From: TONY YEH 310-938-7578 <[email protected]>
Sent: Tuesday, July 22, 2025 2:36 PM
To: Chen, George <[email protected]>
Cc: Kaji, Jon <[email protected]>; Lewis, Bridgett <[email protected]>; Sheikh, Asam <[email protected]>; Kalani, Sharon <[email protected]>; Mattucci, Aurelio <[email protected]>; Gerson, Jeremy <[email protected]>; Poirier, Rebecca <[email protected]>; Garcia, Robert <[email protected]>; Ramirez, Michelle <[email protected]> Subject: Request for Policy on Commission Chair Rotation – Agenda Item
Dear City Clerk,
Please find my correspondence below addressed to the City Council regarding the need for a formal policy on annual leadership rotation for all City commissions.
I respectfully request that this message be included in the official correspondence to City Council and placed on the next available agenda for discussion and action.
Thank you for your assistance in ensuring this matter is properly recorded and brought forward.
Dear City Council Members,
This is Tony Yeh from the Planning Commission.
At our most recent Planning Commission meeting, we held elections for Chair and Vice Chair. As you know, there has been a long-standing practice—though unwritten—that the Vice Chair rotates into the Chair position, and a new Vice Chair is then elected. This rotation allows every commissioner the chance to serve in a leadership role, gain experience, and better understand the responsibilities of the commission.
Unfortunately, this practice has now been disregarded. For the third consecutive term, David M. Kartsonis remains Chair. This is not how a public service role should function. The Chair is meant to serve the community, not to hold power indefinitely.
Even within the City Council, the Mayor Pro Tem role rotates annually, ensuring all members share in the responsibility and experience. Imagine if the same Mayor Pro Tem 1 PUBLIC COMMENT REPORT FOR
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held that title for all four years—this would clearly go against the principles of fairness and equal opportunity.
Because this “unspoken rule” is no longer respected, it is time to make it spoken and official. I strongly urge the City Council to establish a clear policy requiring annual rotation of Chair and Vice Chair positions on all commissions, limiting each term strictly to one year. Without such a policy, the same individuals will continue to hold these leadership roles, denying others the opportunity to serve and learn.
I respectfully request that this matter be placed on the next City Council agenda for discussion and formal action. Leadership should not be monopolized. It must be shared.
Thank you for your attention to this important issue.
Respectfully but firmly,
Tony Yeh
Planning Commissioner
CC: City Clerk (for formal record and agenda consideration)
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