Adopted in 1960, the City Charter provides for a Council-Manager form of government. The City Council, which includes an elected mayor and six other elected Councilmembers, exercises the legislative power of the City of Bloomington and determines all City policies.
The City Council appoints a professional City manager, who is responsible to the Council for the administration of all City business. The Council also appoints people to various advisory boards and commissions.
From 2021 - 2022, hundreds of voices from the community and City joined together to create a five-year strategic plan that will help guide the City as it works to cultivate an enduring and remarkable Bloomington.
Business meetings are held at 6:30 p.m. on several Mondays each month in Bloomington Civic Plaza's Council Chambers unless otherwise noted. This schedule is adjusted to accommodate holidays.
Council Meetings 2024 Calendar
The Council also holds joint meetings and concurrent meetings with other organizational groups, special meetings, and meetings on property taxes.
There are three ways to comment or testify during a public hearing or on a specific agenda item:
Attend in person; or
Participate remotely during the public hearing. Unique log-ins will be posted to calendar entries for City Council meetings ; or
Offer comment in advance of the meeting by leaving a voicemail at 952-563-8782 or emailing councilsecretary@bloomingtonmn.gov no later than 2 p.m. on the meeting date. Include the item number and item name listed on the agenda. Include your name, phone number, and address when leaving a voicemail or email. Please indicate if you also plan to attend in person or call in during the meeting to provide live comment or testimony.
Meeting agenda and documents are available at blm.mn/meetings.
Listening sessions are meetings held before the beginning of each regular City Council meeting for community members to present their ideas, questions or concerns to the City Council.
When
Listening sessions occur on Monday from 5:45 - 6:15 p.m. whenever there is a regularly scheduled City Council meeting.
Chadwick Conference Room on the second floor of Bloomington Civic Plaza, 1800 West Old Shakopee Road.
Guidelines
Listening sessions are intended for topics NOT on the City Council agenda that same day. Meeting agendas can be found at blm.mn/meetings.
The listening sessions process will be content neutral.
Minutes will be taken, with attendance and any actions recorded. A report-out of the listening session will be given at the City Council meeting occurring on the same day.
Listening sessions will be audio recorded and made available on the City’s YouTube channel. No video recording or live broadcast is available.
A quorum is needed to open the meeting and take action, except less than a quorum can vote to adjourn.
Section 21 of the City Council’s Rules of Procedure (Enforcement of Decorum) are applicable to these Listening Sessions as if they occurred in the City Council Chambers.
The City Council’s Rules of Procedure and Robert’s Rules of Order (most current edition) shall be consulted for parliamentary procedures, when needed.
Personnel
The mayor or their designee is the presiding officer.
The city manager and city attorney or their designees shall also attend.
The city manager may request additional staff attend based on topics indicated at preregistration.
A sergeant at arms will be present.
Participation
A call-in option is available - instructions are posted on the City's website calendar event for that date.
Preregistration (with topic or question) is encouraged. Those who preregister will be called on to speak before those that have not preregistered.
Up to ten minutes will be allowed per speaker/topic. The mayor may request information from those present at 5:45 p.m. to organize the discussion and adjust time allocated per speaker, so long as an equal amount of time is allocated for each preregistered speaker and any such remaining time is set aside for those speakers that did not preregister.
If everyone who preregistered or otherwise desires to speak has spoken before 6:15 p.m., the City Council can adjourn early.
If additional speakers are present and desire to address the City Council at 6:15 p.m., the presiding officer will give priority to those additional speakers at the next listening session.
