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Council Meeting -Special Session September 19,1972
Council Chambers 8:00 P.M.
Members present:-Coucilman W.6.Moe,Gordon M.Ebbert,Otto M.Skaug,
Ernest V.Lindell and Michael Boyle.
Mayor Skaug called the meeting to order.
CONSIDERATION OF BIDS -CASCADE PARK DEVELOPMENT -PHASE III
Bids were opened September 19,1972 at 2:00 P.M.Only one bid was received,thatof //^/
Marchand Construction Company of Moses Lake in the amount of $70,906.29.Engineers'
estimate for the project was $40,114.92.
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Public Works Director Weaver,stated that,estimating the funds available/he would recommend
rejecting the bid and request permission to negotiate with Marchand and other contractors to
break the job down to get the Park development completed.
Councilman Ebbert inquired whether he proposes to do away with bidding and do it piece-meal,
and Rich Weaver explained that some by City employed labor and some by other contractors,
"*and negotiate with suppliers,such as the pipe.He thinks we can get it done at a cost equal
O ' ' .to the Engineers'estimate.He added that approximately $45,000 is available to finish this job.
r^JQ *"Motion by Ebbert to reject the bid.Second by Boyle.Motion carried.
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Motion by Boyle to instruct the City Manager and City Engineer to enter into negotiations with
Marchand Construction and/or other contractors and suppliers,and come back to City Council
with an acceptable price,or what they come up with.Second by Lindell.Motion carried.
ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT TRAINING PROGRAM
Mayor Skaug stated that the City staff has undertaken an Organizational Development Training /0/£>
Program that has been going on and perhaps ensuing it as a departmental study and getting inter
relation awareness between the departments.
City Manager Waggener stated that last year during budget session he discussed that we need
to have more training among our staff.The people going to seminars,come back with a great
deal of personal knowledge and personal gainfrom than,but difficult to transfer the results into
the organization as a whole.What we have tried to do is involve our people in a professional
development program and have taken the first step to what,we hope to be a continuing program,
in Organizational Development.The first step consisted of staff members having all participated
in a two-day OD Training Seminar conducted by Dr.Pettit and Dr.Holmbeigof Central Washington
State College.
At the same time the City started discussing budget,the City Manager stated he became
acquainted with Drs.Pettit and Holmberg and that they were in the process of establishing an
OD Program,and decided they were particularly keyed to help us particularly in the budget process.
It is also an approach to problem solving in Planning,Programming and Budget.He then presented
to City Council a briefing on Organizational Development:
Organizational Development stands for a new way of looking at the human side of organizational life.
Whatis OD?^
1.A long-range effort to introduce planned change based on a diagnosis which is shared by
the members of an organization.
2.An OD program involves an entire organization,or a coherent "system"or part thereof.
3.Its goal is to increase organizational effectiveness and enhance organizational choice
and self-renewal.
4.The major strategy of OD is to intervene in the ongoing activities of the organization to
facilitate learning and to make choices about alternative ways to proceed.
Objectives of Typical OD Programs
1.To build trust among individuals and groups throughout the organization,and up-and-down
the hierarchy.
2.To create an open,problem-solving climate throughout the organization—where problems
are confronted,both within groups and between groups,in contrast to "sweeping problems
under the "rug"or "smoothing things over."
3.To locate decision-making and problem-solving•responsibilities as close to the information
sources and the relevant resources as possible,rather than in a particular role or level of
the hierarchy.
4.To increase the sense of "ownership"of organizational goals and objectives throughout
the membership of the organization.
5.To move toward more collaboration between interdependent persons and interdependent
groups within the organization.
6.To create conditions where conflict is brought out and managed.Where competition exists,
it is used to enhance the realization of work goals.
Council Meeting:2 (special meeting)September 19,1972
7 To Increase awareness of group "process" and its consequences for performance—that is,*xtohelppersonsbecomeawareofwhatishappeningbetweenandtogroupmemberswhilethagroupisworkingonthetask,e.g.,communication,influence,feelings,leadership t
styles and struggles,relationships between groups,how conflict is managed,etc. .<•
Basic Assumptions Underlying the Concept of OD.
1 Work whichis organized to meetpeople's needs as well as to achieve organizational require-,
ments tends to produce the highest productivity and quality of production.
