Civil Municipal - Oct 2023

23 CIVIL AND MUNICIPAL VOLUME 4, ISSUE 10 LEAGUE OF MINNESOTA CI T I ES our state we were able to establish a real-time communications channel with the Governor’s office and state agencies charged with COVID-19 education and response. Given that relationship, the League was able to provide our member cities with clarity on policies and mandates that were adopted at the state level. We also launched a substantive COVID-19 resource area on our League web site that was updated several times a week. Memos, copies of state executive orders, and relevant fact sheets could be found there. Additionally, our research staff logged thousands of phone inquiries to provide tailored responses to frequently asked questions. And, for several months during the pandemic, the League’s Intergovernmental Relations staff lobbied at state and federal levels to help secure relief funding for cash- strapped cities. Our research and finance staffs helped cities better understand parameters for spending the allocations. Residual effects of COVID Though facilities have reopened since the early days of the pandemic, we haven’t returned to what we once were and we see these effects in our social and political interactions. We’ve all thought more about the proper role of government following stay-in-place and shut down mandates, as well as distancing, masking, and vaccination policies. This has led to divisions that remain today and have contributed to exaggerated political polarization in new and previously uncontentious places. Polarization continues to affect civility and order in public meetings and also contributes to a trend of increased personal harassment of local officials. To address this trend, city officials across our state are doing their part to emphasize that work in cities is apolitical – there isn’t a republican or democrat way to fill a pothole, after all. The League partnered with a national organization known as Braver Angels to provide cities with training opportunities and other resources for addressing polarization at the local government level. The results are productive conversations in city halls about better public engagement, increased transparency, and clear standards around decorum as city business is conducted. This work is particularly important considering the challenges cities are facing related to finding high quality candidates to run for local office and their ability to recruit and retain great employees. Generally, people who step up to serve their community care about the places they live and believe they can help make communities great places to call home. Simply put, no one wants to serve or work in an environment that is needlessly acrimonious. Cities in Minnesota