It’s obvious these days when watching City Council members shift from one daunting task to another that they’ve become accustomed to putting out fires. They’re particularly skillful in solving inherited problems, perhaps because four of the seven are attorneys. Still, it might be wise for the sake of effectiveness for this well-meaning group to step back, take a deep breath, and put some misadventures on the back-burner. Certainly staff, which is equally manic these days, would appreciate it.

Here are just a few of the issues the council is currently juggling, many of which have been triggered by the city’s financial crises: it needs to complete its open-water marina contract with DNR by Oct. 1; the city manager will offer her preliminary budget next week; which WSF’s waterfront settlement option should it choose; to transfer or not its water utility and municipal court to other public agencies; and many more, including an embarrassing issue involving the SSWM utility funds.

In 2007, the council decided to increase the amount the city charges itself for the island’s road runoff from 30 percent to 100 percent in an effort to make the SSWM utility self-sustainable. Unfortunately, the city never complied, which would have required moving general funds to the utility fund. In other words, the city ignored the ordinance it created, which means it owes about $1.8 million to the SSWM fund.

After learning of the discrepancy this week, the new city manager decided to rectify it by placing a proposed ordinance on the council’s agenda, which was quickly detected by some of the city’s more active watchdogs. The council acted as if the ordinance was a deadly virus when it was discussed Wednesday and promptly placed it on the next study session agenda.

It makes one wonder what will surface next. A dead body floating in Eagle Harbor with city IOU’s stuffed in its pockets? Doubtful, but while the previous disconnect between staff and council is diminishing with the new form of government, some residue from previous habits remains and the cleanup continues.