HomeMy WebLinkAboutAGENDApacket__01-18-23_1116_438
NOTICE OF MEETING
REGULAR MEETING
SISTER CITIES ADVISORY COMMISSION
Chairman VACANT
Vice Chairman Bev Tall
Commissioner Zarrin Caldwell
Commissioner Marlene Fahrenbach
Commissioner VACANT
Commissioner Lisa Ristuccia
Commissioner James Wilson
TIME:4:00 P.M. – REGULAR MEETING
WHEN:WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 18, 2023
WHERE:FOUNTAIN HILLS COUNCIL CHAMBERS
16705 E. AVENUE OF THE FOUNTAINS, FOUNTAIN HILLS, AZ
Commissioners of the Town of Fountain Hills will attend either in person or by telephone conference call; a quorum of the
Town’s Council, various Commission, Committee or Board members may be in attendance at the Commission meeting.
Notice is hereby given that pursuant to A.R.S. §1-602.A.9, subject to certain specified statutory exceptions, parents have a
right to consent before the State or any of its political subdivisions make a video or audio recording of a minor child. Meetings
of the Commission are audio and/or video recorded and, as a result, proceedings in which children are present may be subject
to such recording. Parents, in order to exercise their rights may either file written consent with the Town Clerk to such
recording, or take personal action to ensure that their child or children are not present when a recording may be made. If a
child is present at the time a recording is made, the Town will assume that the rights afforded parents pursuant to A.R.S.
§1-602.A.9 have been waived.
REQUEST TO COMMENT
The public is welcome to participate in Commission meetings.
TO SPEAK TO AN AGENDA ITEM, please complete a Request to Comment card, located in the back of
the Council Chambers, and hand it to the Executive Assistant prior to discussion of that item, if
possible. Include the agenda item on which you wish to comment. Speakers will be allowed three
contiguous minutes to address the Commission. Verbal comments should be directed through the
Presiding Officer and not to individual Commissioners.
TO COMMENT ON AN AGENDA ITEM IN WRITING ONLY, please complete a Request to Comment card,
indicating it is a written comment, and check the box on whether you are FOR or AGAINST and agenda
item, and hand it to the Executive Assistant prior to discussion, if possible.
Sister Cities Advisory Commission Meeting of January 18, 2023 1 of 2
1.CALL TO ORDER – Vice Chairman Tall
2.ROLL CALL – Vice Chairman Tall
3.CALL TO THE PUBLIC
Pursuant to A.R.S. §38-431.01(H), public comment is permitted (not required) on matters NOT listed on the agenda.
Any such comment (i) must be within the jurisdiction of the Commission, and (ii) is subject to reasonable time,
place, and manner restrictions. The Commission will not discuss or take legal action on matters raised during Call
to the Public unless the matters are properly noticed for discussion and legal action. At the conclusion of the Call to
the Public, individual commissioners may (i) respond to criticism, (ii) ask staff to review a matter, or (iii) ask that
the matter be placed on a future Commission agenda.
4.CONSIDERATION AND POSSIBLE ACTION: Approval of the minutes of the Regular Meeting of
September 21, 2022.
5.CONSIDERATION AND POSSIBLE ACTION: Appoint of a Commission Chairman.
6.CONSIDERATION AND POSSIBLE ACTION: Appoint of a Commission Vice Chairman.
7.DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE ACTION: Selection of a New Sister City.
8.NEXT MEETING DATE: Wednesday, May 17, 2023.
9.ADJOURNMENT
CERTIFICATE OF POSTING OF NOTICE
The undersigned hereby certifies that a copy of the foregoing notice was duly posted in accordance with the statement filed
by the Sister Cities Advisory Commission with the Town Clerk.
Dated this ______ day of ____________________, 2023.
_____________________________________________
Angela Padgett-Espiritu, Executive Assistant
The Town of Fountain Hills endeavors to make all public meetings accessible to persons with disabilities. Please call 480-816-5199 (voice) or
1-800-367-8939 (TDD) 48 hours prior to the meeting to request a reasonable accommodation to participate in the meeting or to obtain
agenda information in large print format. Supporting documentation and staff reports furnished the Commission with this agenda are
available for review in the Town Manager's Office.