2. Mostmembers of organizations are not motivated primarily by an avoidance of work forwhichtight controls and threats of punishment are necessary—but rather, most individualsseekchallengingworkand desire responsibility for accomplishing organizationalobjectives
to which they are committed.
3.The basic building blocksof organizations are groups of people;therefore,the basic '
units of change are also groups,not simply individuals.
4 Theculture of most organizations tends to suppress the open expression of feelingswhichpeoplehaveabouteach otherandabout where they andtheir organization are heading^
The difficulty is that the suppression of feelings adversely affects problem-solving,personal growth, and satisfaction with one's work.
5.Groups which learnto work in a constructively open way by providing feedback for
members become moreable to profit from their own experience and become moreableto fullyutilize their resourcesonthe task.Furthermore,the growth of individual
members is facilitated by relationships which are open,supportive,and trusting.
6. "Peoplesupportwhatthey help create."Where change is introduced,it will be
mosteffectively implemented if the groups and individuals involved havea sense of
ownershipin the process.Commitment is mostassuredly attained where there is
active participation in the planning and conduct of the change.
7.The basic value underlying all OD theoryand practice is that of choice .Through the
collection and feedback of relevant data—made available by trust,openness,and risk-
more choice becomes available to the organization,and to the individual,and hence
better decisions can be made.
Organizations must be constantly growing and constantly improving to keep pace with the rapid changes andtechnologyandin society.OrganizaUonal Development is a planned change effect.Change can occur in
three different ways:
1.Increment Approach or Evolutionary Approach.Changes affected by influence.The problem
of evolutionary change lies in its slowness.Organizations that depend on evolutionaryapproachtochangewill be outdated becausethey cannot keep pace with changes in tech
nology and society.
2.Revolutionary Approach.Forced change from an outside group sometimes occurring because
of the slowness of evolutionary change is not acceptable.
3. Planned Change Approach.Organizational Development is a planned change program,
Involving the whole system.If any part of the organization does not cooperate it restricts
the entire system.Under OD concepts organizational change can occur rapidly.
Asa result of the two-day ODSeminar and as a first step each department submitted a Mission Statement.
A Mission Statement is intended to be a very broad overlook as to what our organization is.
Mission Statements-City Government:
Provide efficient and effective services to meet the immediateand future needs of the community,holding
ourselves accountable and responsive to the community and also providing leadership in continuous and
comprehensive planning and development.
City Manager:
Provides professional leadership for improved utilization of human and other resources to facilitate
efficient functioning of present and future programs,and affects a mutually productive relationship
with the City Council and with State affiliate agencies.
Community Development:
Provide,identify,and coordinate the resources necessary to facilitate the orderly and desirable
development of the City.
Finance Department:
To provide efficient andeffective accountability ofall financial activities of the City.Also to assistallcomponents of City Governmentin effecting the efficient fiscal managementof resources.
Council Meetings:3 (special meeting)September 19, 1972
Park &Recreation:
. To provide effectively and efficiently an attractive environment and create opportunities for people
'J .to renew themselves through use and enjoyment of leisure time. Recognize needs,both immediate^)v"and long-range,through imaginative,creative,and responsive leadership.
-Police Department:
to provide efficient and effective protectionto persons and property.To provide leadership in planning|^ana promoting programsin relation to safety of the community to meet present and future needs.
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Public Works:
To provide supervisory,regulatory,professional,and consumer services in prescribed areas in an
efficient manner.Provide professional services and assistance for future planning in all components
of City Government.
Fire Department:
^-To provide efficient and effective service to protect the community against loss of life and propertyjTfromfire,accident,and explosions.Also to provideleadership to the citizens for preventionand
*control of hazardous conditions and processes.
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Q Taking the Mission Statement and then defining that responsibility,listing a plan of action and establi-
£5 shing development standards,and then the next step,- who does it,- when do they do it,and what
resources are there.
Bill Skeels,Park &Recreation Director and Al Bjork,Chief of Police,presented department models
showing responsibilities,plan of action and performance standards for projects within their department.
They indicated an example of that with chart presentation.
Central Washington State College is establishing an OD Center starting this month. There will bepeople
there who are involved with OD in business and industryand community services from the University
of Washington,Eastern Washington State College,Seattle University,and all of these people will be
availabe to work as consultants throughout the State.
Government agencies will be involved and cities will be involved,both working as consultants in theIprogramas well as recipients of the Program.Moses Lake has beenchosen cs oneofthree pilot cities.
