HomeMy WebLinkAboutR-10673 - CREATING THE CREATIVE VISION TEAM FOR THE DOWNTOWN CONCEPT PLAN UPDATE AND DEFINING ITS TERM AND CHARGERESOLUTION NO. 10673 (2015 Series)
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SAN LUIS
OBISPO, CALIFORNIA, CREATING THE CREATIVE VISION TEAM
FOR THE DOWNTOWN CONCEPT PLAN UPDATE AND DEFINING
ITS TERM AND CHARGE
WHEREAS, the City Council designated funding to update the Downtown Concept Plan
during the 2015-2016 Fiscal Year, following update of the Land Use Element; and
WHEREAS, the community benefited greatly from the generous volunteer efforts of five
community members with strong design skills during the creation of the Downtown Concept
Plan during the early 1990’s; and
WHEREAS, four members of the original group of volunteers (Physical Plan Design
Committee) have offered to be actively involved in the update of the Downtown Concept Plan;
and
WHEREAS, public participation has been a long tradition in land use issues in the City
of San Luis Obispo and public involvement is essential in updating the 1993 Downtown Concept
Plan; and
WHEREAS, the public participation strategy calls for a Creative Vision Team (CVT) to
assist with the visioning process and work with the community and affected stakeholders to
provide recommendations for Council consideration; and
WHEREAS, the composition of the CVT should include the four remaining members of
the Physical Plan Design Committee, plus five additional resident volunteers with design and
graphic skills who are willing to commit time to the update effort and represent the future needs
of the community; and
WHEREAS, establishing CVT Ground Rules and Terms of Engagement will provide a
framework for collaborative communication among stakeholders and decision-makers; and
WHEREAS, the City Council has duly considered all evidence, including the testimony
of interested parties, and the evaluation and recommendations by staff presented at said hearing.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, by the Council of the City of San Luis
Obispo, that a Creative Vision Team is hereby created with a composition, term, charge, ground
rules and staff support as follows:
SECTION 1. CVT. The Creative Vision Team shall be comprised of representatives to
be appointed by the Council. The CVT shall be comprised of an odd number of participants.
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SECTION 2. ACTION
1. Appoint volunteers Chuck Crotser, Andrew Merriam, Pierre Rademaker, and
Kenneth Schwartz to serve on the CVT.
2. Direct Staff to provide notice and solicit applications and resumes to serve on the
CVT to be submitted to the City Clerk by September 30, 2015.
3. Appoint a sub-committee of Council members to review applications and resumes
and, based on recommendations of the original four CVT members named above,
recommend to the full Council appointment of an additional five members who
shall serve at the pleasure of the City Council and may, by a majority Council
vote, be appointed, dismissed, or replaced.
4. The CVT is hereby established until December 31, 2016, at which point it will no
longer be a standing committee with the possible extension of this term to be
considered by the City Council prior to that time.
5. The purpose of the CVT is to advise the City in developing recommendations to
update the Downtown Concept Plan.
6. The City will provide staff support to the CVT, with the Community
Development Director to be primarily responsible for providing this support, to
include preparation of agendas and minutes, compilation of material for
discussion at CVT meetings, and assistance with public outreach efforts.
7. The CVT Guidelines as shown in Exhibit A, and as may be amended by the City
Council, shall apply to the CVT upon formation by the City Council, including
compliance with the Ralph M. Brown Act governing open meetings for local
government bodies.
SECTION 3. Resolution 10659 (2015 Series) is hereby amended and replaced as set
forth herein.
Upon motion of Council Member Rivoire, seconded by Council Member Christianson, and on
the following roll call vote:
AYES: Council Members Carpenter, Christianson, and Rivoire
Vice Mayor Ashbaugh, and Mayor Marx
NOES:
ABSENT:
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Exhibit A
EXHIBIT A
CVT GUIDELINES
Guidelines for the Creative Vision Team (CVT)
City of San Luis Obispo
Community Development Department
1. Introduction
The purpose of these Guidelines is twofold:
1) To clarify the respective roles of the each participant in the citizen advisory
committee process; and
2) To outline the roles, responsibilities and relationship of CVT and Staff to
clarify expectations and understanding of the overall process, so that CVT
and Staff contribute to moving toward accomplishing the committee’s specific
goals within an appropriate schedule and budget.
