Nancy Zawarski. There. And we have a quorum. All right. Thank you. Um one item I want to mention out of the gate. I apologize that I should have looked at my calendar more closely. The second Tuesday of March is the annual uh elections and voter meeting for all the townships throughout the state. I wondered how you're gonna pull that off. And uh township by default on the head election judge. So we're gonna try to move things along. If we're not done by around 5:30, Nancy's gonna take over. Great. So you got another one. Oh, but me or Walt, I thought, well, let's fight with it. No, I'm just gonna go. I forgot closest. So with that in mind, we'll we'll move along here. And first order of item or of business is uh to welcome John Wade as our newest member. Uh I'm sure no one knows who he is. Um I've been around so long, Fred was the city attorney when it's so yeah. This is probably one of the few groups you've not served on. So it's an honor to be here at really yes. I appreciate it. Welcome.

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