1 City Council Meeting: April 22, 2025 Santa Monica, California ORDINANCE NUMBER _________ (CCS)
(City Council Series)
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF
SANTA MONICA ADDING SECTION 2.32.300 REQUIRING RESIDENT
REPRESENTATION FOR COUNCIL APPOINTEES TO NON-PROFITS
WHEREAS, the Council appoints members to certain nonprofits that play an important role as community partners providing economic, cultural, and recreational opportunities for businesses, residents, and visitors; and WHEREAS, Downtown Santa Monica, Inc. (DTSM), is a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting economic stability, growth, and community life within the Downtown District and Downtown of the City through responsible planning, development, management, and coordination of programs, projects, and services designed to benefit the community as a whole, including the District’s businesses, property owners, visitors, and residents; and
WHEREAS, the City Council appoints six directors to the 13-member DTSM board of directors, and board members must be City residents or persons who are employed, own property, or hold business licenses in the City of Santa Monica; and WHEREAS, Santa Monica Travel and Tourism, Inc. (SMTT), works to strengthen the local economy by enhancing and promoting the community as a distinctive, compelling and welcoming travel destination; and
WHEREAS, the City Council appoints five directors of the eleven-member SMTT board, and directors are drawn from Santa Monica’s community and business leadership; and
2 WHERAS, the Santa Monica Pier Corporation (SMPC) provides services to develop, implement, and maintain certain programs and functions in connection with the Santa Monica Pier, including marketing and promoting the Pier as a destination, producing community events, coordinating private special events, providing community outreach, monitoring street performers, and assisting the City with public review and discussion of planning and policy maters related to the Pier objectives; and WHEREAS, the City Council appoints all seven members to the SMPC board of directors, and members must either be residents of the City or do business or be employed in the City; and
WHEREAS, the Council believes resident representation on the governing boards of DTSM, SMTT, and SMPC is an asset to the community, as residents provide oversight and feedback on programming, operations, and leadership for these critical organizations that help steer the local economy and promote the Santa Monica band, history, and culture; and
WHEREAS, since their respective foundings, each organization has been served by residents on their respective boards, who have presided over careful curation of programming that benefits the community; and
WHEREAS, without resident representation working in partnership with business leaders, industry experts, and property owners, the community loses a critical voice on the governing boards in setting the strategic direction for these organizations.
NOW, THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA MONICA DOES HEREBY ORDAIN AS FOLLOWS:
3 SECTION 1. Santa Monica Municipal Code Section 2.32.300 is hereby added to read as follows:
2.32.300. Resident Representation for Council Appointees to Nonprofits A minimum of half of the City Council appointees to the governing boards of Downtown Santa Monica, Santa Monica Travel and Tourism, Inc., and the Santa Monica Pier Corporation shall be residents of the City of Santa Monica.
SECTION 2. Any provision of the Santa Monica Municipal Code or appendices thereto inconsistent with the provisions of this Ordinance, to the extent of such inconsistencies and no further, is hereby repealed or modified to that extent necessary to effect the provisions of this Ordinance.
SECTION 3. If any section, subsection, sentence, clause, or phrase of this Ordinance is for any reason held to be invalid or unconstitutional by a decision of any court of competent jurisdiction, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions of this Ordinance. The City Council hereby declares that it would have passed this Ordinance and each and every section, subsection, sentence, clause, or phrase not declared invalid or unconstitutional without regard to whether any portion of the ordinance would be subsequently declared invalid or unconstitutional.
SECTION 4. The Mayor shall sign and the City Clerk shall attest to the passage of this Ordinance. The City Clerk shall cause the same to be published once in the official newspaper within 15 days after its adoption. This Ordinance shall become effective 30 days from its adoption.
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
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Doug Sloan, City Attorney