title
CC - (1) Appointments to the Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee; Civil Service Commission; Committee on Homelessness; Cultural Affairs Commission; Disability Advisory Committee; Equity and Human Relations Advisory Committee, Fiesta La Ballona Committee, Finance Advisory Committee, General Plan Advisory Committee, Landlord-Tenant Mediation Board; Los Angeles County West Vector Control; LAX Area Advisory Committee; Parks, Recreation and Community Services Commission; and Planning Commission; and (2) Direction to the City Clerk Regarding any Vacancies not Filled.
body
Meeting Date: June 8, 2020
Contact Person/Dept: Jeremy Green/City Clerk,
Mimi Ferrel/City Clerk Specialist
Phone Number: (310) 253-5851
Fiscal Impact: Yes [X] No [] General Fund: Yes [X] No []
Public Hearing: [] Action Item: [X] Attachments:
Commission Action Required: Yes [] No [X]
Public Notification: (E-Mail) Meetings and Agendas - City Council (06/04/2020);
Department Approval: Serena Wright-Black, Assistant City Manager (06/03/2020)
_____________________________________________________________________
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends the City Council (1) appoint members to the Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee; Civil Service Commission; Committee on Homelessness; Cultural Affairs Commission; Disability Advisory Committee; Equity and Human Relations Advisory Committee, Fiesta La Ballona Committee, Finance Advisory Committee, General Plan Advisory Committee, Landlord-Tenant Mediation Board; Los Angeles County West Vector Control; LAX Area Advisory Committee; Parks, Recreation and Community Services Commission; and Planning Commission; and (2) provide direction to the City Clerk regarding any vacancies not filled.
BACKGROUND
In this application cycle, there are a total of 38 openings across 14 bodies as follows:
• Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee (3 Positions - Resident Seat 3, Senior Resident Seat 1 and Local Business Rep Seat 1)
• Civil Service Commission (1 Position - Seat 3*)
• Committee on Homelessness Positions - Seat 1, Seat 2, Seat 4, and Seat 6)
• Cultural Affairs Commission (1 Position - Seat 3*)
• Disability Advisory Committee (3 Positions - Seat 2*, Seat 6*, and Seat 7*)
• Equity and Human Relations Advisory Committee (New Committee - 7 Positions)
• Fiesta La Ballona Committee (4 Positions - Seat 1*, Seat 2, Seat 3*, and Seat 4)
• Finance Advisory Committee (4 Positions - Seat 1, Seat 2, Seat 4*, and Seat 5*)
• General Plan Advisory Committee (1 Position)
• Landlord-Tenant Mediation Board (3 Positions - Tenant Seat 1*, Landlord Seat 1*, and Member-at-Large Seat 1*)
• Parks, Recreation, and Community Services Commission (1 Position - Seat 1*)
• Planning Commission (1 Position - Seat 4)
• LAX Area Advisory Committee (3 Positions)
• Los Angeles County West Vector Control (Seat 1*)
Beginning on April 1, 2020, the City Clerk’s Office publicized the vacancies as follows:
• Notice was posted on the City’s website starting on April 1, 2020.
• Advertisements were published in the Culver City News on April 2 and 23, 2020.
• Notice was sent via e-mail through GovDelivery on April 2; and May 1 and 14, 2020.
• Notice was posted on the social media application NextDoor on April 23 and May 14, 2020.
• Notice was posted on social media applications Facebook, Instagram and Twitter on April 2, 9, and 17; and May 1, 8, 14 and 15, 2020.
• Notice was posted on Culver City TV beginning on April 23, 2020.
Confirmation of Eligibility Requirements
Upon receipt, the City Clerk’s Office reviewed each application to confirm whether, on the face of the application, applicant met the minimum eligibility requirements.