Sister Cities Advisory Commission Meeting of January 18, 2023 2 of 2
ITEM 4.
TOWN OF FOUNTAIN HILLS
STAFF REPORT
Meeting Date: 01/18/2023 Meeting Type: Sister Cities Advisory Commission
Agenda Type: Submitting Department: Administration
Prepared by: Angela Padgett-Espiritu, Executive Assistant to Manager, Mayor/Council
Staff Contact Information:
Request to Sister Cities Advisory Commission (Agenda Language): CONSIDERATION AND
POSSIBLE ACTION: Approval of the minutes of the Regular Meeting of September 21, 2022.
Staff Summary (Background)
The intent of approving meeting minutes is to ensure an accurate account of the discussion and action
that took place at the meeting for archival purposes. Approved minutes are placed on the town's
website and maintained as permanent records in compliance with state law.
Staff recommends the APPROVAL of the minutes of the Regular Meeting of September 21, 2022.
Attachments
September 21, 2022 Meeting Minutes
Form Review
Form Started By: Angela Padgett-Espiritu Started On: 01/09/2023 09:25 AM
Final Approval Date: 01/09/2023
TOWN OF FOUNTAIN HILLS
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING
OF THE FOUNTAIN HILLS SISTER CITIES ADVISORY COMMISSION
SEPTEMBER 21, 2022
1.CALL TO ORDER – Chairman Stumpf
Vice Chairperson Tall called to order the meeting of the Sister Cities Advisory
Commission at 4:01 p.m.
2.ROLL CALL – Chairman Stumpf
Present: Bev Tall, Vice Chairman; Zarrin Caldwell, Commissioner; Marlene
Fahrenbach, Commissioner; Lisa Ristuccia, Commissioner; James Wilson,
Commissioner
Absent: Nicholas Stumpf, Chairman; Enrique Melendez, Commissioner
Staff
Present:
Town Manager Grady E. Miller; Executive Assistant Angela Padgett-Espiritu
3.CALL TO THE PUBLIC
Pursuant to A.R.S. §38-431.01(H), public comment is permitted (not required) on matters NOT listed on the
agenda. Any such comment (i) must be within the jurisdiction of the Commission, and (ii) is subject to
reasonable time, place, and manner restrictions. The Commission will not discuss or take legal action on
matters raised during Call to the Public unless the matters are properly noticed for discussion and legal
action. At the conclusion of the Call to the Public, individual commissioners may (i) respond to criticism, (ii) ask
staff to review a matter, or (iii) ask that the matter be placed on a future Commission agenda.
No one from the public spoke.
4.CONSIDERATION OF Approving the May 18, 2022, Meeting Minutes
MOVED BY Commissioner Marlene Fahrenbach, Commissioner Lisa Ristuccia to
APPROVE the minutes of the May 18, 2022, regular meeting of the Sister Cities Advisory
Commission.
AYE: Vice Chairman Bev Tall, Commissioner Zarrin Caldwell, Commissioner Marlene
Fahrenbach, Commissioner Lisa Ristuccia, Commissioner James Wilson
5.CONSIDERATION AND POSSIBLE ACTION on Proposed 2023 Meeting Dates
MOVED BY Commissioner Lisa Ristuccia, Commissioner Marlene Fahrenbach to
APPROVE the 2023 meeting dates of the Sister Cities Advisory Commission.
