HomeMy WebLinkAbout2026_03_17 CC PacketCity Council
City of Brookings
Meeting Agenda - Final-revised
Brookings City Council
Brookings City & County
Government Center
520 3rd St., Suite 230
Brookings, SD 57006
Phone: (605) 692-6281
"We are an inclusive, diverse, connected community that fuels the creative class, embraces sustainability
and pursues a complete lifestyle. We are committed to building a bright future through dedication,
generosity and authenticity. Bring your dreams!"
Council Chambers6:00 PMTuesday, March 17, 2026
Study Session
The City of Brookings is committed to providing a high quality of life for its citizens and fostering a diverse
economic base through innovative thinking, strategic planning, and proactive, fiscally responsible municipal
management.
6:00 PM STUDY SESSION
1. Call to Order / Pledge of Allegiance.
2. Record of Council Attendance.
3. Action to approve the agenda.
4. Open Forum.
At this time, any member of the public may make a brief announcement or invitation, or
request time on the agenda for an item not listed. Items to be added to the agenda will
be scheduled at the end of the meeting. Individuals will state their name and city of
residence for the record. Public Comment is limited to a maximum of three minutes per
person. The comments and views expressed by the public are those of the speakers
and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of the City of Brookings or City
Council.
Training: Conflicts of InterestID 26-01005.
Conflict of Interest Flowchart
How to Avoid a Conflict of Interest
Attachments:
6. City Council member introduction of topics for future discussion.
Any Council Member may request discussion of any topic at a future meeting. Items
cannot be added for action at this meeting. A motion and second is required which
Page 1 City of Brookings
March 17, 2026City Council Meeting Agenda - Final-revised
states the topic, requested outcome, and time frame. A majority vote is required.
7. Executive Session
Executive Session, pursuant to SDCL 1-25-2(1), for discussing the
qualifications, competence, performance, character or fitness of any public
officer or employee or prospective public officer or employee. The term,
employee, does not include any independent contractor.
ID 26-0122
Action: Motion to enter into Executive Session, Roll Call
Action: Motion to exit Executive Session, Roll Call
8. Adjourn.
NOTICE OF QUORUM: It is possible that a quorum of members of the Brookings Planning Commission and
Brookings Historic Preservation Commission will be present at this Council Meeting. Though a majority of
members may be present, no official city business will be acted upon by these boards. This constitutes sufficient
public notice according to SD Codified Law 1-25-1.1.
Brookings City Council: Oepke G.Niemeyer, Mayor; Nick Wendell, Deputy Mayor
Council Members Wayne Avery, Holly Tilton Byrne, Bonny Specker, Brianna Doran, Lisa Hager
Brookings City Council Staff:
Paul M. Briseno, City Manager Bonnie Foster, City Clerk
J. Vincent Jones, Attorney-at-Law, Woods, Fuller, Shultz and Smith P.C.
Public Comment is limited to a maximum of three minutes per person. Individuals will give their name and city of
residence for the record. Public Comment may be submitted prior to the meeting by the following means: 1) Email
comments to the City Clerk (cityclerk@cityofbrookings-sd.gov), or 2) participate remotely. Comments provided will
become part of the official record and subject to review by all parties and the public. The comments and views
expressed by the public are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of the City
of Brookings or City Council.
Meetings are broadcast live and recorded. Go to www.cityofbrookings-sd.gov for more information. Government
Channel Rebroadcast Schedule: Wednesday 1:00 pm / Thursday 7:00 pm / Friday 9:00 pm / Saturday 1:00 pm
(Swiftel Channel 20 / MediaCom Channel 9)
Upon request, accommodations for meetings will be provided for persons with disabilities. Please contact the City
ADA Coordinator at (605) 692-6281 at least three (3) business days in advance of the meeting.
Page 2 City of Brookings
City of Brookings
Staff Report
Brookings City & County
Government Center, 520
Third Street
Brookings, SD 57006
(605) 692-6281 phone
(605) 692-6907 fax
File #:ID 26-0100,Version:1
Training: Conflicts of Interest
Summary and Recommended Action:
This training is being provided by J. Vincent Jones, City Attorney. This training will provide guidance
to Brookings City Council, Brookings Planning Commission, and Brookings Historic Preservation
Commission members regarding how to identify conflicts of interest and how to conduct themselves
once a potential conflict has been identified.