With respect to commission appointments, the Culver City Municipal Code (CCMC) provides certain general provisions related to members and those seeking appointment to Commissions. CCMC Section 3.03.005 provides in pertinent part:
“Commissioners shall be residents of the City, none of whom shall hold any paid office or employment in the City Government. Minors, age sixteen (16) or older, are eligible to apply with parental or legal guardian consent. No person may serve on more than one (1) Commission at the same time”
Please note, the Disability Advisory Committee, the LAX Area Advisory Committee, and the Landlord seat for the Landlord Tenant Mediation Board do not require applicants to be Culver City residents.
The Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee, Disability Advisory Committee and the LAX Area Advisory Committee do not have term limits. The General Plan Advisory Committee does not have terms.
The Equity and Human Relations Advisory Committee is a new Committee and the bylaws have been attached for purposes of discussing initial term lengths (Attachment 1).
Any seats not filled by the City Council this evening will be advertised again during the next annual cycle, unless City Council determines otherwise.
DISCUSSION:
Following are summaries of those who submitted applications. Those applicants with one asterisk (*) applied to multiple bodies and those bodies will be listed in order of preference. Those current appointees reapplying for their respective position will have “(Current Member)” next to their names, and those marked with an “up” symbol (^) submitted applications after the May 18, 2020 5:00 PM deadline.
It should be noted that there were several applicants for bodies that require Culver City residency who did not meet this requirement . Those individuals received e-mails or phone calls from the City Clerk’s Office indicating that they were not eligible for appointment.
Seat Vacancies:
Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee (BPAC) - No Term Limits
A total of 3 positions are available - Resident Seat 3, Senior Resident Seat 1 and Local Business Rep Seat. All three positions are for two-year terms that expire on June 30, 2022. Michelle Weiner (Resident Senior Seat who has been a member for 2 terms and George Montgomery (Local Business Seat who has been a member for 1 term) are eligible for reappointment and have applied. Seat 3 is open for a new member to be appointed.
To be eligible, Resident positions must be residents of Culver City, while Business appointees are not required to be residents.
A total of seven (7) eligible applications were received from the following individuals.
Anthony McClaren (Position not noted)
David Metzler (Resident) #*(GPAC, BPAC, Planning)
George Montgomery (Local Business) (Current Member)
Travis Morgan (Resident)* (GPAC, BPAC, EHRAC)
Ron Smoire (Resident)
Douglas Stanger (Resident)
Michelle Weiner (Senior Resident) (Current Member) ^
Civil Service Commission (CSC) - There is one position available for a full four-year term through June 30, 2024. Seat No. 3 is currently held by Commissioner Albert Vera, who has completed one term, is eligible for a second term and has reapplied.
A total of three (3) eligible applications were received from:
Daniel Behrendt* (Civil Service, Committee on Homelessness)
Albert Vera (Current Member)
Julie Zatz
Committee on Homelessness (CoH)- There are four positions available Seat 1, Seat 2, Seat 4 and Seat 6. Seat 6 is currently held by Karlo Silbiger, who has served one four-year term, is eligible for a second term and has reapplied.
A total of ten (10) applications were received from:
Daniel Behrendt* (Civil Service, CoH)
Darryl Cherness
Rachel Feldstein
Josh Goldstein* (CoH, FAC, Planning Commission)
Paul Green* (CoH, EHRAC- no preference provided)
Khin Khin Gyi* (EHRAC, CoH, Planning Commission)
Steve Jones
Andrew Lewis* (EHRAC, CAC, CoH)
Larry Loughlin* (CoH, LTMB)
Karlo Silbiger (Current Member)
Cultural Affairs Commission (CAC) - Seat No. 3 is a four-year term through June 30, 2024 and is currently held by Commissioner Wisnosky Stehlin, who is completing her first full term, is eligible for re-appointment to a second four-year term, and has applied for re-appointment.
A total of eight (8) eligible applications were received from:
Gerry Biernat
Gurbinder Ghotra
Robert Klein
Andrew Lewis* (EHRAC, CAC, CoH)
Joes Segal
Neal Weiss
Jeannine Wisnosky Stehlin (Current Member)
Viviana Yupanqui
Disability Advisory Committee (DAC) - No Term Limits
Three Seats (Seat 2, Seat 6, and Seat 7) are available for appointments to full terms ending June 30, 2024. Lisette Palley (Currently in Seat 2) has served one partial term of under two years) and Janet Hoult (Seat 6) have served one partial term of 2 years, one full term of four years. Both have reapplied and are eligible for full terms expiring June 30, 2024. Marcy Sookne is a former DAC member who had served a full four-year term and then took one year off from service. The person currently holding Seat 7 did not reapply.
