DATE:
November 15, 2022
CATEGORY:
Consent
DEPT.:
Community Development
TITLE: Bylaws of the Downtown Committee—
Composition
RECOMMENDATION
Adopt a Resolution of the City Council of the City of Mountain View Amending Article IV, Section 1, of the Bylaws for the Downtown Committee Regarding Membership Composition, to be read in title only, further reading waived (Attachment 1 to the Council report).
BACKGROUND
The Downtown Committee (Committee) was established in 1998 as a City Council advisory body on matters relating to the downtown area. The Committee has a set of Bylaws, which defines its purpose, downtown boundaries, membership, meeting structure, and duti es. The purpose of the Committee is to “promote the vitality of Downtown Mountain View through recommendations to the City Council on programs, projects, and policies for economic development, a quality downtown environment, and the maintenance and develo pment of parking facilities.” The Downtown Committee Bylaws were last amended in January 2020. The downtown property and/or business and business -at-large categories were changed to attract more applicants and provide flexibility as to who can participate.
There are 11 members on the Committee composed of stakeholders who represent a cross-section of the downtown and greater Mountain View community. The Committee is composed of members from the following categories: four downtown property and/or business owners, four business -at-large (including the Central Business Association (referred to as the Downtown Business Association) , which was recently dissolved in 2021, and Chamber of Commerce), two community -at-large, and one neighborhood representative (a ppointed by the Old Mountain View Neighborhood Association).
ANALYSIS
Currently, there is one vacant seat in the following category: business-at-large for the downtown.
The business -at-large seat has been vacant for over two years as the Downtown Business Association went through a transition. In 2021, the Downtown Business Association dissolved
Bylaws of the Downtown Committee—Composition
November 15, 2022
and the Chamber of Commerce formed the Downtown Business Association Advi sory Board ; however, one representative from the Chamber of Commerce staff continued to sit on the Downtown Committee. On April 5, 2022, the Downtown Committee had a preliminary discussion about the current Bylaws and how to allow both organizations to sit on the Committee. Then, at the May 3, 2022 Downtown Committee meeting, the Bylaws change was approved (Attachment 2—Downtown Committee-approved minutes, May 3, 2022).
On September 28, 2022, the Council Policy and Procedures Committee (CPPC) reviewed t he composition of the Downtown Committee Bylaws within the context of the Downtown Committee discussions (Attachment 3 —Committee Report). The CPPC recommended changes be made to the membership composition and be considered at a future City Council meeting for formal adoption. Minor revisions have since been made to the proposed Bylaw amendments to clarify the Downtown Business Association is an advisory board to the Chamber of Commerce and reflect the existing language referencing the Central Business Association . Table 1 below provides a summary of current Bylaw language (Column 1) and the CPPC-recommended changes with Advisory Board highlighted as a clarifying revision (Column 2).
Table 1: Summary of Current Bylaw Language and Proposed Changes
Current Bylaws Recommended Changes
Article IV—Membership, Section 1: Composition
a. Four members who own property and/or a
business in downtown. (Members should
represent diverse types of businesses and
properties.)
a. Five members who own property and/or a
business in downtown. (Members should
represent diverse types of businesses and
properties.)
Move the Downtown Business Association
Advisory Board into this category so there is
some separation between this advisory board
and the Chamber of Commerce. This would
change the number of members from four to
five. The total number of Downtown
Committee members remains the same—11.
b. Four business-at-large members with one
representative each from the Central Business
Association (the representative may be the
Executive Director), the Chamber of
Commerce (the Executive Director, or a
business representative outside the
downtown), and two businesses not in
downtown.
b. Three business-at-large members with one
from the Chamber of Commerce (the Executive
Director or a business representative outside
the downtown), and two businesses not in
downtown.
Remove the Central Business Association from
the business at large member category. This
would change the number of members from
four to three. The total number of Downtown
Committee members remains the same—11.
Bylaws of the Downtown Committee—Composition
November 15, 2022
ALTERNATIVES
1. Make no changes to the Downtown Committee bylaws.
2. Provide other direction.
PUBLIC NOTICING
Agenda posting and a copy of this report to the Downtown Committee, Downtown Business Association, and Chamber of Commerce.
Prepared by:
John Lang
Economic Vitality Manager
Approved by:
Aarti Shrivastava
Assistant City Manager/
Community Development Director
Audrey Seymour Ramberg
Assistant City Manager/
Chief Operating Officer
JL/4/CAM
819-11-15-22CR-1
202456
Attachments: 1. Resolution Amending the Downtown Committee Bylaws
2. Downtown Committee Minutes, May 3, 2022
3. Council Policy and Procedures Committee Memorandum,
September 28, 2022