Attachments:
Conflict of Interest Flowchart
How to Avoid a Conflict of Interest
City of Brookings Printed on 3/12/2026Page 1 of 1
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Identifying Potential Conflicts of Interest for City Council Members
Current as of:
12/2025
Potential Conflict of
Interest Identified
Do you believe you can
consider and vote on the matter
in a fair and unbiased manner?
No
Do you, your business partner,
employer, employee, business, or a
member of your immediate family,
have a financial interest in the
matter, such that you/they are
likely to receive a direct financial
benefit from the Council’s
decision?
Yes
You must recuse yourself
from discussion and
voting on the matter.
Yes No Is the interest minor, widely
shared by the general public, or
too uncertain or insignificant to
cause a reasonable person to exert
impermissible influence on the
matter?
No
Do you, your business partner,
employer, employee, business, or a
member of your immediate family,
have a personal interest in the
matter?
Yes
Yes
No
Council may then still vote to
disqualify you. Did Council vote to
disqualify you by 2/3 majority?
Yes
No
Do you still believe that you can be
fair and impartial, and that a
conflict of interest does not exist?
You must re-identify the matter(s)
under consideration, the nature of the
potential conflict of interest, and state
why you believe you can participate in
the matter(s) fairly.
Yes
No
2 Planning April 2019
THE COMMISSIONER
Law
How to Avoid a Conflict of Interest
L ET’S SAY YOU HAVE JUST been appointed to your local planning commission.
You are now a public official who must abide by certain ethical standards—and, most
important, avoid conflicts of interest. But what exactly is a conflict of interest?
manager, who referred it to the village
attorney. That was the end of the archi-
tect’s contact with the commission
or the staff.
Conflict of interest is also a violation
of ethical practices. It is unethical for
public officials to use the knowledge and
power of their position to further their
private interests. Citizens have a right
to expect fair and honest treatment in a
transparent climate that supports high
ethical standards.
Avoiding even the appearance of
a conflict of interest bolsters public
confidence in government and in the
planning process.
In small communities, where only
a few people step forward to serve
on boards and commissions, often in
a volunteer capacity, it can be challeng-
ing to establish and maintain bound-
aries with friends and neighbors who
have special requests or opinions. But
when citizens agree to join a board or
commission, their first duty is to serve
the public interest.
If, for example, you are both a plan-
ning commissioner and a member of the
board of directors of your homeowners
association, there are times when you
must recuse yourself. An example might
be when the association is fighting the
rezoning of a neighborhood property.
That’s when you recuse yourself from
the plan commission’s discussion, even
leaving the room while discussion and
voting are taking place. Above all, you do
not cast a vote on the topic.
The best path is to be mindful of
pending actions before the commission
and avoid even the appearance of a
conflict of interest. For a more in-depth
discussion of conflict of interest and other
ethical issues, I recommend Everyday
Ethics for Practicing Planners, by Carol
D. Barrett, faicp (published by APA’s
Planners Press in 2001) and The Ethical
Planning Practitioner by Jerry Weitz,
faicp (APA Planners Press 2015).
—Dudley Onderdonk, faicp
Onderdonk is past president of the Glencoe,
Illinois, park district and a current member of
the village plan commission.
The short answer: As a public official,
you are prohibited from doing business in
a private capacity that conflicts in any way
with the board or commission on which
you serve. Most states have conflict of
interest laws that require public officials
to steer clear of any involvement with
work that is in any way related to their
government activities or that could lead
to legal entanglements. As the Illinois
Supreme Court ruled in the 1976 case of
Brown v. Kirk, “the faithful performance
of official duties is best secured if a gov-
ernmental officer . . . is not called upon
to make decisions that may advance or
injure his individual interest.”
The long answer
The general rule is that commissioners
or board members should not have a
personal or financial interest in any con-
tractual, work-related, or business matter
put before the board or commission. This
would include working for or personally
benefiting from any board
or commission action.
