CITY OF SAN MATEO
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CITY OF SAN MATEO
Agenda Report
City Hall
330 W. 20th Avenue
San Mateo CA 94403
www.cityofsanmateo.org
Agenda Number: 8 Section Name: NEW BUSINESS Account Number: 10-1511 File ID: 26-10942 TO: City Council
FROM: Alex Khojikian, City Manager
PREPARED BY: City Clerk's Office
MEETING DATE: March 02, 2026
SUBJECT:
Boards and Commissions — Establishment of Annual Appointment Subcommittees and Vacancy Process RECOMMENDATION:
Establish the Appointment Subcommittees for the 2026 annual Boards and Commissions recruitment cycle; provide direction to staff regarding any Council Members who wish to serve on additional Appointment Subcommittees, whether eligible Commissioners may be automatically reappointed to an additional term, which upcoming vacancies will require incumbents to reapply and reinterview, and any additional direction necessary to carry out the 2026 recruitment process.
BACKGROUND:
City Council’s Rules and Procedures provide direction for the selection and appointment process for Boards and Commission members. The City Clerk’s Office administers this process, initially by notifying commissioners with terms that are scheduled to expire, verifying interest in continuing to serve, and coordination of the necessary recruitment, including outreach and engagement with the community.
UPCOMING VACANCIES
For the 2026 annual Boards and Commissions recruitment cycle, the City will have 11 commissioner positions and 7 Youth Commissioner positions with terms set to expire. Two commissioners—Board Member Murphy and Commissioner Robbins—have completed two consecutive four-year terms on their respective advisory bodies and, pursuant to Section
6.05 of the City Charter, are not eligible for reappointment. In addition, Ellie Chiu, the Youth Commissioner to the Senior Advisory Commission, will be ineligible to serve an additional term as she will turn 18 prior to the expiration of her current term.
The Civic Arts Commission was established by Ordinance 2025-10; therefore, all five seats will be open for appointment during this recruitment cycle. The duration of term for each appointee will be determined by lot at the Commission’s first regularly scheduled meeting. Staff will also be recruiting Youth Commissioners for first time for this Commission.
The City’s Rules and Procedures provide that the default process is for currently serving commissioners to participate in an interview for reappointment. Alternatively, the Council may approve an automatic reappointment by majority vote based on outstanding performance or other factors warranting continuity in the role. In 2025, the City Council directed that all commissioners interested in continuing their service reapply and participate in the interview process.
Table 1 below identifies the commissioners with expiring terms, the length of their service on the commission, and their expressed interest in continued service.
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Table 1: Commissioners with Expiring Terms
Commissioner Commission Duration of Service in Current
Commission
Interest in Continued
Service
Sheri Boles Community Relations 4 years and 10 months Yes Jennifer Kim Community Relations 1 year and 11 months Yes Alison Joly Library Board 11 months Yes
Erin Finn Library Board (Youth) 1 year No
Oliver Baker Library Board (Youth) 1 year Yes
Peter Wicher Park and Recreation 2 years and 7 months Yes Dahlia
Anapolsky
Park and Recreation (Youth) 1 year Yes
Tolifili Fa Mosquito & Vector Control
District
2 years Yes
Seema Patel Planning 5 years Yes
Susan Rowinksi Senior Advisory 1 year No
Pranav Sathish Senior Advisory (Youth) 1 year Yes
Sigalle Michael Sustainability & Infrastructure 3 years and 10 months Yes Zachary Scott Sustainability & Infrastructure
(Youth)
1 year Yes
Advika Singh Sustainability & Infrastructure
(Youth)
1 year Yes
Karen Moen Measure S Oversight Committee 3 years and 2 months No William Yang Measure S Oversight Committee 3 years and 2 months Yes There are some factors the Council may wish to consider regarding appropriateness for automatic reappointments or requiring incumbents to reapply and reinterview. The 2025 spring recruitment cycle resulted in a 78% increase in applications compared to the prior year, contributing to a more competitive selection process and expanded community awareness of the role and responsibilities of commissioners. Following the recruitment cycle, staff received feedback from some incumbents, including those appointed to partial terms, regarding the requirement to complete a reapplication and interview process within a relatively short timeframe after their initial appointment. The City Clerk’s Office also monitors commissioner attendance at meetings. For the incumbents referenced above, attendance has been consistent with Council expectations. Council may wish to note that one Youth Commissioner seeking reappointment to the Library Board has had limited attendance during the current term.
