[This transcript was generated automatically from audio using AI and hasn't been reviewed by a person -- it can contain mistakes, including plausible-sounding sentences that were never actually said. Treat it as a starting point, not a verbatim record.]

[0:09] Good morning, everyone. Welcome to the August 28th, 2026 meeting at the Operational Strategy and Administrative Committee. I like to call the meeting to order. One way to take the roll.
[0:20] Chair, it's in.
[0:21] Can you give me another question?
[0:23] It doesn't.
[0:24] Can you give me another question?
[0:26] Can you give me another marker?
[0:28] All right.
[0:28] Welcome everyone.
[0:29] This will be a relatively 16th meeting.
[0:32] We're just agenda setting.
[0:33] Before we do that, when we approve the prior minutes.
[0:36] Is there a motion?
[0:38] Okay.
[0:39] If in second, any corrections or questions?
[0:42] Getting none of them, please.
[0:43] All right.
[0:45] Minutes are approved.
[0:47] So our only briefing item today is the.
[0:50] The work plan and agenda forecast, we have just a lot of questions about week to week.
[0:57] What are we talking about?
[0:58] So, in the last communication I had with Ben and with my staff, we talked about soliciting
[1:05] feedback from staff all throughout the city to just to see what's the most pertinent for
[1:11] study through OZAC.
[1:12] So, Ben has had some conversations and here's an update with some suggestions for a long-term
[1:16] community calendar.
[1:18] Thank you, Mayor.
[1:21] And then go side for having me here today.
[1:25] So kind of two questions ahead of us.
[1:27] Our one is what work will OSAC want to take on
[1:31] throughout the remainder of the year.
[1:32] And then two one do you need to meet what's
[1:36] the game's like in order to accomplish that work.
[1:39] So looking back at the OSAC work plan I'm interested in.
[1:42] This is this started last year and just updated for this meeting.
[1:46] But the committee, originally, again, was the city manager review committee, so that's been a core part of the focus of this group.
[1:54] And that began with the interim city manager work plan, which was completed, the city manager recruitment, which was completed.
[2:02] And then the ongoing city manager's work plan, the initial draft has been completed, and now we're working on ongoing maintenance and review of the work plan with a first check in coming up here later.
[2:15] in September. Another key thing that this committee has taken on is council retreat planning.
[2:23] So we'll have our first experience with that last year, completed the 2025 retreat.
[2:27] And should this committee decide to take that on again, it would be potential item for this year
[2:31] and the beginning of next year. You also do a lot of work on council staffing.
[2:35] And that was that work is kind of complete there. And it's now with the whole council and with the budget process.
[2:40] We also worked on an update of the council rules, which you have completed.
[2:46] The council action memo and the council continues to request work was begun.
[2:52] Thought about.
[2:52] And then that work is now completed and it's moved on to the full council and a pilot project.
[2:59] And then you've begun discussions on the rule of Deputy Mayor with action item from staff to come back on that one in the not just in future.
[3:07] In the original planning and in socializing of the work that this group might take on,
[3:13] you did discuss the charter review process and timeline.
[3:18] So by every 10 years, we must.
[3:21] But that does not mean that it has to be every 10 years.
[3:25] And I believe a lot of the discussion there was around providing the support and
[3:37] Council projects, alignments, coordinating among the council members, and the legislation,
[3:43] sponsorship process, kind of how things move through for my idea to a resolution.
[3:49] And then communication with the council and staff.
[3:52] Those items are included in your packet.
[3:58] For the end, we had a work plan to give you a summary of what each of those initiatives
[4:02] meant to be meeting out the time, but of course, up for discussion if that's still the intent
[4:09] or the direction that you would like those items to go or if those items are still relevant.
[4:15] And that's on the July of 2025 handout. I'd give you just for most of the initiatives,
[4:19] the one that isn't there is roll of WD America, because that was added after with that.
[4:24] So there are a newly recurring Osaka agenda items, and that would include the city council retreat,
[4:30] which typically happens in January and February because retreat typically happens in February
[4:35] March.
[4:36] The annual fitting manager review, which should begin really closer to February so that
[5:00] And then the city manager annual work plan with those check-ins that we talked about being in May, September and January.
[5:07] We had discussions when we did the council rules if you would like to do a periodic review,
[5:13] or if you prefer to have those changes be ad hoc. We discussed kind of two models.
[5:18] One could be if you remember we kind of group the council rules into four different groups.