A personal benefit could
include a non-financial
benefit like free office space
or a zoning change.
As a member of a
planning commission or a
zoning board of appeals (or
similar body), you should
review the rules with the
department staff before
accepting your new position. This does
not mean you can no longer participate
in other community activities, but it does
mean your actions will be scrutinized. Not
only will you be subject to federal and state
conflict of interest laws, but you will also
have a responsibility to represent the public
by demonstrating integrity and fairness.
Living conflict-free
In my more than 40 years of experience
as a board member and a professional
planner in various communities around
the U.S., I have been very conscious of
avoiding ethical violations. I currently hold
elected office as a member
of the independent park dis-
trict board in my suburban
Chicago community. Before
my election, my wife served
on the board of a nonprofit
group in the same suburb.
Legally, she could have
remained on the nonprofit’s
board. However, she decided
to step down in order to
avoid even the appearance
of a conflict of interest.
Another example: Early in my
planning career, I worked for another
suburb. A local architect who held elective
office on the village board lobbied staff
members and planning commissioners to
support a project his client was propos-
ing. I reported the matter to the village
As a member
of the
commission,
you must
represent the
public with
integrity and
fairness.
Free office space or a zoning change could
be a conflict of interest.
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City of Brookings
Staff Report
Brookings City & County
Government Center, 520
Third Street
Brookings, SD 57006
(605) 692-6281 phone
(605) 692-6907 fax
File #:ID 26-0122,Version:1
Executive Session, pursuant to SDCL 1-25-2(1), for discussing the qualifications, competence,
performance, character or fitness of any public officer or employee or prospective public officer or
employee. The term, employee, does not include any independent contractor.
SDCL 1-25-2. Executive or closed meetings--Purposes--Authorization--Violation as misdemeanor.
Executive or closed meetings may be held for the sole purposes of:
1)Discussing the qualifications, competence, performance, character or fitness of any public
officer or employee or prospective public officer or employee. The term, employee, does not
include any independent contractor;
2)Discussing the expulsion, suspension, discipline, assignment of or the educational program of
a student or the eligibility of a student to participate in interscholastic activities provided by the
South Dakota High School Activities Association;
3)Consulting with legal counsel or reviewing communications from legal counsel about proposed
or pending litigation or contractual matters;
4)Preparing for contract negotiations or negotiating with employees or employee
representatives;
5)Discussing marketing or pricing strategies by a board or commission of a business owned by
the state or any of its political subdivisions, when public discussion may be harmful to the
competitive position of the business; or
6)Discussing information pertaining to the protection of public or private property and any person
on or within public or private property specific to:
a.Any vulnerability assessment or response plan intended to prevent or mitigate criminal
acts;
b.Emergency management or response;
c.Public safety information that would create a substantial likelihood of endangering
public safety or property, if disclosed;
d.Cyber security plans, computer, communications network schema, passwords, or user
identification names;
e.Guard schedules;
f.Lock combinations;
g.Any blueprint, building plan, or infrastructure record regarding any building or facility
that would expose or create vulnerability through disclosure of the location,
configuration, or security of critical systems of the building or facility; and
h.Any emergency or disaster response plans or protocols, safety or security audits or
reviews, or lists of emergency or disaster response personnel or material; any location
or listing of weapons or ammunition; nuclear, chemical, or biological agents; or other
military or law enforcement equipment or personnel.
However, any official action concerning the matters pursuant to this section shall be made at an open
official meeting. An executive or closed meeting must be held only upon a majority vote of the
members of the public body present and voting, and discussion during the closed meeting is
restricted to the purpose specified in the closure motion. Nothing in § 1-25-1 or this section prevents
City of Brookings Printed on 3/16/2026Page 1 of 2
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File #:ID 26-0122,Version:1
an executive or closed meeting if the federal or state Constitution or the federal or state statutes
require or permit it. A violation of this section is a Class 2 misdemeanor.
Source: SL 1965, ch 269; SL 1980, ch 24, § 10; SL 1987, ch 22, § 1; SL 2014, ch 90, § 2; SL 2019,
ch 2, § 1; SL 2022, ch 4, § 2.
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