A total of five (5) eligible applications were received from:
Jorge Alvarez
Janet Cameron Hoult (Current Member)
Lisette Palley (Current Member)
Jorge Sandoval
Marcy Sookne
Equity and Human Relations Advisory Committee (EHRAC)
The EHRAC is a new advisory body to the City Council and/or the City Manager, established in January 2020 to recommend programs, policies, and activities that promote positive human relations and equitable outcomes and opportunities in all aspects of community life. The membership includes 9 members as follows: 7 Members at Large, 1 Labor Rep, 1 Youth Rep.
In reviewing the bylaws (Attached), it was discovered there are no staggered starting terms for the members at large, which means all of the terms will end at the same time. To avoid all members terming out at once, staff recommends that the initial terms be 3 years each for the odd-numbered seats (1,3,5,7) and 4 years each for the even-numbered seats (2, 4, 6), with terms for all seats becoming 4 years in length after the initial term.
Staff also recommends the term for the youth seat be for a one-year period. The labor seat is recommended to be for two-year period, will be determined by the different unions and will be provided prior to the first meeting. The selection for the labor seat will be brought to City Council for ratification at a future meeting.
A total of seventeen (17) eligible applications were received for the 7 Members at Large positions from:
Samia Bano
Samantha Courville
Charles Dennis
Steven Fisher
Paul Green* (CoH, EHRAC- no preference provided)
Kimberley Griffin
Khin Khin Gyi* (EHRAC, CoH, Planning Commission)
Mariam Karson
Andrew Lewis* (EHRAC, CAC, CoH)
London McBride
Haifaa Moammar
Jared Morgan
Travis Morgan* (GPAC, BPAC, EHRAC)
Sandra Onozato
Rebecca Rona-Tuttle
Jeff Schwartz
Carlos Valverde
A total of five (5) eligible applications were received for the Youth Seat from:
Kira Grimes
Sienna Koizumi
James Lukas
Celeste Nunez
Abel Tsega
Fiesta la Ballona Committee - This body advises and makes recommendations to the City Council and the Director of Parks, Recreation, and Community Services Department on policies and issues related to the City’s annual Fiesta La Ballona event as defined in the body’s bylaws. Members sit on this committee from November 1- October 31 of each year to allow for the same members to advise from the beginning of the planning through the wrap-up of the event. This year’s Fiesta la Ballona event was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
There are four positions available (Seats 1, 2, 3, and 4). There was only one application received from Laura Stuart, who has since withdrawn her application.
Staff requests that the City Council provide direction on whether or not to continue the body and, if so, how to proceed with recruitment.
Finance Advisory Committee - Four positions are currently available ( Resident Seats 1 and 2 and Local Business Rep Seats 4 and 5.) Keith Jones (Seat 4) has served a partial term of under two years and Darrel Menthe has served a partial term of just over two years. Both are eligible for another term and have reapplied.
A total of three (3) applications were received for the Resident positions:
Marc Bauer * (Planning Commission, FAC)
Josh Goldstein* (CoH, FAC, Planning Commission)
Kevin Lachoff
A total of two (2) applications were received for the Local Business Representative:
Keith Jones (Current Member)
Darrel Menthe (Current Member)
General Plan Advisory Committee (GPAC) - No Terms
The GPAC was established on March 8, 2018 to advise the City Council, City Commissions, Board and Committees, City staff and the City’s consultant team for the General Plan Update (GPU.) Rather than having terms, members serve until the City Council discharges or disbands the GPAC or until an individual members resigns or is removed. A member resigned recently and the vacancy was included in the advertising of the CBC appointment process. Due to a technical issue, the GPAC was not included in the dropdown option on the application. However, two applicants specifically requested to be considered for the position:
Travis Morgan* (GPAC, BPAC, EHRAC)
David Metzler* (GPAC, BPAC, Planning Commission)
Landlord Tenant Mediation Board (LTMB) - Three seats are available for appointment to full terms. The Tenant 1, Landlord 1, and Member At-Large 1 seats will be for four years, expiring on June 30, 2024.
