06. Communications Intern Staff Report
Date of Meeting: July 1, 2026
For: Honorable Mayor and Council
From: Kyle H. Morell, City Administrator
Subject: Communications Intern
Background:
The City has had difficulty connecting with its residents in the past. Mayor Kronmiller has asked
staff to put together a Communications Plan and figure out ways to better reach our residents.
Existing staff has not had the time to be able to accomplish this directive.
The City already plans on budgeting for additional newsletters in 2027 as a way of providing
residents with more up to date relevant information. Currently the City produces two
newsletters a year, we are planning on increasing that number to four in 2027. Additionally
public engagement over the next 12 – 15 months will be more important then ever as the City
works though its 2050 Comprehensive Plan. The City will need to find better, more effective,
means of reaching its residents and spend more time developing those means. Time that our
existing staff does not have at the moment.
The Office Assistant position is in charge of the maintaining and updating the City’s website and
social media presence. This has been a very small aspect of Bee’s job and the hope to make this
a larger percentage of the new hire’s hours with the City. However, the main focus of new
Office Assistant in the near term will be learning and mastering Clear Forms, our online based
permitting software. This will leave little time for expanding communications with the
community.
Proposals:
I would like to hire a Communications Intern to help with City with public engagement through
2027 and its Comprehensive Plan discussion. The position will be on board with the City for 12-
15 months, work one to two days a week, helping the City communicate better with our
residents. We will use this position to learn how our residents receive their news and
information about the City and what communication platforms they receive this information on
the most. We will then focus on building a presence on the platforms our residents use the
most and work to engage the residents in all aspects of the city business.
The idea for this position came from discussion on who to hire for the Office Assistant position,
the decision came down to two candidates, one had the office experience and no website or
social media experience, the other had website and social media experience but no office
experience. While discussing the best attributes of both, the office staff and I came up with the
idea of hiring a communications intern.
Fiscal Impact:
This would be a new position for the City. Funding will have to made available in 2026, and the
position will have to be included in the 2027 budget. I think the position should be paid
between $15.00 and $18.00 per hour, this is in line with part time positions in the Forest Lake
area.
Moving Forward:
I welcome your thoughts on this idea. This would be a new type of position for the City, as we
have never hired an intern before.