Council may wish to balance the goal of expanding community participation through open recruitment with considerations of continuity, institutional knowledge, and fairness to commissioners appointed to partial terms.
Question 1. Does the Council wish to authorize automatic reappointment for any eligible incumbents, or require all interested incumbents to reapply and participate in the interview process?
APPOINTMENT SUBCOMMITTEE ESTABLISHMENT
As part of this discussion, Council will be asked to establish Appointment Subcommittees to serve on interview panels and provide recommendations for appointment to the full Council for any scheduled or unscheduled vacancies that occur throughout the year. The City’s Rules and Procedures provide that, at a minimum, each Appointment Subcommittee shall include the Mayor (or the Mayor’s designee) and the Council liaison to the respective commission. Table 2 below identifies the default Appointment Subcommittee assignments.
The Rules and Procedures further provide that an Appointment Subcommittee may include up to five Council Members.
During the 2025 recruitment cycle, a majority (three or more) of the City Council participated on all Appointment Subcommittees for commission vacancies. When a majority of the Council serves on an Appointment Subcommittee, the interviews constitute a Special City Council meeting, which requires additional noticing and administrative coordination by
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staff. Historically, the use of smaller Appointment Subcommittees was intended to provide scheduling flexibility and to avoid the need to convene additional full Council meetings solely for the purpose of conducting interviews.
Table 2: Default Appointment Subcommittees for 2026
Board, Commission, or Committee Default Appointment Subcommittee Civic Arts Commission Mayor Loraine and Council Member Diaz Nash Community Relations Commission Mayor Loraine and Deputy Mayor Fernandez Library Board Mayor Loraine and Council Member Diaz Nash Park and Recreation Commission Mayor Loraine and Council Member Newsom Personnel Board Mayor Loraine and Council Member Cwirko-Godycki Planning Commission Mayor Loraine and Deputy Mayor Fernandez Senior Advisory Commission Mayor Loraine and Deputy Mayor Fernandez Sustainability and Infrastructure Commission Mayor Loraine and Council Member Cwirko-Godycki Measure S Oversight Committee Mayor Loraine and Council Member Cwirko-Godycki Mosquito & Vector Control District Mayor Loraine and Deputy Mayor Fernandez Question 2. Does the Council wish to confirm the default Appointment Subcommittees as identified in Table 2, or modify assignments and/or expand participation?
2026 OUTREACH AND RECRUITMENT SUCCESS PLAN:
The annual Boards and Commissions recruitment process serves as a critical mechanism for advancing civic participation, strengthening community representation, and supporting the City Council’s policy priorities.
In early 2025, the City Clerk’s Office presented the results of the 2025 Demography Study to the City Council. The survey identified continued disparities between the demographic composition of the broader San Mateo community and representation on the City’s Boards, Commissions, and Committees. Following this presentation, the City Council provided direction to staff to explore additional strategies to strengthen outreach and recruitment efforts.
In response, and informed by further research into best practices among city clerk’s offices throughout the State, as well as alignment with the City’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Strategic Framework, staff refined and expanded the City’s outreach strategy. The City Clerk’s Office has since updated the 2026 Outreach and Recruitment Success Plan (Attachment 1) to incorporate Council feedback, including the continued use of digital recruitment advertisements, and include measurable performance metrics.
Digital recruitment advertisements were launched for the first time during the 2025 recruitment cycle and will be utilized again in 2026. In 2025, the campaign generated 251,992 display impressions, significantly expanding the City’s reach beyond traditional communication channels. The 2025 campaign contributed to the significant increase in total applications received during the recruitment period.
Question 3. Does the Council have additional direction regarding outreach strategies, recruitment methods, or performance metrics for the 2026 recruitment cycle?
BUDGET IMPACT:
There is no budgetary impact associated with this administrative action.
ENVIRONMENTAL DETERMINATION:
This action is not a project subject to CEQA, because it is an organizational or administrative activity that will not result in direct or indirect physical changes in the environment. (CEQA Guidelines Section 15378(b)(5).)
NOTICE PROVIDED
All meeting noticing requirements were met.
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ATTACHMENTS
Att 1 – Boards and Commissions List
Att 2 – 2026 Outreach and Recruitment Success Plan
STAFF CONTACT
Martin McTaggart, City Clerk
[email protected]
(650) 522-7044