Tenant Members shall be tenants of residential rental property located within the City of Culver City, and neither the applicant nor the applicant’s spouse or dependents shall have any financial interest in residential income-producing property in Culver City. Landlord Representatives shall either own, manage, or have residential income property interest within Culver City and preferably be residents of Culver City. Members At-Large shall be residents of Culver City and shall not be tenants nor shall they own or have an ownership interest in any residential income-producing property in Culver City.
Tenant Seat No. 1- One seat is available for appointment. This seat is currently held by Taria Lewis, who was originally appointed from 7/1/2013 - 6/30/2016 and has served a second term of 4 years. The appointment is for a four-year term ending on June 30, 2024.
A total of two (2) eligible applications were received from:
Taria Lewis (LTMB, LAX) (Current Member) ^
Demetria Richardson
Landlord Seat No. 1 - One seat is available for appointment. This seat is currently held by Justin Lescoulie. Mr. Lescoulie has served for three terms on the Board, is eligible for re-appointment, and has submitted an application to be considered for re-appointment for a four-year term ending on June 30, 2024.
A total of one (1)) eligible application was received from:
Justin Lescoulie (Current Member)
Member At-Large Seat No. 1- One seat is available for appointment. This seat is currently held by Michael Berlin and he has applied for reappointment. The appointment is for a four-year term ending on June 30, 2024.
A total of three (5) eligible applications were received from:
Mike Berlin (Current Member) ^
Kasey Esser
Donna Le Blanc
Larry Loughlin* (CoH, LTMB)
LAX Area Advisory Committee - There are three seats available for appointment. Representative seats are for an outside board (not an official City body). Kevin Klowden and Luciano Nocera, currently serve as the City’s representatives, are eligible for re-appointment, and have submitted applications to be considered for re-appointment. These positions are annually appointed to serve a January-December calendar year.
A total of five (5) eligible applications were received from:
Mike Berlin* (LTMB, LAX) ^
Kevin Klowden (Current Member)
Luciano Nocera^ (Current Member)^
Taria Lewis ^ (LTMB, LAX)
Lila Swenson ^
Los Angeles County West Vector Control - There is one position that is appointed to the outside body. Annual appointment is considered during the annual process for position which serves a January-December calendar year.
A total of two applicants were received from:
Jay Garacochea (Current Member)
Noah Walsh
Parks, Recreation, and Community Services Commission (PRCS) - Seat No. 1, currently held by William Rickards, is available for appointment to a full term expiring on June 30, 2024. Commissioner Rickards has served one partial term, one full term and is eligible for re-appointment to a final full term.
One (1) eligible application was received from:
William Rickards (Current Member)
Planning Commission (Planning) - Seat No. 4 is available for appointment to a full term expiring on June 30, 2024. Kevin Lachoff currently holds Seat No. 4 but he will have completed his full two terms and is not eligible to re-apply.
A total of ten (10) eligible applications were received from:
Crystal Alexander
Ram Bajaj
Nancy Barba
Marc Bauer* (Planning Commission, FAC)
Keith Fine
Josh Goldstein* (CoH, FAC, Planning Commission)
Khin Khin Gyi* (EHRAC, CoH, Planning Commission)
Anne Jensen
David Metzler* (GPAC, BPAC, Planning Commission)
Dan O'Brien
Natalie Teear
(Please note that Anne Jensen, who had originally applied, withdrew her application due to time constraints.)
Hard copies of the redacted applications are available for public inspection in the City Clerk’s Office and are available on the Commissions, Boards, and Committees website: www.culvercity.org/serve <http://www.culvercity.org/serve>.