On October 18,19 and 20 there will be an OD program at the Battelle Institute;a two-day seminar,and
City Manager Waggener stated he has been asked to attend,but does not know what role he will be ex
pectedto play,but hoped that through that he will learn something to help us.Todate no city,has really
participated in an OD program; the City of Moses Lake is the first city to say that we are making a commit
mentto a 2 or 3 year long range development program. Other cities will be getting into it eventually.Business and industry has been In it forover 15 years.Very fewindustries todaywill not have something
in OD.Many organizations are employing their own specialists in working within the organization on a
constant basis.
Financing will be a combination of funding through the State Superintendent of Public Instruction Funds
made available through their Inter-governmental Personnel Association (IPA).These are funds set asideforProfessionDevelopmentPrograms.Also through Title I funds »Federalfunds allocated by the State
to institutions of higher learning.These funds are by application to the Title I Advisory Committeere
questing funding throughthe Title I Program.AWC has agreed to be a sponsoring agency to help apply
for Federal funds.
What we are hoping to do is to establish an organization structure that becomes more effective to educate
the people in the services and to better serve the people in the community.Organizationstandards can
become somewhat stagnant.OD involves the entiresystem.This sortof change simply does nottake placeifanypartoftheorganizationfails to cooperate.However,under this concept this change can occur veryrapidly.OD is going to take 4to 5years -minor changes 4to 6 months.We have seen some change in
our organization already since the seminar was conducted.
We think when looking at responsibility,referring back to the Mission Statements,what are we reallytryingto.accomplish?Therefore,we need City Council input at this time;Council involvement is impor
tant,and probably should be done by asking Dr. Pettit and Dr.Holmberg,at the Council's convenienceandtheirs, to have them come overhereandtalk about OD,the City's Missionand where weare going,
andget the City Council's thoughts intowhatweare doing andwhatwe should be doing.We feel that asanorganizationwearecommittedtoplanchange, andwehavereal concern to the citizens of Moses Lake.Leadership at every .level with supervision within the organization.Some ofthese things are going to takealongtimetowardachieving.y
—SSS I??!?*S?IfdZ,"that wngS UP'"hcwJmuch tlme wil1 At take -extra time or mingled in withS2Ihours?City Manager Waggener stated- he would say mingled in with regular working time.What we are really talking about in terms of hours,we really don't know.We experienced two days intheSeminarandonedayinourownsession.We felt it essential to start OD with a small group.Initialphases of the programcan be with groups too large.
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Council Meeting : 4 (special meeting)September 19,1972
Who judges the decisions that are offered by any man in the department?Who renders the final
Judgment as to its value?That brings the City Manager's role into it,and to adhere to his right
to veto power.No one is ever an authoritarian as to how he does his business.Some problems
and decisions need help from others to make those decisions.Every decision should be made at
t/-the lowest level.We feel very strongly this has to be a tool to improvethe efficiency of the organi
zation.
OD process has made everyone enthusiastic about it/One department not being cooperative can make
the entire system fail.
The City Manager stated that he is very appreciative of the opportunity to present this to the Council,
and trying to explain ODis an extremely difficult thing.It is something you have to experience;how
it works with others and how it works with a group of people.
Mayor Skaug urged that the City Council meet with Drs.Pettit and Holmberg,and present as to how
to tie the City Council into the program. Mr. Waggener explained that they probably can give better
information than we have been able to give in this brief session tonight.This was just to tell the
Council what we are doing before w«get into it further.
Councilman Ebbert inquired again about the funding - - Funding will be a combination of three different
kinds of federal funds, and we will have to contribute something on our part. Without federal funding
involved,we could not afford to enter into it.The Pilot City will be costing us some money. We will
be getting a lot more out of it.They will be using us as a pilot city to comein and use our people.
There will be Instances where their people will be coming in and talking to people generally within the
organization.It might be interesting and it might be shocking,and we might get some different insights
in what we will be thinking regarding Department heads and City Management.
Mayor Skaug stated - he hopes'therewill be less problems than there are benefits.
City Manager Waggener commented in closing - I still think we have the best city organization in the
State,but again we don't think that we are going to remain a good organization by sitting on our hands
and stay content as we are today.
Meeting adjourned at 10:00 P.M.
MAYOR-Otto M.Ska
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