[5:23] you could contemplate taking one of those groups every quarter, or perhaps this is once a year
[5:29] taking the look at it, or again just letting that be an ad hoc thing is council number
[5:33] second by the need to look at a specific rule.
[5:39] Given all of that, how before you, the upcoming
[5:43] OSAC meeting meetings that are scheduled with some of the links filled in based on those periodic
[5:51] items that were discussed and things that have come before OSAX and notable dates here.
[5:58] October 6th, June of 2017, is the biennial budget process, and that creates an
[6:02] extra demand on the city council for time and attention.
[6:06] The meeting is a lot of work for you to do as you process and review the budget.
[6:14] November 11th, City Hall is closed and there is a meeting schedule for that Friday,
[6:19] November 13, similarly on December 11th, our November 27th and December 25th, city hall is closed
[6:28] on those actual days. So if you wanted to meet on those, we need to move those meetings or
[6:36] campful meetings. The first council meeting of 2027 is on January 5th. Sometimes committee
[6:42] you make up changes at the beginning of the year and so that sometimes makes the January 8th
[6:48] difficult. I get that type of rate of the timing of the retreat and the May timeline for the
[6:55] city manager performing community period starting and needing to do that manual. Review.
[7:02] And so that makes the bulk of our discussion for today is given that those are some of the
[7:08] items that you had discussed a year ago now talking about and working on. And then also in your
[7:14] you will see our standing at the NF's 4K tele document. And at the bottom of that,
[7:21] our list of potential future topics. The ones that we're not covered so far
[7:27] are the vacancy appointment process and the draft rules for the four and against committee,
[7:34] which was an idea coming for OZAC to look at coming out at the NPF's.
[7:43] that both are the potential items and the dates that we could plan for on it.
[7:48] Thank you.
[7:49] Any other feedback from the staff which stuck with them?
[7:52] No.
[7:53] So let's like we have some future topics here.
[7:56] Then we'll do a case I have asked some questions about scope.
[7:59] So there's some of the stuff that we've just queued up that we've needed to talk about.
[8:04] But also the elephant to the room is that this is a baby committee and that we're kind of getting
[8:09] getting your feet wet with what we even discussed in plan and use this thing for, right, because
[8:13] we've had some, in your words, at-hawk, really important at-hawk topics, like city manager
[8:19] review and discussing things that are back to kind of up against the wallwet because they're
[8:23] really important, but at-time lines, but also, like, what are the recurring areas of scope
[8:29] of this committee that's still maybe not quite chiseled and sewn, which would be my new
[8:35] would you say that's kind of how staff sees that? We have an initial kind of charter of the group.
[8:43] I did not bring that with me today. I don't know if anybody could pull that up, perhaps.
[8:49] What have been it to the art? June, July, meetings.
[8:53] The broad strokes is one. It's your relationship with each other as a council.
[8:57] So how do you want to interact with each other and what are your processes?
[9:00] And then two, your relationship with your employee, the city manager.
[9:03] So how you manage that relationship through flowing through your hiring and those kind of things.
[9:08] So really looking at the council as a working body and how it works among itself.
[9:16] Well, this is where I come from on this.
[9:19] The work strategy is in here.
[9:22] And there's no lack of strategy that the city has.
[9:25] I mean, the work plan is just the central one among them.
[9:27] That's how we execute the council's annual priorities.
[9:30] But we also have Tacoma's 235. For example, we have the 40-some constituents sub-planned associated with it.
[9:38] And without opening up a gigantic gradual nuance, in some of those different policy committees,
[9:44] I already captured the October, so I mean, IPS, I imagine, looks at a lot of our plans, for example,
[9:48] to operate anic to forestry, or the transport plan, or one to comb our, for example.
[9:53] But it makes me wonder that there could be a really good opportunity for this general accountability
[9:58] and periodically looking at it.
[10:00] But, you know, it was to come in 2035 for example, and all the other ten that goals, what should we be prioritizing?
[10:07] How are we doing with the facilities of those goals? How are we measuring them?
[10:12] The other thing, too, is that even though we do have a city manager work plan that the entire council reviews, you know,
[10:17] bus steering that a quarter, the city manager has said as a decision is for greater departmental accountability starting with this budget as well.
[10:26] So perhaps daylighting how the different departments are going to fill them into Kim's mission,
[10:32] for example.
[10:33] So I mean, that's a lot to keep us busy.
