BEMIDJI — The Bemidji City Council will finalize its plans for the annual review of City Manager Nate Mathews during its meeting tonight, ahead of the review’s scheduled date of March 29.
The topic of the review became somewhat contentious after a surprise addition to the agenda during a January meeting by At-large Councilor Audrey Thayer, who asked to schedule a discussion on Mathews’ continued employment by the city.
After some public backlash, the council walked back this initial wording and agreed to hold Mathews’ annual review in March rather than April with a process agreed upon by both Mathews and the council.
In its last meeting, the council passed a motion to retain outside legal counsel for the review process, and the final terms of the review process are expected to be agreed to during tonight’s meeting.
The council is also set to discuss the possibility of requesting a joint meeting with Northern Township over the township’s proposed plan to build a water and sewer system that would connect to Bemidji’s infrastructure for a fee.
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This discussion follows city staff raising concerns about Northern Township’s plan, citing legal and engineering questions that would need to be addressed.
Also on the agenda for tonight’s meeting is the authorization for a grant submission by the city’s Parks and Recreation Department for Algoma Park, and a resolution that would support ranked choice voting in state and federal elections in Minnesota.
The meeting will take place at 6 p.m. tonight, March 20, at city hall. The meeting can also be viewed on the city website, www.ci.bemidji.mn.us.
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