Lakeway City Council discussed their objectives and the timeline for the city's charter review process with newly appointed members of the city’s Charter Review Committee at a March 18 meeting.
The gist
City Council and city staff discussed objectives for the city's charter, which sets the rules for the operation of the city, with the Charter Review Committee members as well as the timeline for their work to be completed and brought back before council.
City Manager Joseph Molis said he would like the committee to work on modernizing the charter, including updating outdated staff position titles.
Mayor Pro Tem Louis Mastrangelo said there are only 11 articles in the charter that mostly deal with policy and procedure of the city itself.
Mastrangelo said he wants the committee to look into pay for council members. He said with pay, council members would not be able to support propositions, which they can do now without pay.
He also said he wanted the committee to look into term limits for council members as well as whether or not they should continue to be at-large seats. Lastly, he said he wanted them to look into the city’s decorum policy.
Council member Jennifer Szimanski said she wants the committee to focus on concepts she has been vocal about since she was elected in 2022, including following state law, eliminating or reducing bureaucracy when possible, and ensuring the city’s public servants and city employees are free from political influence.
“I place a lot of importance on fairness in the workplace and the working conditions for all employees,” Szimanski said. “To that end, I plan to stay engaged in the process and open to all feedback as we move forward into the substance of any changes the committee sees fit.”
Council member Kent O’Brien said he wants the committee to focus on making changes that are in alignment with the city’s population growth.
“I think it would be fair to say that everything is on the table, and we should not look at something as sacred, unless, of course, it’s state law,” O’Brien said.
What else?
Mayor Tom Kilgore said committee members would be given a binder to keep all notes from charter review committee meetings as well as city emails to use for anything related to city business.
Kilgore said in past charter reviews, committee members did not return notes taken throughout the process, so the city does not have good records of previous charter review processes.
The backstory
City Council approved a resolution in February appointing members to the Charter Review Committee, according to city documents.
Mastrangelo will serve as chair of the committee. He was recommended for appointment by Kilgore, according to city officials.
Other committee members include:
- Troy Dunson, recommended by council member Kelly Brynteson
- Amber Hart, recommended by O’Brien
- Brad Heilman, recommended by Szimanski
- Sanjeev Kumar, recommended by Mastrangelo
- Erik Mulloy, recommended by council member Christopher Forton
- Jessica Putonti, recommended by council member Gretchen Vance
The Charter Review Committee will meet regularly in closed meetings from now until October to discuss recommended changes to the charter, according to city documents.
The committee will bring back their recommendations to City Council in November for proposed ballot propositions. City Council will provide feedback to the committee prior to a potential ordinance adoption calling for a special election for the propositions in January 2025. The charter amendments would then appear on the May 3, 2025, election ballot for voter approval, according to city documents.