[10:35] But I think that could also be some really healthy discussion and some really interesting
[10:39] observation, just about how we're doing in the performance of our own goals that we've set.
[10:45] These different strategic plan with how the departments are going.
[10:48] That's for my partner. What do you guys think?
[10:52] So specific to what you said, I think having some elements from a very 20-35 as a part
[11:01] of this committee's agenda, good, I couldn't thought about that, I appreciate that.
[11:08] And to also to your point, once you get into the weeks, get to part of the week for this committee.
[11:15] Yeah, and policy committees are doing a lot of stuff like that.
[11:17] But I like the idea of having that, as part of our work plan at certain check-ins, I just
[11:26] in general, in my reaction to events, presentation is certainly don't meet meeting as often
[11:31] as we are, or we have been, but in a, because I think you've lived it off, the topics that
[11:38] were top of my mind, in fact, there's a couple of things that I feel like maybe don't think
[11:42] things would be on there. So I'd love the ad, comment by 35, I think. Slotting is in and maybe
[11:48] we can't even have that. Once a month or, you know, and I feel comfortable missing a couple
[11:55] of it.
[11:55] Yes.
[11:56] And with all of this, like, but if we have these key check-in throughout the year, I think that
[12:01] we're all about it.
[12:02] Yeah, and we're not here to meet just with sake of me. I mean, there's a lot of, you know, half
[12:06] hour hour things that we could do a lot better at their time.
[12:10] My inclination is that it all comes down to the work.
[12:12] It all comes down in service to what it really would take.
[12:15] I mean, if we only needed once per quarter to review progress on 2035 or if it could
[12:20] be monthly or if there were so many things that required more intensive, you know, add
[12:25] a lot of conversation.
[12:25] It could be more frequent.
[12:27] My inclination is just a talk to job and a kiss department or the city manager's office
[12:32] both and just see what it would entail the check-in, deferred their judgment on what the
[12:39] all means. I think it'd be a good starting point, and then from that, determine our case.
[12:44] How's it going? You're going to make it doing, you're going to post?
[13:05] about how we need to do that in a way where we're going to set up, like we're keeping an eye on it,
[13:10] where if we went into that, I was like, if something's coming up, we're going to be meeting
[13:14] so like, move into a higher priority or something that has been a priority that people are not
[13:20] making as far as something that's good. Like, something that gives them the cadence that
[13:24] allows them to check in on it, particularly I know that we get like an update at some point in the
[13:32] That's not even especially in him so we can time with that, but yeah, just trying to figure out
[13:39] what, how do we keep an eye on it, so that it doesn't get to the point where it's at
[13:46] a steady session and people are like, oh, there's a lot of questions.
[13:49] Just maybe kind of tell us if there's anything, or if there's anything for staff,
[13:56] that's a platform that breath from me, but we can just do that.
[14:00] That's what we're going to do.
[14:02] And then we want to do a quick quick quick quick.
[14:05] Yeah.
[14:07] That makes sense.
[14:08] Joe, what we were just talking about in Vimbo was scope.
[14:11] And one thing we talked about besides the ad hopper,
[14:14] procedural stuff is,
[14:16] speaking with the Office of Strategy and Seeing,
[14:18] what it would look like to get more regular updates on 2035
[14:21] and also,
[14:22] She wanted to talk about departmental measurements that are kind of the tactical
[14:29] Service to the work find it well. So I mean, that's that's a lot to keep us busy, but you know at the same time it might be a lower frequency
[14:34] Just depending on what staff needs are they also do anything that I sure do, man. All right. Thank you for
[14:40] Giving me just a moment and I were just texting back and forth and he and I were talking to sister
[14:46] They actually about what they came through briefing council generally in 2035 would be so
[14:51] is what I might propose to the committee if it's acceptable to you, Mayor, is
[14:57] Jock and I were talking about having quarterly updates.
[15:00] And he and I were talking this yesterday, actually, about what the cadence for briefing council, generally in 2035 would be. So, here's what I might propose to the committee if it's acceptable to you, Mayor,
[15:29] is.
[15:29] anything that you may want to dive into on those particular measures and get him kind of
[15:36] prepped for that bulk transfer conversation. Does that seem like a reasonable...
[15:40] Yeah, but at first place, I mean a lot of us is, I mean it's just a young committee,
[15:44] a lot of us as we learn as we go, but I think at first place it doesn't mean cool.