The advisory committee process is a collaborative one involving an often diverse array
of individuals, stakeholders, and viewpoints, levels of expertise and matters of concern.
The public, CVT appointees, and respective Community Development Department staff
(CDD staff), and staff from other agencies and offices all benefit in having a clear
understanding of their respective roles and responsibilities in the committees’ conduct of
their official business.
An effort has been made to cover all essential aspects of the committee operations,
such as how appointments are made, how long each member’s term is, the
responsibilities of different participants, conflict of interest issues, and meeting
procedures. Nonetheless, these Guidelines are not exhaustive, they do not incorporate
statutes and regulations which may apply to CVT operations, e.g. State open meetings
law (Brown Act). The Guidelines strive to make adequate reference to other rules, as
appropriate.
2. Applicability
These Guidelines apply to the Council-appointed Creative Vision Team (CVT) whose
primary mission involves products and activities of the update to the Downtown Concept
Plan.
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Exhibit A
3. Establishment of CVT
The CVT is being established to advise the City on matters related to the update of the
Downtown Concept Plan. The advice provided by the CVT is communicated to City staff
which is tasked with providing recommendations to Advisory Bodies and City Council.
This CVT is appointed by the City Council; its establishment is not specifically required
by any State laws or regulations. Therefore, the City Council has discretion to create,
modify, and terminate the CVT, its membership, mission statement, schedule, etc. at
any time. The CVT is an agent of the City of San Luis Obispo and members should be
cognizant that their actions as individuals or as a whole can have consequences to the
City.
4. Team Authority
The CVT is advisory in nature and has no authority to approve, deny, or require
modification to any policy under the CVT’s consideration. The team’s advice shall be
conveyed to Advisory Bodies, Planning Commission and City Council in all staff reports.
City staff will acknowledge CVT input in formulation of recommendations for action by
Advisory bodies and City Council and will note where a differing recommendation is
being made and the reasons for the difference. When recording votes in meeting
minutes, members voting for and against items will be noted. Staff is assigned
responsibility for the timely completion of Council-approved Downtown Concept Plan
update work program as reflected in the Request for Proposal.
5. Appointment Process and Membership Term
A) Size
The size of a CVT shall be established by the City Council upon creation of the team.
The team shall have an odd number of members; this eliminates ambiguity as to what
constitutes a quorum, and minimizes the possibility of tie votes.
B) Composition
The composition of a CVT shall be determined at the time of its creation, to ensure that
members with strong design and visioning skills who are committed to community
service are represented in the membership. All members must be residents of the City
of San Luis Obispo. Paid advocates will not be considered to serve on the CVT. The
CVT will be created by Council resolution.
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Exhibit A
C) Vacancies and Application Process
A vacancy or vacancies on a CVT shall exist:
1) When the committee is created
2) When a member or members is/are formally removed by the City Council, or
3) When the Council receives and acknowledges a letter of resignation from an
incumbent.
Vacancies on the CVT shall be advertised by the City Clerk in the same manner as the
original appointments by the Council. Applications for CVT membership shall be
submitted on forms provided by the City Clerk, and shall be accepted by the Clerk. The
temporary absence of members to fill vacancies as described in this section shall not
affect a recommendation by staff and/or the CVT to Advisory Bodies or to the Council.
D) Selection Process
Upon the close of an application period, a copy of each application submitted will be
given to the Council sub-committee for review. Appointment(s) shall be made by the full
Council on recommendation of a Council sub-committee. When considering members, a
goal of service to the entire community rather than special interests will be weighed. All
members must be residents of the City of San Luis Obispo. Paid advocates will not be
considered to serve on the CVT.
E) Term of Office
The term of office for the CVT and its members is established by the City Council when
it creates the committee. The CVT shall serve at the discretion of the Council for the
term of appointment outlined in a resolution.
