November 30- December 1, 2023 | Denver

The Mayors' Summit , presented by CML and CIRSA, a dynamic day-and-a-half gathering designed to foster meaningful connections and provide valuable insights into important municipal matters and working relationships. Sessions explore topics regarding leadership such as building collaborative relationships, effective grassroots advocacy, and effective meetings. They also take deeper dives into topical issues like Prop 123, accessibility, and civility.

Meeting Location: CML, Ken Bueche Municipal League Building, 1144 Sherman St., Denver

Click here to view a list of attendees.

Agenda

Thursday, November 30

1:30 p.m. | Registration Opens

2:00 p.m. | Welcome, Introductions, and Overview of Services
Speakers: Kevin Bommer, CML executive director and Tami Tanoue, CIRSA executive director

2:30 p.m. | Collaborative Mayor (City Council)/City Manager Relationships
Speakers: Mayor Anna Stout, City of Grand Junction and Greg Caton, city manager, City of Grand Junction
The delicate balance of maintaining a focus on policy making for volunteer boards while staff manages the day-to-day operations of a municipality provides unique challenges for leadership roles in a council/manager form of government. Join Grand Junction City Manager Greg Caton and Mayor Anna Stout for a presentation during which they share insights and their experiences in building effective relationships in a council/manager form of government.
Presentation Slides

3:30 p.m. | Break

3:45 p.m. | Mayors Roundtable Discussions
Topics include: Workforce Housing, Infrastructure, Public Safety, Dynamics of Working with City Staff, and Managing Your Council

4:30 p.m. | Reception at CML
with a welcome from Denver Mayor Mike Johnston

Friday, December 1

8 a.m. | Continental Breakfast

8:30 a.m. | Get Excited About Strategic Plans!
Speaker: John Trylch, administrative services director, City of Fountain
Your community has a sense of what makes it a special place and has a purpose for the future. It’s the passion that pulls at you. Identifying your vision and developing a strategic plan to guide you collectively forward is one of the most important things you can do as leaders. But knowing this, why do we get strategic planning so wrong? How do we spend so much time and energy developing strategic plans that in the end don’t help our leaders, our staff, or our communities at all, and instead end up on the shelf collecting dust? Is there another approach to strategic planning that can make it the valuable tool it should be? This presentation will explore the core fundamentals of strategic planning, the pitfalls of the process and outcomes to avoid, and how any community, no matter the size, can come together to produce a strategic plan that can really put you on a path to making your vision a reality!
Presentation Slides

9:30 a.m. | Break

9:45 a.m. | Innovative Affordable Housing Strategies
Speaker: KC McFerson, senior planner, Community Development Office, DOLA
Presentation Slides

10:45 a.m. | Break

11:00 a.m. | Incivility in Local Government
Speaker: Sam Light, deputy director and general Counsel, CIRSA
We’ve heard a lot about incivility in the public sphere, and as mayors you’ve likely witnessed or experienced episodes of incivility now and then. From a legal perspective, what can be done about it? CIRSA general counsel Sam Light will provide an overview of legal issues relating to efforts to control incivility in meetings, the digital realm, and elsewhere. Highlights will include the risks public entities and officials can face in efforts to control incivility and “best practices” that can be used to get folks on board with your entity’s commitment to civility.
Presentation Slides

12:00 p.m. | Networking lunch
Take this opportunity to sit down with your fellow mayors and learn more about challenges and triumphs happening throughout the state. 

12:30 p.m. | Bob's Rules for Mayors
Speaker: Robert Widner, attorney/partner, Widner Juran LLC
An efficient and well-run public meeting will promote fairness, facilitate the decision-making process and, importantly, build public confidence in local government. Conversely, a poorly run and dysfunctional meeting leads citizens to believe that all aspects of the government are poorly run and dysfunctional. Parliamentary or procedural rules of order are an essential component to an efficient public meeting. Although many local governments turn to Robert’s Rules of Order for meeting procedures, these rules largely fail to serve the special needs of the public meeting. Governments should consider using a more simplified and tailored set of procedural rules. Bob’s Rules of Order, available through the Colorado Municipal League, may present a reasonable alternative to Robert's Rules when pursuing the goals of running an efficient and fair meeting and maintaining confidence in government.
Presentation Slides

1:30 p.m. | Break

1:45 p.m. | Public Personas in a Digital World: Media & Social Media Training
Speaker: David Gilbert, digital media strategist, City of Littleton
Presentation Slides

2:45 p.m. | Break

3:00 p.m. | The Fundamentals of Grassroots Advocacy/ 2024 Legislative Preview
Speakers: Heather Stauffer, CML legislative advocacy manager and Denise White, CML communications and engagement manager
Learn how grassroots advocacy is a critical tool for local government, enabling mayors and elected officials to influence state legislation. The session covers challenges faced in grassroots advocacy, explores how CML supports grassroots efforts, and provides practical strategies for effective advocacy, culminating in a legislative preview for 2024. Participants will gain insights into navigating legislative hurdles, leveraging CML resources, building relationships with legislators, and understanding the synergy between grassroots advocacy and traditional lobbying for maximum impact on state legislation.
Presentation Slides

4:00 p.m. | Accessibility and Your Community
Speaker: Emily Shuman, director, Rocky Mountain ADA Center
Presentation Slides

4:45 p.m. | Summit Wrap Up