Unfilled Vacancies
Staff requests that City Council provide direction on the manner of filling any vacancies that may exist after this process or that may occur throughout the year. Options include allowing the seat(s) to remain vacant until the next appointment cycle, contacting those un-appointed applicants who applied to the specific body that has a vacancy, contacting all un-appointed applicants to determine interest in the vacancy, holding an electronic recruitment process, and/or doing a full recruitment.
Commission, Board and Committee Interaction with the City Council
In accordance with Section V of City Council Policy City Commissions, Board and Committees; Appointed Representatives to Outside Agencies and Boards, adopted by Resolution No. 2017-R086, all CBCs shall periodically report to City Council regarding their activities. Section V of the policy states:
“In an effort to facilitate regular communications between the City Council and its Commissions, joint meetings between the City Council and each of the Commissions shall be scheduled on an annual basis. Periodically, but no less than quarterly, each CBC shall submit to the City Council a written report on their respective activities. Nothing in this Policy shall preclude the City Council from requesting a report from any CBC at any time.”
New CBC members will be informed of this requirement during their orientation.
FISCAL ANALYSIS
Costs for advertising the vacancies in the newspaper and on social media totaled approximately $700. Future costs will include the following: New appointees to the Landlord-Tenant Mediation Board will need 30 hours of professional mediation training at a cost of $625. A mandatory AB 1234 Ethics and Brown Act training has been scheduled for appointees on Thursday, June 25, 2020. Training on diversity, equity and inclusion will also be scheduled. All new applicants must complete this training within one year of appointment. New EHRAC members will require additional training. These costs have been included in the FY 2020-2021 Proposed Budget.
ATTACHMENT
2020-06-08_ATT_ Equity and Human Relations Advisory Committee Bylaws
MOTION
That the City Council make the following appointments as desired:
1. Appoint ______________ to Resident Seat No. 3, to Senior Resident Seat 1 and ______________ to Local Business Rep Seat of the Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee for full terms expiring on June 30, 2022;
2. Appoint ______________ to Seat No. 3 of the Civil Service Commission for full terms expiring on June 30, 2024;
3. Appoint __________________to Seat No 1,_______________Seat No 2___________to Seat 3_____________________to Seat 4 ____________________to Seat 6
4. Appoint ______________ to Seat No. 3 of the Cultural Affairs Commission for a full term expiring on June 30, 2024;
5. Appoint ______________ to Seat No. 2, ______________ to Seat No. 6, and _________________ to Seat No. 7 of the Disability Advisory Committee for full terms expiring on June 30, 2024;
6. Appoint________________to the Youth Seat, the following seven individuals as Members-at -Large to the Equity and Human Relations Advisory Committee, and
direct the four labor organizations to select a representative for the Labor Seat for appointment at a future City Council meeting;
7. Provide Direction regarding appointments on the Fiesta la Ballona committee;
8. Appoint ________to Resident Seat 1 and_________to Resident Seat 2 for full terms expiring on June 30, 2024 and _____________to Local Business Rep Seat 4 and ___________________to Local Business Rep Seat 5 on the Finance Advisory Committee;
9. Appoint ______________ to fill Tenant - Seat No. 1, ______________ to fill Landlord - Seat No. 1, and ______________ to fill Member At-Large - Seat No. 1 to the Landlord-Tenant Mediation Board for full terms expiring on June 30, 2024.
10. Appoint ______________ , ____________________ and __________________ to fill the three Representative Seats to the LAX Area Advisory Committee for full terms expiring on December 31, 2021;
11. Appoint _____________to the Los Angeles County West Vector Control Board for a term expiring on December 31, 2021;
12. Appoint ______________ to fill Seat No. 1 to the Parks, Recreation, and Community Services Commission for a full term expiring June 30, 2024.
13. Appoint ______________ to fill Seat No. 4 to the Planning Commission for a full term expiring June 30, 2024.
14. Provide direction to the City Clerk regarding any vacancies not filled this evening and other direction as deemed appropriate.