AYE: Vice Chairman Bev Tall, Commissioner Zarrin Caldwell, Commissioner Marlene
Fahrenbach, Commissioner Lisa Ristuccia, Commissioner James Wilson
6.UPDATE on Council Action to Terminate Sister City Status with Kasterlee, Belgium
Town Manager Miller noted that the action to end Sister City status with Kasterlee,
Belgium began with the commission and then went to Council with the Sister Cities
Advisory Commission's recommendation to discontinue the relationship. He stated that a
letter was completed and sent to the Mayor of Kasterlee informing him of the intention to
end the Sister City association. He stated that the Fountain Hills Sister Cities Corporation
had been notified and that a copy of the letter had been provided to Arizona Sister Cities
and Sister Cities International. He stated that the Town has done all of the follow-ups
from the time it was recommended to Council to take action and then following up on the
action. He indicated that the Town will remove all Kasterlee-related street signs and that
the Community Relations Director will strive to remove any references from websites.
Commissioner Caldwell expressed her support for the decision but inquired whether the
town had heard from anyone at Kasterlee.
Town Manager Miller responded that the Town, along with the Sister City Corporation,
had made several attempts in the eight years that he has been here, and the only time
they heard from Kasterlee was when their current Mayor informed them of the passing of
Kasterlee's former Mayor, who was instrumental in establishing the Sister City
relationship.
7.DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE ACTION on New Sister City Selection Matrix
The Sister City Selection Matrix was discussed by Commissioner Wilson. He explained
that he felt it was crucial to develop such a tool and that it was essential to bring
objectivity to the decision-making process. He suggested that a more effective tool could
assist them in determining whether a city is a true match. He indicated that the Fountain
Hills Sister Cities Corporation and this Commission are discussing replacing Kasterlee
with a new sister city partnership.
He noted that the matrix contains five potential categories of evaluation criteria for
comparing and contrasting cities. He cited demographic, geographical, environmental,
cultural, civic, educational, economic, commercial, political, and governmental parallels.
He stated that he wanted to guarantee that there were sufficient categories to support
the selection procedure.
How to identify and evaluate the long-term potential of the partnerships was added as a
potential action item for the commission by Commissioner Wilson. This is the subjective
portion of the matrix, he added. Someone may weight something more or less than
another individual, and they would need to reach a consensus on the weighting ratings
for these various aspects.
Commissioner Wilson noted that the next version will include not just all the data he has
collected thus far, but also data for Pietrasanta. He stated that he will conduct data
mining and collect as much information as possible for Pietrasanta and include it here.
He noted that he could add another city under consideration in Canada, apply the same
thing, and compare the two cities side by side. He stated that another version of the
matrix will be distributed by Executive Assistant Espiritu.
Among the commission's comments were "it is always beneficial to have both objective
and subjective tools" and "they appreciate what Commissioner Wilson has done and
believe this is a tool they can employ."
No Action was taken.
8.DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE ACTION on Pietrasanta, Italy Delegation
Town Manager Miller reported that the Mayor's Assistant Valentina reached out to Mayor
Dickey, Christine Colley, and a few other individuals regarding the possibility of their
Mayor visiting our town in November 2022. He stated that the town had an internal
discussion over the visit of the mayor of Pietrasanta and if a translator would be required.
He stated that before they could answer to Valentina, she sent an email noting that the
visit had not yet been confirmed and that the mayor still needed council approval.
Valentina suggested that three artists might join their mayor on this trip, and an exhibition
would be part of their itinerary. According to Mr. Miller, it made sense for them to
participate in the Fall Festival hosted by the Fountain Hills Chamber of Commerce. He
stated that they had suggested this to Valentina and are currently expecting a
response.
Town Manager Miller, proposed the idea of sending a small group of representatives
from the Town to Pietrasanta, possibly in the months of February or March 2023. The
Mayor, the President of the Fountain Hills Sister Cities Corporation, and the Chair of the
Sister Cities Advisory Commission might make up the delegation in such scenario.
No action was taken.
9.REPORTS BY COMMISSIONERS AND TOWN MANAGER
Among the items addressed were the following:
Asia and Africa are two continents that I believe should be considered for inclusion
among the potential sister cities, in addition to western Europe.
Young people who participate in school exchanges may develop a perspective that
alters their lives forever as a result of seeing the diversity that exists in the world.
Even though their social and economic systems might not be comparable to ours, some
countries may really be able to help as well with exchanges and everything else; it all
simply depends on which country and which systems those might be.