6. Team Operations
A) Team Mission and Responsibilities
The specific mission for the CVT and its term of service shall be to:
1) Advise the City in the development of recommendations during the process of
discussing issues, opportunities and vision; reviewing alternatives; and
developing policy as part of the Downtown Concept Plan update.
2) Review and comment upon other matters related to the CVT’s function as
part of the Downtown Concept Plan update, upon specific direction by the
City Council.
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Exhibit A
B) Officers and Rules of Conduct
The responsibilities of the CVT also include an election of officers, consisting of at least
a Chair, Vice-Chair, and Recording Secretary. The Chair shall lead all meetings, be the
primary spokesperson for the CVT, and be the primary committee liaison to City staff
and the public. Staff in consultation with the Chairperson shall develop the agenda for
each CVT meeting. The Vice-Chair shall fulfill the duties of Chair in the latter’s absence.
The Recording Secretary will be the Community Development Director or his/her
designee, who will take action minutes of motions. At a minimum, these minutes shall
clearly convey actions and motions taken by the CVT. These minutes are to be
considered, amended as needed and approved by the full CVT at the earliest possible
time, and signed by the Chairperson. In addition, the CVT force may adopt specific rules
of conduct and procedure, as long as such rules are consistent with applicable laws and
regulations (including these Guidelines).
C) Meeting Procedure
The CVT is subject to the Brown Act, which set standards for public notice as to
meeting time, date and location as well as items to be discussed. Significant
implications are as follows:
1) Noticing of all CVT meetings, including time, location and an agenda, must be
posted in a public place within the applicable area. Efforts should be made to
provide adequate public notice beyond minimum Brown Act requirements of
seventy-two (72) hours.
2) All CVT meetings must be open and public. Meetings are to be held in a
facility which makes adequate provision for attendance by all interested
members of the public.
3) Members of the public are to be given an opportunity to speak to the CVT on
any regular agenda item at the time it is being discussed. Members of the
public will also be given an opportunity to speak to any relevant non-agenda
item. All public speakers are subject to reasonable time constraints
established by the CVT Chairperson and any adopted procedures. All public
speakers are to identify their names and relevant business and/or personal
interests they are representing for the record.
4) The CVT will attempt to establish a consistent regular meeting time and
location in their rules of conduct.
5) Minutes of CVT meetings will be kept on file by the Community Development
Department. These minutes shall be available for any interested person to
examine.
6) The CVT will elect officers no later than its second meeting and until such
time, the Community Development Director or his/her designee shall serve as
the Chair Pro-Tem.
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Exhibit A
7) Meetings shall run in a parliamentary style. Substantive issues will have
higher priority than matters of procedural detail. The Chair has discretion in
guiding discussion of items among CVT members while allowing for
appropriate public input.
8) Staff may address the CVT at any time, with timely recognition by the Chair.
9) Quorum: A majority of the members of the CVT constitute a quorum.
Decisions are made by a majority of the members present and voting. No
business may be transacted if fewer than a quorum is present. Formal votes
by a committee are to have a motion and second, prior to allowing further
discussion and a vote.
10) Members of the CVT shall not vote on issues which involve a legal or ethical
conflict of interest or duty (See section 7)
11) Subcommittees: The CVT may select subcommittees to focus on issues or
subjects meriting more detailed work outside of the team. Subcommittees are
made up of CVT members only, and must number fewer than a quorum of the
full CVT. Subcommittee meeting arrangements may be set by either the staff
or the CVT. Such meetings are not legally required to be noticed or posted,
but every effort should be made by a subcommittee officer or member to
notice and/or post the meetings, as they are open to any interested member
of the public. Information about their time and location is to be made available
through the overall CVT secretary and through CDD staff. Subcommittees
shall choose a Chair and a Vice-Chair, and may choose a Recording
Secretary for preparing informal minutes. A report from any subcommittee
meeting shall be made at the next full CVT meeting. Staff support for
subcommittee meetings may be provided, but is not required.
D) Attendance
CVT members shall make every effort to attend regular meetings. Any member who is
unable to attend any meeting shall contact the CVT Chair or Community Development
Department staff at least seventy-two (72) hours prior to the meeting. Three (3)
consecutive unannounced absences or five (5) consecutive absences by a member
shall be grounds for dismissal from the CVT, subject to the discretion of the Council.
