City of Culver City, California
City Council Agenda Item Report
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends the City Council consider the topics of the day of week of regular
City Council meetings and City Council packet delivery and direct staff as deemed
appropriate.
BACKGROUND
At the City Council meeting of July 2, 2007, Mayor Corlin requested the City
Council’s concurrence to agendize a discussion of the issues of what day of the
week the regular City Council meetings should occur and the delivery of City Council
packets. The City Council provided its concurrence; therefore, this item is presented
to the City Council this evening for consideration.
DISCUSSION
Day of Week of Regular City Council Meetings
Section 608 of the City Charter provides, in pertinent part:
“The City Council shall hold regular meetings at least twice each month, at
such times as it shall fix by ordinance or resolution and may adjourn
any regular meeting to a date certain, which shall be specified in the order
of adjournment and when so adjourned, each adjourned meeting shall be
a regular meeting for all purposes…” (emphasis added)
Meeting Date: 08/20/2007 Item Number: A-4
AGENDA ITEM: Discussion of and Comment on the Day of Week of Regular City
Council Meetings and City Council Packet Delivery and Introduction of an
Ordinance related thereto.
Contact Person/Dept.: Martin Cole Phone Number: 310-253-6000
Fiscal Impact: Yes [] No [X] General Fund: Yes [] No []
Public Hearing: [] Action Item: [X] Attachments: [X]
Public Notification: Master Notification List (08/15/2007)
Department Approval:
Martin R. Cole (08/10/07)
City Attorney Approval:
Carol Schwab (by H. Iker) (08/14/07)
City Controller Approval:
Marlee Chang (08/15/07)
City Manager Approval:
Jerry B. Fulwood (08/15/07) City of Culver City, California
City Council Agenda Item Report
Section 3.01.100 of the Culver City Municipal Code provides, in pertinent part:
“All official, regular and adjourned meetings of the City Council shall be
held in the City Hall on the second and fourth Mondays of each month
at 7:00 p.m. In the event there is a need to hold a closed session, the City
Council meeting for closed session purposes will convene at a time either
prior to or after the regular Council session on the same date, with the
regular Council session to commence at 7:00 p.m. If any regular meeting
shall fall on a legal holiday, no meeting shall be held on such holiday, but
shall be held on the next succeeding day thereafter that is not a holiday at
7:00 p.m. LEGAL HOLIDAY, as used in this section, shall mean New
Year’s Day, Martin Luther King Day, Presidents Day, Memorial Day,
Independence Day, Labor Day, Veterans Day, Thanksgiving Day and the
following day, and Christmas.” (emphasis added)
Because of the specificity of Section 3.01.100, in order to effectuate a change in day
of week of the regular City Council meetings, an Ordinance is required. Such an
ordinance had been prepared for introduction this evening, should the City Council
so desire.
With respect to the day of week of the regular City Council meetings, the City
Council may wish to consider the following:
• Holding the City Council meeting on a date other than Monday would provide
the City Council and Public with additional time to pose questions to staff on
items appearing on the Agenda
• Because of the busy schedules of various City
Commissions/Boards/Committees, a change in the day of week of the regular
City Council meeting would necessitate a change in the regular meeting date
of City Commission(s).
• The ability for Culver City to participate in certain regional meetings held on
any newly selected date could be impacted.
In addition to the above general items, following is a summary of some “pros”
and “cons” for the City Council’s consideration of each meeting day of the week:
City of Culver City, California
City Council Agenda Item Report
Monday
PROS CONS
(1) Continues the City Council
Meeting on the traditional day of
the week – a day which is well
known in the Community
(1) Provides less time between
packet delivery and the City
Council meeting that other
meeting days
(2) Allows existing schedule of
meetings (City
Commissions/Outside Agencies)
to remain in tact
(2) Holidays tend to fall on
either Monday or Friday, which
moves the date of the City
Council meeting to the next
business day
Tuesday
PROS CONS
(1) Provides additional business
days between agenda posting
and the City Council meeting for
the City Council and the
Community to pose questions on
items on the Agenda.
(1) Would be a change in
traditional meeting date
(2) Would allow participation by
Culver City in Outside Agency
meetings currently held on
Monday (but not on Tuesday).
