1 STAFF REPORT
DATE: December 12, 2023
TO: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
FROM: Kimberley Clark, City Clerk
BY: Melissa Dekermenji, CMC, Records Manager
SUBJECT: Appointment to Fill One Vacancy on the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy Advisory Committee for a Full Four -Year Term and Fill One Vacancy on the Infrastructure Oversight Board for an Unexpired Term
RECOMMENDATION
Appoint one member to the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy Advisory Committee for a four -year term ending January 11, 2028, and one member to the Infrastructure Oversight Board to fill an unexpired term ending July 31, 2027.
BACKGROUND
All Board, Commission, and Committee (BCC) Members shall be appointed by a three- fifths (3/5) vote of all Council Members and serve without compensation from the City. No person shall serve on more than one BCC at the same time. Vacancies on a BCC occurring during the term of office shall be filled within ninety (90) days from the date the vacancy occurs. Any person appointed to fill a vacancy shall hold office for the remainder of the unexpired term. In addition, all applicants must be electors of, and actually reside in, the City of Burbank with the exception of three positions on the Burbank Cultural Arts and the Sustainable Burbank c ommissions as established in Ordinance No. 16- 3,874 adopted 2/9/2016 per BMC Sections 2-1-404, 2-1-405, 2-1-406, and 2-1-407.
Once a vacancy is established, the City Clerk advertises the vacancy for 30 days, accepts applications, and provides applications received to the City Council for consideration.
Applicants have the option of applying for up to two BCCs, indicating their first and second choice.
The voting process established allows for each Council Member to vote as many times as there are vacancies on the BCC being considered; the applicants receiving a majority CITY CLERK’S
OFFICE
2 of the votes in the first round are either appointed or move into the second round, if necessary. The process continues for as many rounds as are necessary to attain the correct number of applicants to fill the vacancy.
Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy Advisory Committee
In 1980, t he Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy (Conservancy) was established by the California State Legislature in 1980. Since that time, the Conservancy has helped to preserve over 72,000 acres of parkland in both wilderness and urban settings and has improved more than 114 public recreational facilities throughout S outhern California.
Additionally, it has given grants to nonprofit organizations for educational and interpretation programs that have served hundreds of thousands of children and other park visitors. The Conservancy’s Mission Statement is “Through direct action, alliances, partnerships, and joint powers authorities, the Conservancy's mission is to strategically buy back, preserve, protect, restore, and enhance treasured pieces of Southern California to form an interlinking system of urban, rural and river parks, open space, trails, and wildlife habitats that are easily accessible to the general public. ” Partnership: The key to the Conservancy's success has been partnerships. The Conservancy maximizes its effectiveness by working together with local government, joint powers entities, landowners, state and federal agencies, and community -based organizations to secure and develop parkland. Through a strategic planning process that includes substantial community participation and input, the Conservancy's projects and priorities are continually updated to reflect the changing dynamics of the region.
Infrastructure Oversight Board
In November 2018, Burbank voters passed Measure P - Burbank Infrastructure and Community Services Protection Transactions and Use Tax, a local sales tax ordinance.
Under the Sales Tax Ordinance, Burbank Municipal Code (BMC) Section 2-4-2114 provides for oversight and thus required City Council to establish an oversight board. On April 16, 2019, the City Council adopted Ordinance No. 19-3,914, adding the Infrastructure Oversight Board to Burbank Municipal Code Section 2-1-426. The Infrastructure Oversight Board is comprised of seven (7) members who oversee and make recommendations to the Council regarding the infrastructure of the City (not part of an enterprise fund). The mission of this Board, in part, is to ensure the reliability, maintenance, and safety of the City’s infrastructure.
Oversight parameters may include: safety, funding, planning, construction (i.e. high level review of scope, schedule, cost, and risk of infrastructure projects), operations, maintenance (reviewing the adequacy of existing maintenance programs), and implementation of best practices related to infrastructure. The Board shall also make recommendations on traffic programs.
DISCUSSION
On November 1, 2023 , the City Clerk's Office began advertising and accepting applications for one scheduled vacancy on the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy 3 Advisory Committee. This vacancy is a scheduled vacancy for Committee Member Garen Yegparian, who serves as the representative from the City of Burbank and whose term is set to expire on January 11, 2024. Additionally, the City Clerk's Office began advertising and accepting applications for one vacancy on the Infrastructure Oversight Board for an unexpired term ending July 31, 202 7 created by the resignation of Member Jenna Rose Hunter.
To obtain qualified candidates, a Notice of Vacancy was advertised through the following:
• The City’s website
• City Council meeting announcements
• All social media platforms overseen by the City Clerk’s Office • Press releases sent to the LA Times, Burbank Leader, and MyBurbank.com • Notices posted on the City Hall Bulletin Board
• Community groups and organizations
The deadline to submit applications to the City Clerk’s Office for the Board of Library Trustees was Thursday, November 30, 2023, at 5:00 p.m. The City Clerk’s Office received two (2) applications for the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy Advisory Committee:
Kristin Hernandez (first choice) and Garen Yegparian (incumbent) and two (2 ) applications for the Infrastructure Oversight Board: Shane Weber and Kristin Hernandez (second choice). The applications are listed in the order received.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
This activity has no potential for resulting in either a direct physical change in the environment or a reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment and, as such, is not a “project” subject to the requirements of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) 14 Cal. Code Regs § 15378.
FISCAL IMPACT
There is no fiscal impact associated with this item.
CONCLUSION
The City and the community both realize substantial benefits from civic involvement.
Appointments to the boards, commissions, and committees help to encourage public participation in the governmental process and ensure Burbank residents have a voice.
ATTACHMENT
Attachment 1 – Applications and Resumes
Attachment 2 – Burbank Municipal Code Section 2-1-426