E) Appearance on CVT’s behalf
The Chair, Vice-Chair, or other duly authorized CVT member shall speak for the
committee at any applicable non-CVT public hearing or other meeting as authorized by
the CVT. Individual members of CVT not so designated, who do testify at a public
hearing or other meeting, shall clearly identify themselves as speaking individually as a
member of CVT, and shall clearly indicate that they are not authorized to speak for the
full committee.
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Exhibit A
F) Timely adjournment of evening meetings
To encourage public participation, evening meetings of CVTs will be organized,
agendized, and run so as to finish at a reasonable hour. If a particular CVT finds its
evening meetings habitually running past 9:30 PM, staff and the Chair will work together
to shorten the agendas and, if necessary, to expedite discussion and action on items.
7. Conflicts of Interest
CVT members are not considered to be “public officials” as defined in § 82048 of the
California Government Code, and therefore are not subject to the State Political Reform
Act and its disclosure provisions (Government Code §§ 81000 et seq.). Nevertheless,
CVT members shall remove themselves from all discussions and votes on matters in
which they have any direct personal financial interest, or where the member’s
professional allegiance and/or personal bias cannot be set aside to allow the member’s
fair consideration of the issue(s) at hand.
In gauging such extra-legal conflicts of interest and/or duty, each member shall exercise
careful judgment and introspection in giving priority to the interests of fairness and
objectivity; if there is any reasonable doubt that the member has a conflict, the member
shall refrain from participation in the team’s deliberations and vote(s). Should a member
not refrain voluntarily, and should the member’s participation specifically be challenged
by another CVT member, staff, or the public, the member’s participation on any item of
official CVT business may be prevented by a two-thirds majority vote of the full CVT
(i.e., at least two-thirds of the total incumbent membership, including the member in
question). Pervasive or recurring conflicts of interest and/or duty should lead a member
to resign voluntarily from a CVT, and may be grounds for a dismissal by the Council.
8. CVT Member and Staff Responsibilities
A) CVT Member Responsibilities
The responsibilities of the individual CVT members include:
1) Punctually and fully attend all regular and special meetings of the CVT and all
relevant subcommittee meetings, to the maximum possible extent;
2) Come to all meetings fully prepared, having reviewed the agenda and all
related written/graphic material available before the meeting;
3) Conscientiously follow high ethical standards in putting the broad public
interest ahead of any personal interest and/or bias, and to abstain from all
discussions and votes where this is not possible;
4) Promote full and open discussion of all matters of official CVT business;
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Exhibit A
5) Support the CVT Chair, Vice-Chair, and staff in maintaining order, keeping
discussions relevant to the business at hand, and following proper
procedures, while giving primary attention to matters of substance.
6) Be cognizant of the project time frame and constraints and strive to comment
on products/concepts presented in a productive and expeditious manner.
B) CDD Staff Responsibilities
Staff responsibilities in supporting the CVT include:
1) Timely completion of deliverables within budget.
2) Schedule all CVT meetings pertaining to Downtown Concept Plan update
issues, make arrangements for all facilities, distribute written/graphic
materials, notices, agendas, etc. For such meetings, coordinate necessary
staff participation and guest speakers;
3) For CVT meetings as appropriate, prepare recommendations and other
material for CVT review and comment. Advise the CVT on matters of both
substance and procedure;
4) Assist the CVT Chair in promoting full and open participation by all CVT
members and other people in attendance at any meeting, keeping discussion
pertinent to the business at hand;
5) Handle information requests for material and general information related to
the official business of the CVT;
6) Report the CVT’s activities, recommendations and comments to Advisory
Bodies or other decision-makers and officials within the framework of the
overall presentation of staff recommendations on a team product-goal (i.e.
draft concepts, policies, or portion thereof);
7) Coordinate with the Chair and Secretary on CVT meeting schedules.
C) City Attorney
Staff support to the CVT will not be provided by the City Attorney. Specific legal issues
are to be directed through CDD to the City Attorney for response.
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