1 STAFF REPORT
DATE: January 14, 2025
TO: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
FROM: Kimberley Clark, City Clerk
BY: Melissa Dekermenji, CMC, Records Manager
SUBJECT: Appointment to Fill Vacancies on the Planning Commission and the Infrastructure Oversight Board for Unexpired Terms
RECOMMENDATION
Appoint one member to the Planning Commission and one member to the Infrastructure Oversight Board to fill unexpired terms ending July 31, 2025.
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 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 reside in, t he 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 February 9, 2016 (per Burbank Municipal Code (BMC) §§ 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 the applications received to 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(ies).
Planning Commission
The Planning Commission (originally Advisory City Planning Committee to the Board of Trustees and formerly the Planning Board) was established on January 30, 1923. On December 8, 1953, Council adopted Ordinance No. 1290, adding the Planning Commission to the BMC . As detailed in BMC § 2-1-411, the Planning Commission is composed of five members and shall have and exercise all powers and duties granted to it by any provision or provisions of this code and shall also have and exercise any power and duties accruing to it by § 215 of the Charter (“The City shall have the power to exercise any and all rights, powers and privileges previously or in the future established, granted or prescribed by the general laws of the state or by other lawful authority and shall have the power to act pursuant to pr ocedure established by any law of the state unless a different procedure is required by this Charter or by ordinance.”).
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, BMC § 2-4-2114 provides for oversight and thus required Council to establish an oversight board. On April 16, 2019, the Council adopted Ordinance No. 19- 3,914, adding the Infrastructure Oversight Board to BMC §2-1-426.
The Infrastructure Oversight Board is comprised of seven 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 27, 202 4, the City Clerk’s Office began advertising and accept ing applications for one vacancy on the Planning Commission created by the resignation of Christopher Rizzotti who was elected to City Council and one vacancy on the Infrastructure Oversight Board created by the Council decision to remove Member Shaunt Kodaverdian from the Board. Both vacancies are for unexpired terms ending July 31, 2025.
3 To obtain qualified candidates, a Notice of Vacancy was advertised through the following:
• City website
• City Council meeting announcements
• All social media platforms managed by the City Clerk’s Office • Press releases sent to the L.A. Times, the Burbank Leader, and MyBurbank.com • Notices posted on the City Hall Bulletin Board
• Community groups and organizations
• Constant Contact Email Notification
The deadline to submit applications to the City Clerk’s Office was Friday, December 27, 2024, at 5:00 p.m. The City Clerk’s Office received five applications for the Planning Commission: Matthew Nelson, Alan Radojcic, Mike Van Gorder, Apraham Atteukenian, and Terry Norton. The City Clerk’s Office received one application for the Infrastructure Oversight Board: Christopher D'Sa. The applications are listed in 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.
ATTACHMENTS
Attachment 1 – Applications and Resumes
Attachment 2 – Burbank Municipal Code §§ 2-1-411 and 2-1-426