DOVER — Now that the bulk of the work is complete, the city can rectify a 36-year oversight once officials digest updates which should unify the format of the City Charter.

After presenting her findings to officials during a workshop Wednesday night, City Councilor Catherine Cheney — who was appointed charter champion in January — said fellow councilors should take an opportunity to look through the updates to language, punctuation, footnotes and especially content.

“I am hoping that we take our time,” Cheney said, adding it took her six months to dig through records in city hall and the New Hampshire Secretary of State’s office to determine what should be in the Charter, which was last authenticated in 1977.

“We really are in a good place,” Cheney said, adding the Charter hasn’t changed much since the 2005 referendum even though voters added to it in 2007 and 2011 as well.

As a result, she believes the Charter accurately contains the language approved by voters at the polls and the footnotes are referenced correctly.

City Manager Michael Joyal said City Clerk Karen Lavertu and City Attorney Alan Krans already began reviewing the changes proposed by Cheney and expects a final draft to be ready as early as this week. Copies will then be distributed to council members.

“We need to ensure this document is 100 percent perfect,” Joyal said. “It’s something that has not been done in over 30 years.”

Once councilors feel the final draft is ready, Joyal suggested they sign a cover sheet in the City Clerk’s office as part of the authentication process. He said this process needs to be done after every election so any additions are verified by the current council.

“There has to be a process — checks and balances if you will,” Joyal said.

Cheney said officials will need to take time to digest the updates before publicly discussing matters of content.

“We really need to have a discussion about the administrative code issue,” Cheney said, adding the chapter on boards and committees was relocated from its original location sometime in 2011.

“I’m not pointing any fingers,” Cheney said. “I don’t think any one person is responsible.”

As she was against the change when it was proposed to the council, Cheney believes the section should be returned to its proper place — where it remained for more than 30 years — following a public hearing on the matter.

Joyal said the format of the City Charter is outlined by state law, which empowers the council to enact ordinances — like the administrative code. He stressed ordinances are not part of the Charter.

Joyal said once the Charter is authenticated, the official copy will be maintained by the City Clerk. Copies will be incorporated into a new “green book,” which also contains the city’s codes and serves as a public reference for officials, department heads and the public.

Cheney recommends the City Council authenticate the Charter during one of its meetings and even suggested officials make a ceremony to celebrate the process, which was done in 1977.

“This is not a small thing,” Cheney said, adding the Charter, like the Constitution, is the source of the city’s power.

For more information about the Charter, visit the city’s website at http://www.ci.dover.nh.us/ or visit the Charter section at http://www.catherinecheney.org/.

jquinn@newstote.com