(2) May conflict with a
traditional Commission/Outside
Agency meeting date
(necessitating a change in that
date or impacts to Culver City’s
participation)
(3) A late Council meeting on
Tuesday night would impact
staff’s ability to finalize an
agenda for the next week the
next morning.
Wednesday
PROS CONS
(1) Provides additional time for
the City Council and the
Community to pose questions on
(1) Would be a change in
traditional meeting date City of Culver City, California
City Council Agenda Item Report
items on the Agenda.
(2) Would allow participation by
Culver City in Outside Agency
meetings currently held on
Monday (but not on Wednesday).
(2) May conflict with a
traditional Commission/Outside
Agency meeting date
(necessitating a change in that
date or impacts to Culver City’s
participation)
Thursday
PROS CONS
(1) Provides additional time for
the City Council and the
Community to pose questions on
items on the Agenda.
(1) Would be a change in
traditional meeting date
(2) Would allow participation by
Culver City in Outside Agency
meetings currently held on
Monday (but not on Thursday).
(2) May conflict with a
traditional Commission/Outside
Agency meeting date
(necessitating a change in that
date or impacts to Culver City’s
participation)
(3) Time period between
packet delivery and City
Council meeting would not
include a weekend
Friday
PROS CONS
(1) Provides additional time for
the City Council and the
Community to pose questions on
items on the Agenda.
(1) Would be a change in
traditional meeting date.
(2) Would allow participation by
Culver City in Outside Agency
meetings currently held on
Monday (but not on Friday).
(2) May conflict with a
traditional Outside Agency
meeting date (necessitating a
change in that date or impacts
to Culver City’s participation)
(3) Time period between
packet delivery and City
Council meeting would not City of Culver City, California
City Council Agenda Item Report
include a weekend
(4) Holidays tend to fall on
either Monday or Friday, which
moves the date of the City
Council meeting to the next
business day
(5) There would be a conflict
with City Hall’s schedule,
causing fiscal impacts
• The following table includes the regular meeting days of the member cities of
the Westside Council of Governments (excepting the City of Los Angeles):
City Day of Week of Council Meetings
Beverly Hills First and Third Tuesdays
Santa Monica Second and Fourth Tuesdays
West Hollywood First and Third Mondays
Culver City Second and Fourth Mondays
All of the above regular meetings are held in the evening.
Should the City Council determine it wishes to change the day of week upon which
regular City Council meetings would occur, staff recommends the City Council
provide a noticing period of at least 60 days to allow the new day to be advertised to
the community. Additionally, should the City Council meeting date be changed, then
a staff report would be presented to the Redevelopment Agency at the next regular
meeting implementing the same change for the Agency.
Delivery of City Council Packets
The target date for the delivery of City Council packets is the evening of Wednesday
prior to the City Council meeting. This target date is desirable because it provides
the City Council and members of the public at least two full business days (with a
third day being available during “on Friday” weeks). At those times when additional
time is needed to finalize an agenda item, delivery of the Agenda Packet on
Wednesday allows for any follow-up deliveries to be made on Thursday (or in
unusual circumstances, on Friday).
The following table provides Staff’s recommendation on various packet delivery
dates associated with the day of week selected for the regular City Council meeting:
City of Culver City, California
City Council Agenda Item Report
FISCAL ANALYSIS:
Staff anticipates no material fiscal impact should the City Council determine to
change either the day of week of the regular City Council meetings or the delivery
date of packets. However, should the City Council determine to hold regular City
Council meetings on Fridays, it is anticipated there would be additional costs in both
personnel (additional overtime may become payable to non-exempt staff members)
and building operational costs (additional utility and maintenance costs) for those
Fridays fall on a day when City Hall would be closed for business. The magnitude of
the overtime cost is difficult to estimate but there will be minor operation and utility
costs associated with conducting City Council meetings on an off Friday.
ATTACHMENTS:
1. Ordinance
MOTION:
That the City Council:
Discuss and comment on the topics of the day of week of regular City Council
meetings and City Council packet delivery, introduce the Ordinance (if desired),
and direct staff as deemed appropriate.
Suggested Packet Delivery Day Day of Week of Council Meetings
Wednesday (week prior) Monday
Wednesday (week prior) Tuesday
Thursday (week prior) Wednesday
Monday (week of) Thursday
Monday (week of) Friday