The humanitarian implications of having sister cities are something that can be a very
positive thing. It might even provide stability for a country that hasn't been stable just to
have support, and it helps with a better understanding, which is what it's all about, so it's
a win-win situation.
10.ADJOURNMENT
MOVED BY Commissioner Marlene Fahrenbach, Commissioner Lisa Ristuccia to
ADJOURN the regular meeting of the Sister Cities Advisory Commission at 5:04 p.m.
AYE: Vice Chairman Bev Tall, Commissioner Zarrin Caldwell, Commissioner Marlene
Fahrenbach, Commissioner Lisa Ristuccia, Commissioner James Wilson
SISTER CITIES ADVISORY COMMISSION
____________________________
Bev Tall, Vice Chairman
ATTEST AND PREPARED BY:
______________________________
Angela Espiritu, Executive Assistant
CERTIFICATION
I hereby certify that the foregoing minutes are a true and correct copy of the minutes of the Regular
Meeting held by the Fountain Hills Sister Cities Advisory Commission in the Town Hall Council
Chambers on the 21st day of September 2022. I further certify that the meeting was duly called and that
a quorum was present.
DATED this 18th day of January 2023.
_________________________________
Angela Espiritu, Executive Assistant
ITEM 5.
TOWN OF FOUNTAIN HILLS
STAFF REPORT
Meeting Date: 01/18/2023 Meeting Type: Sister Cities Advisory Commission
Agenda Type: Submitting Department: Administration
Prepared by: Angela Padgett-Espiritu, Executive Assistant to Manager, Mayor/Council
Staff Contact Information:
Request to Sister Cities Advisory Commission (Agenda Language): CONSIDERATION AND
POSSIBLE ACTION: Appoint of a Commission Chairman.
Staff Summary (Background)
Form Review
Form Started By: Angela Padgett-Espiritu Started On: 01/09/2023 09:31 AM
Final Approval Date: 01/09/2023
ITEM 6.
TOWN OF FOUNTAIN HILLS
STAFF REPORT
Meeting Date: 01/18/2023 Meeting Type: Sister Cities Advisory Commission
Agenda Type: Submitting Department: Administration
Prepared by: Angela Padgett-Espiritu, Executive Assistant to Manager, Mayor/Council
Staff Contact Information:
Request to Sister Cities Advisory Commission (Agenda Language): CONSIDERATION AND
POSSIBLE ACTION: Appoint of a Commission Vice Chairman.
Staff Summary (Background)
Form Review
Form Started By: Angela Padgett-Espiritu Started On: 01/09/2023 09:33 AM
Final Approval Date: 01/09/2023
ITEM 7.
TOWN OF FOUNTAIN HILLS
STAFF REPORT
Meeting Date: 01/18/2023 Meeting Type: Sister Cities Advisory Commission
Agenda Type: Submitting Department: Administration
Prepared by: Angela Padgett-Espiritu, Executive Assistant to Manager, Mayor/Council
Staff Contact Information:
Request to Sister Cities Advisory Commission (Agenda Language): DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE
ACTION: Selection of a New Sister City.
Staff Summary (Background)
Attachments
New Sister City Selection Criteria
Form Review
Form Started By: Angela Padgett-Espiritu Started On: 01/09/2023 09:47 AM
Final Approval Date: 01/09/2023
ITEM 8.
TOWN OF FOUNTAIN HILLS
STAFF REPORT
Meeting Date: 01/18/2023 Meeting Type: Sister Cities Advisory Commission
Agenda Type: Submitting Department: Administration
Prepared by: Angela Padgett-Espiritu, Executive Assistant to Manager, Mayor/Council
Staff Contact Information:
Request to Sister Cities Advisory Commission (Agenda Language): NEXT MEETING DATE:
Wednesday, May 17, 2023.
Staff Summary (Background)
Form Review
Form Started By: Angela Padgett-Espiritu Started On: 01/09/2023 10:14 AM
Final Approval Date: 01/09/2023