[15:48] Okay, I think what's maybe for scheduling purposes plan on something like that,
[15:52] and then if we try it out and we don't like it or we want to do something different to that
[15:58] Yeah, and this is probably under the 2035 umbrella, maybe it's distinct, but also like surveys and engagement.
[16:06] I mean, a lot of 2035 and our plans do rely on survey data, but you know, we've also seen engagement strategies that might be different from that.
[16:16] But maybe it is, we flesh out what that looks like
[16:20] whether it's with MCO, whether it's departments,
[16:22] while we engage in it, that might be a good thing too,
[16:25] because I can't think of anything that's more
[16:28] important to strategy than knowing how the community
[16:30] feels about stuff, that determines how we're doing
[16:32] and what we should prioritize.
[16:34] I'm so excited.
[16:35] Could that be back pocket?
[16:36] Yeah, I think they're honestly, man,
[16:37] when you get a look at that storm, you can kind of help us
[16:41] maybe think about where the measures that you want
[16:45] more of that kind of reflected rates. Yeah, maybe the three of us or maybe four include
[16:51] jock and pop off. Why not? We really know Rush. Maybe next few weeks or so we can discuss
[16:55] how that looks like and what works the best for you guys. Cool. Any other feedback on this?
[17:00] Yep. Thank you. I appreciate a couple of walkers probably early that we don't always
[17:06] necessarily. If there's things that we don't need to be doing, we don't need to be better.
[17:09] Sure. We can certainly spread it out. We'll get more.
[17:13] And then to the point of the strategic plan in 2035, you know, we, like, also mentioned,
[17:21] we do get the update in a steady session, and so I don't want to necessarily create more
[17:26] busy work unnecessarily.
[17:29] So my thinking is like, if we do get a presentation, what outcomes are we looking for from
[17:35] presentation, are we going to offer some questions to Council, modify vendors, or are we going to
[17:41] just be like, oh, that's we're going to get the same presentation twice, like what, what are we going to do?
[17:47] That's not necessarily going to have that could benefit the Council as a whole when it gets to study sessions.
[17:52] So I kind of thinking about that just a little bit like, so we look at the updates and stuff.
[17:58] What are we going to do with it? Sure. Sure. And I think it was as a former IPS number myself.
[18:02] I think it's like policy committees that have peer addiction or something often, and they
[18:07] are necessarily at the same presentation, the council's going to give, but one of the advantages
[18:11] of committees in the city council started committee meetings in 30 years ago is that there is
[18:16] a benefit to some level of focus, and the time will tell how that best looks, and I'm very
[18:20] open what that looks like, but I do think that there is some benefit of having people with
[18:24] that specialization, and literally the name of the committee is strategic aspect.
[18:29] We might make life a lot easier for the other five people at the council.
[18:34] We can ask some of those questions and smooth some things out prior to a steady session.
[18:39] There might be more nuanced components.
[18:41] We'll learn as we go, but I will tell you about that.
[18:43] That's really helpful.
[18:47] To the American comment, I think might be helpful to think about how we've worked as a ZAC, right?
[18:53] It's kind of a multi-stage process and one is that when an idea or concept comes up,
[18:57] the first step is with those active flesh out.
[18:59] What does that mean?
[19:00] What is the work going to look like?
[19:01] What problem are we really trying to solve?
[19:03] And so you typically had a meeting around that idea
[19:05] to figure out here's the issue.
[19:07] And then that goes to the full council to say,
[19:09] hey, this is something that we would like to work on
[19:11] and talk about.
[19:13] And then it comes back to those active works
[19:15] you're kind of the meeting details.
[19:17] But then it would go back to the council
[19:18] a second time to say, hey, we've
[19:20] finally divided it.
[19:20] We have a proposal in front of us.
[19:22] Let's get comment with you back on that.
[19:25] And then it stays with the council after that
[19:27] for adoption and implementation, because committees don't act on behalf of the whole council.
[19:33] Also, the other thing, too, that makes committees differ from a steady session, besides
[19:36] the fact that you're competing against maybe one or two or more items and members, you
[19:42] really, really, you know, faster ground-expected and it's just a busy Tuesday, is that committees
[19:47] by their nature are much more iterative. And let's say that there is something that comes up,
[19:52] I'm totally talking hypothetical, but something comes up with a 2035 briefing and there's some
[19:58] net directly around say hope.
[20:00] We really have questions about, or we really like to dig further into the data, or maybe there's something that just seems to miss, or want to bring in staff from a relevant department to really flush out something, that there's just a lot of things that we can do that a broader stage that cannot.
