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CC:COH - (1) Discussion of Proposed Changes to Culver City Committee on Homelessness Bylaws; and (2) Direction to the City Manager as Deemed Appropriate.
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Meeting Date: April 19, 2021
Contact Person/Dept: Tevis Barnes/CDD/Housing Division
Christina Stoffers/CDD/Housing Division
Phone Number: (310) 253-5780
Fiscal Impact: Yes [] No [X] General Fund: Yes [] No [X]
Public Hearing: [] Action Item: [X] Attachments: [X]
Commission Action Required: Yes [] No [] Date:
Public Notification: Committee on Homelessness (03/16/2021); Landlord Tenant Mediation Board (03/16/2021); Saint Joseph Center (03/16/2021); Upward Bound House (03/16/2021);(E-Mail) Meetings and Agendas - City Council (04/15/2021);
Department Approval: Sol Blumenfeld, Community Development Director (04/14/2021)
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RECOMMENDATIONS:
Staff recommends the City Council and the Committee on Homelessness (COH) discuss proposed changes to the COH Bylaws; and (2) provide direction to the City Manager as deemed appropriate.
BACKGROUND:
In an effort to better address homelessness in Culver City, the City Council at its regular meeting on July 26, 2004 approved the formation of the Homelessness Ad Hoc Committee and adopted short and long-term strategies to address homelessness in the City. The Ad Hoc Committee was fully established and recognized as the Culver City Committee on Homelessness (COH) on April 22, 2008. The COH consists of seven members who are residents and representatives from the Culver City business and supportive service community. The Community Development Department (CDD) Housing Division serves as staff to the COH.
Although the COH was established as a full committee, no bylaws were created to govern the body. On January 26, 2010 the COH discussed and established a subcommittee to define bylaws for the COH (Bylaws). The Bylaws provide guidelines to help define the COH’s mission, the role and responsibilities of its members and member absences. During the meeting of May 24, 2011, the COH approved the final draft Bylaws and City Council approved the Bylaws on August 22, 2011 (Attachment 1).
DISCUSSION
The COH Bylaws have not been reviewed since 2011. In 2020, the COH established a subcommittee to review the current Bylaws and recommend updates to better reflect the evolution of the COH to include the topic area of housing in its mission and the name of the body. Chair Karlo Silbiger, Vice-Chair Mark Lipman and Committee Member Dr. Khin Khin Gyi, serve on the COH Bylaws Subcommittee. The COH also desires to increase meeting frequency to monthly, expand the size of the body to nine (from seven) to be more inclusive of youth and persons with lived-experience, and fold in more City staff who interact with and assist the unhoused community.
The following are the proposed revisions to the existing COH Bylaws:
• Title/Name - Change Title to: "Committee on Homelessness and Housing".
• Under Section I (Purpose/Mission) - Change the Purpose / Mission Statement to: "The Culver City Committee on Homelessness and Housing’s primary goal is to find and advocate for solutions to end homelessness and ways to improve the quality of housing and life for all in the following ways: advocating to the City Council and City Staff for the appropriate funding to implement solutions to ending homelessness; advising the City Council and Staff in identifying short, medium and long term strategies to end and prevent homelessness; being solutions-focused, specifically towards the decriminalization of homelessness, for a housing, services and equity based approach; reviewing the homeless services provided by independent city contractors and making recommendations to improve service delivery; outreaching to the Culver City community along with adjoining and overlapping jurisdictions to help create both local and regional solutions to ending homelessness; and Collaborating and educating within our communities and acting as a voice for the public."
• Under Section II.a (Composition) - Change COH composition to: "The Committee shall consist of nine members. Six members shall be appointed at large and shall be Culver City residents. One member shall be an individual who is currently experiencing homelessness or who has previously experienced homelessness. One member shall be an individual age 16-25. One member shall be an individual age 65 or older”. The three members representing specific populations do not need to be current Culver City residents, but must have some current or former connection to the Culver City community (e.g. attending a school in Culver City, having formerly experienced homelessness in Culver City, active member of the Culver City senior center, etc.). All Committee Members shall serve four-year staggered terms.
• Under Section IV.i (Meetings) - Change meeting schedule, to state: "The committee shall hold its regular meeting on the third Tuesday of every month at 7:00 pm.”
• Section VII (Staff Support) - Change staff support to state: "The following City Departments and Divisions shall send a staff member to participate in each committee meeting: Housing Division; Enforcement Services Division; Parks, Recreation, and Community Services Department; Fire Department; Police Department; and City Attorney’s Office.
Residency Requirement
Under Section II.a (Composition), the COH Bylaws Subcommittee has recommended that the composition of the COH allow for non-residency membership among the proposed three members who represent specific populations with current or former connection to the Culver City community. The issue of Culver City residency has also been recently considered by the City Council Policies Ad Hoc Subcommittee (Council Members Vera and McMorrin) and they have recommended the residency requirement be removed in its entirety for the COH and Equity and Human Relations Advisory Committee (EHRAC), with the condition there be some connection to Culver City to ensure the applicant is invested in the community. An item regarding Commissions, Boards and Committees (CBC) Policy will be coming forward to City Council to consider amendment of the Policy to remove the residency requirement for these two bodies. Currently, the only CBCs that allow for non-resident members are:
• Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee (BPAC) has one Culver City Unified School District (CCUSD) representative, one high school student, one member from the Culver City Chamber of Commerce, and one Culver City local business owner, all of which are not required to be Culver City residents.
• Disability Advisory Committee (DAC) allows membership of no more than one representative from private, non-profit, public, or quasi-public, agency or organization.
• EHRAC has one labor representative, who is not required to be a Culver City resident.
• Finance Advisory Committee (FAC) has one business community member, two labor representatives and one CCUSD representative, all of which are not required to be Culver City residents.
• Landlord-Tenant Mediation Board (LTMB) does not require the Landlord seat to be a Culver City resident, but they must own rental property within Culver City.
Next Steps
Upon receiving direction from the City Council and the COH, staff will prepare the amended COH bylaws to bring forward to a future City Council meeting for consideration and adoption.
FISCAL ANALYSIS:
There is no fiscal impact to discuss and provide direction regarding the proposed changes to the COH Bylaws.
ATTACHMENTS:
1. Existing Committee on Homelessness Bylaws
MOTION(S):
That the City Council and Committee on Homelessness:
1. Discuss the proposed changes to the Culver City Committee on Homelessness Bylaws; and
2. Provide direction to the City Manager as deemed appropriate.