[20:16] It's almost like a depth versus breadth question. But again, that's just a hypothetical.
[20:21] but we can always flush these in that large we go.
[20:27] And in terms of follow up we'll talk outside and we'll be eternally open minded.
[20:32] Okay?
[20:33] Just wanted to say about that.
[20:35] I thought that managing the retreat planning in this committee was really helpful and effective.
[20:41] And then we've been having some of us on that and working through the details.
[20:45] It was helpful to the friends of the council.
[20:48] Just wanted to share with you that.
[20:50] Okay.
[20:51] Cool.
[20:55] So besides the cleanup and manager review and departmental reviews, as they come up, 20-35 reviews, as they come up.
[21:03] Any other things that committee members or majors been deploying, or even just seeing if it's feasible for us including these committee counters?
[21:26] I can't think of anything at the moment. I'm sure we'll go through the day and be like, that's good.
[21:30] Sure. So people running tab off.
[21:33] Yeah, and that is more than welcome by the way.
[21:35] whether it's in our one-on-one check-ins or like a 10 a.m.
[21:40] Like staying awake in my thinking of those act,
[21:42] take a moment.
[21:43] Please don't say awake, don't worry, think of those act.
[21:45] Then I always welcome just to four of those always
[21:48] have to chat with staff and you guys about that too.
[21:52] And do you have any other questions or feedback
[21:53] for us?
[21:57] So there were some items on the forecast here.
[22:00] The deputy mayor is the one that is in action.
[22:02] That will be coming back to you.
[22:03] That is in currently scheduled out in the PowerPoint.
[22:06] I describe, for these other items that kind of on the back burner, Council Department of
[22:11] Blime and Treasury, you process, taken to the appointment process, draft rules for the
[22:15] poor or against committee, and standing committee topic alignment, although with the rule
[22:21] change that now belongs with the full council to talk about committee topic alignment.
[22:28] So kind of those in the middle four items, or any of those that you would like to see
[22:32] come forward sooner than later.
[22:36] I'll say it up loud, I don't know if you would have been interested in how you'd have
[22:39] in the budget time, or you'd have that increased load, which is important about those
[22:44] two ideas.
[22:46] Christian?
[22:46] I would just say, and then your very thoughtful thing is, our workload, but I know that the
[22:51] step for the load is pretty needed in budget time, so I would absolutely support that it's
[22:57] I don't know what that would take for me, but I think that's the thing.
[23:01] Yes, sir.
[23:02] I don't think we need to talk with the board now.
[23:04] Yeah, well, we'll defer an appetite.
[23:07] And this isn't committee calendar.
[23:08] This is more just me getting up to Steve.
[23:11] And again, I'm emphasizing.
[23:13] Because I know staff really likes to be joining on this thought,
[23:15] but I'm really emphasizing the non-emergent nature
[23:19] disk.
[23:20] For my own education, I'd love to just get guidance on for all
[23:24] various strategic lands of the stuff that teams ended to come in 2035. What if any policy
[23:31] committee of the city council or CBC or whatever has fewer section over monitoring progress
[23:37] on this plan? If that could be compiled, it could just be like a Excel spreadsheet. I really
[23:42] don't want it to go over that, but more just for my own education. I appreciate learning where
[23:48] things have arrived in 2026 and those things.
[23:55] Any other requests?
[23:59] All right, cool. Well, that's
[23:59] on the recent item, public comment we've got on for.
[24:03] Sure, if you have a comment for us on the agenda,
[24:06] please sign up at the front of the room if you've got them so already.
[24:10] If you are speaking virtually,
[24:11] please press the great kind of us and you're the bottom of your sentence.
[24:15] No, this time I'm on your phone.
[24:17] You're the eight or the last four digits of your phone number.
[24:20] You call that one in his sentence.
[24:23] Okay.
[24:32] So, I would like to comment as open and closed with the closing of the meeting today.
[24:39] I want to thank you all for your contributions.
[24:41] I will review action items and confirm consent of the next steps.
[24:45] And I want you to walk us through the event.
[24:46] I'm building Mayor, so I will get you that kind of initial plan from the last year of what was the purpose of OSEC and then you will be meeting with
[24:56] shock in the city manager's office to talk about Tacoma at 20 30.
[25:00] By following up on that idea of Medicaid and put the court early check-in on the dashboard, we will keep
[25:06] retreat planning on the agenda, and then staff will look into who has the jurisdiction over